Translation - art & business » Scams »
New scam English-Estonian
Thread poster: Lennart Luhtaru
Lennart Luhtaru
Lennart Luhtaru  Identity Verified
United States
Member
English to Estonian
+ ...
Nov 5, 2012


Hello Lennart,

Thanks for the email.Please see the info below my signature.

Regards,
Andrew Smith
Eagle Finance Co.
45 Walton St NW Ste B,
Atlanta, GA 30303
678-701-9193



On 11/5/12, Lennart Luhtaru wrote:
> Hi Andrew,
>
>
>
> Sure, just send me your info and I will send you a standard contract
> right away, also I need a full name (personal or business name) and an
> address for invoicing.
>
>
>
> Kind Regards,
>
>
>
> Lennart
>
>
>
> From: Andrew Smith [mailto:andygs112@gmail.com]
> Sent: 4. november 2012. a. 2:27
> To: Lennart Luhtaru
> Subject: Re: Translation(ENGLISH_ESTONIAN)
>
>
>
> Hello Lennart,
>
>
>
> Thanks for the response.My business colleague sent me to your
> association website where i got your contact info.You can make out the
> invoice to me with the details below my signature.Can you send me a
> contract in lieu of the PO? I will be away from office as i will be
> traveling tomorrow,i won't be able to process the PO.
>
>
>
> Regards,
>
> Andrew
>
>
>
> On Sun, Nov 4, 2012 at 1:07 AM, Lennart Luhtaru wrote:
>
> Hi Andrew,
>
>
>
> That is great! Please let your assistant send me a formal PO.
>
>
>
> Who should I make the pro-forma invoice to?
>
>
>
> Also, it is always helpful to know, where did you find my contact info?
>
>
>
> Kind Regards,
>
>
>
> Lennart
>
>
>
> From: Andrew Smith [mailto:andygs112@gmail.com]
> Sent: 3. november 2012. a. 23:24
> To: Lennart Luhtaru
> Subject: Re: Translation(ENGLISH_ESTONIAN)
>
>
>
> Hello Lennart,
>
>
>
> Thanks for the quick response.The quoted price is fine with me and i
> will like to proceed with the project.Please provide me with your
> payment name,mailing address and contact phone number so i can have my
> assistant sent out payment to you asap.I look forward to hearing back from you.
>
>
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Andrew
>
>
>
>
>
> On Sat, Nov 3, 2012 at 11:06 PM, Lennart Luhtaru wrote:
>
> Hi Andrew,
>
>
>
> Thank you for your inquiry and a very reasonable deadline! I would be
> glad to help you give a great presentation in Tallinn!
>
>
>
> Source documents have a total of 3580 words (2396+1184). My rate is
> $0.XX per source word and this would amount to $XXX.00.
>
>
>
> Let me know if this works for you and do not hesitate to contact me if
> you have any questions.
>
>
>
> Kind Regards,
>
>
>
> Lennart
>
>
> From: Andrew Smith [mailto:andygs112@gmail.com]
> Sent: 2. november 2012. a. 23:04
> To: xxxxx@gmail.com
> Subject: Translation(ENGLISH_ESTONIAN)
>
>
>
> Greetings!
>
>
>
> I'm Andrew Smith from Macon,Georgia and i'll be heading to the United
> Kingdom for a business presentation on Monday.I'll be making a
> presentation to some groups of Estonian speaking people in Tallinn on
> the 17th of December.I will need you to help me translate some
> documents from English to Estonian,so each of my audience can have a
> copy in their local language and they can follow through.The deadline
> for the delivery of translations is Decemeber 15,2012.Please,let me
> have an estimate for the documents(see attached).I look forward to
> hearing back from you soon.
>
>
>
> Best Regards,
>
> Andrew


The phone number lead me to http://www.proz.com/forum/scams/159334-scam_certified_check-page3.html. I'll just copy everything here to make sure google finds his new name and e-mail address.

[Edited at 2012-11-05 01:03 GMT]

[Edited at 2012-11-05 01:04 GMT]

[Edited at 2012-11-05 01:13 GMT]

[Edited at 2012-11-05 01:27 GMT]
 
DanielaBell
DanielaBell
United States
Local time: 12:43
Same email but different language pair Dec 16, 2012

Hello Lennart,

Thank you for your post. I received an almost identical email from Mr. Andrew Smith (or so the email said) for an English into Spanish translation.

Just so that I understand, are you saying that this is a scam and the sender of the email is just phishing for your personal information?

Thank you again.

DB

(I apologize in advance if I am not properly following the forum protocol. I am new to ProZ.)
 
Lennart Luhtaru
Lennart Luhtaru  Identity Verified
United States
Member
English to Estonian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
You are correct Dec 16, 2012

Hi Daniela,

Yes, this is a scam where they phish for your personal information first and then probably try a check scam on you after that (send you a check for larger sum etc.).
 
DanielaBell
DanielaBell
United States
Local time: 12:43
Thank you Dec 17, 2012

I cannot thank you enough, Lennart.

DB
 
Enrique Cavalitto
Enrique Cavalitto  Identity Verified
Argentina
Local time: 13:43
Member (2006)
English to Spanish
his is a classic overpayment scam Dec 18, 2012

This is a classic overpayment scam sent over and over and changing only the destination country and the target language. Overpayment scammers are primitive predators that usually rely on a set of templates to contact their possible victims.

You will find different instances of this scam in our scam alert reports sent on February 15, May 8 and 17, August 28 and December 9.

When y... See more
This is a classic overpayment scam sent over and over and changing only the destination country and the target language. Overpayment scammers are primitive predators that usually rely on a set of templates to contact their possible victims.

You will find different instances of this scam in our scam alert reports sent on February 15, May 8 and 17, August 28 and December 9.

When you receive a proposal from a stranger you may delete it or consider it. In the second case your first concern should be to get verifiable contact information from the 'client' and then verify it. Scammers will vanish when you use this very simple (and professional) method.

ProZ.com members can subscribe to the scam alerts, to receive via email all messages or a weekly digest. This information may save you time and money.

Kind regards,
Enrique ▲ Collapse
 
Celeste Klein
Celeste Klein
United States
Local time: 11:43
English to Spanish
+ ...
Andrew Smith / Mike Johnson / Kimberly Hubbell andygs112@gmail.com translation SCAM Jan 21, 2013

Dear colleagues,
Thank God for this forum... I am so glad I found your postings. I was just about to be caught on "Andrew Smith's" scam, too. This time for Spanish.

My suspicions started from the outset of the "project" when he would not provide me with a phone number where to contact him, he agreed to pay all the amount in advance without question, and then when I received the check today I noticed it has no sender (BTW, the handwriting seems to be that of a woman, and a youn... See more
Dear colleagues,
Thank God for this forum... I am so glad I found your postings. I was just about to be caught on "Andrew Smith's" scam, too. This time for Spanish.

My suspicions started from the outset of the "project" when he would not provide me with a phone number where to contact him, he agreed to pay all the amount in advance without question, and then when I received the check today I noticed it has no sender (BTW, the handwriting seems to be that of a woman, and a young one).

You will see below he provided all the contact information for his "assistant" (Kimberly Hubbell) EXCEPT, again, for an address.

My experience in sum:
- He sent me some financial documents for translations back in December. He wanted the translations into Spanish for some presentation in the UK where people from Madrid would attend.
- Deadline for delivery was extended.
- He agreed to pay the entire amount in advance, no questions asked (this was the second red flag for me).
- He said he was too busy to Skype and he would give me a phone # where to call him in the UK but never did; instead, I wrote out the terms of service in an email and he agreed to all of them, again, no questions asked.
- He sent me a check for $2,780 when that was not the agreed-on amount. The check is in the name of Mike Johnson (his "associate").
- He claimed their assistant ("Kimberly Hubbel") made a mistake and the exceeding amount was supposed to be sent to some German interpreter he hired because he is in Germany for a week.
- He requested that I deposit the check he sent me, then "assist" in sending the exceeding amount via Western Union to Kimberly, scan and send the Western Union receipt to him. Again, no address was given.

This was the final red flag for me... Why would I need to waste my time doing all that when he could easily cancel the check and send me a new one?

My last correspondence with him is below:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Andrew Smith Mon, Jan 21, 2013 at 9:55 AM
To: XXXX
Hello Celeste,

I just got to know a few minutes ago that my associate(Mike Johnson) made out a check for the wrong amount($2780) to you instead of $658.24.I instructed him before he left for Brazil to send $658.24 to you and have the rest of the money sent to my German interpreter in Munich as i will be heading to Germany for a week-long seminar before my presentation date.I called Mike immediately i saw your email and he told me she didn't get my instructions clearly and made a mistake sending the whole of my funds to you.However,i am really sorry about this mistake and i'm very fortunate you are an honest person.

Kindly proceed to your bank to have the check deposited.As soon as funds have cleared your bank,please deduct your payment for the assignment($658.24) and assist in sending back the rest of the funds via Western Union wire transfer(money in minutes) to my assistant so she can make the proper correction and have the funds sent to my interpreter.The Western Union wire transfer fee(about $161) should also be deducted from my balance as that's not a problem at all.I am very sorry for the inconvenience this may cause you.

Please,provide me with the scan of the Western Union invoice via email or the MTCN,Sender's name and the exact amount sent as shown on the invoice as soon as you are able to do the transaction so i can forward the details to her asap.I look forward to hearing back from you soon.Thanks for your patience and great understanding.Have a wonderful day.

Assistant's Information:

Name: Kimberly Hubbell
City: La Marque
State: Texas
Zip Code: 77568


Best Regards,
Andrew


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hope this information will help other potential victims in their searches before it's too late!

Regards,



[Edited at 2013-01-21 20:37 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
Magdalena Szewciów
Magdalena Szewciów  Identity Verified
Poland
Local time: 18:43
English to Polish
+ ...
So good to have proz! :) May 9, 2013

Here he/she goes again:

Dear Sir/Ma,

Am Andrew Smith

Translator is needed urgently also from English to what language can you translate to i mean your language combination

Get back to me if you are available for details and i will like to know how much you charge per page or words also the document is attach to this mail.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Regards,
... See more
Here he/she goes again:

Dear Sir/Ma,

Am Andrew Smith

Translator is needed urgently also from English to what language can you translate to i mean your language combination

Get back to me if you are available for details and i will like to know how much you charge per page or words also the document is attach to this mail.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Regards,
AS.

sent from susyjordan2@gmail.com on behalf of Xpert Services (xpertservices@ovi.com) ▲ Collapse
 
Annika Hedqvist
Annika Hedqvist  Identity Verified
Sweden
Local time: 18:43
Member (2008)
English to Swedish
+ ...
A similar one May 9, 2013

I got one too:

From xpertserices@ovi.com

Subject line: SERVICES NEEDED

Dear Sir/Ma,

Am Andrew Smith

Writer,Editor and Proofreader is needed urgently

Get back to me if you are available for details and i will like to know how much you charge per page or words also the document is attach to this mail.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Re... See more
I got one too:

From xpertserices@ovi.com

Subject line: SERVICES NEEDED

Dear Sir/Ma,

Am Andrew Smith

Writer,Editor and Proofreader is needed urgently

Get back to me if you are available for details and i will like to know how much you charge per page or words also the document is attach to this mail.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Regards,
AS.


There was also an attachment: STD.docx


It seemed pretty obvious that it was a scam and I got that confirmed thanks to this forum. The initial contact Lennart had sounded more normal, but then came the eagerness to get your address to send you money. Was that what made you suspicious? ▲ Collapse
 
Bazalt
Bazalt
Local time: 18:43
French to Polish
+ ...
Andrew Smith - Scam May 9, 2013

Hello,
I have just got that mail too.
Be careful of scammers.
Regards,
Chris
 
Livia D'Ettorre
Livia D'Ettorre  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 18:43
Member (2005)
English to Italian
+ ...
I also got it May 10, 2013

I got exactly the same e-mail as Annika. It was sent from laubrav@gmail.com on behalf of Xpert Services (xpertservices@ovi.com)
 
Tony M
Tony M
France
Local time: 18:43
French to English
+ ...
SITE LOCALIZER
ovi.com May 10, 2013

Note that this too is a free e-mail address provider, like Yahoo! and Gmail, though being perhaps less well known, is more likely to pass for a 'real' domain name.

I wonder if, as part of their scam prevention scheme, ProZ.com might publish a listing of as many of these 'free' e-mail providers as possible — I'm sure this would make an important contribution to the education initiative already underway, especially as scammers are clearly now expanding into using other, less obvious... See more
Note that this too is a free e-mail address provider, like Yahoo! and Gmail, though being perhaps less well known, is more likely to pass for a 'real' domain name.

I wonder if, as part of their scam prevention scheme, ProZ.com might publish a listing of as many of these 'free' e-mail providers as possible — I'm sure this would make an important contribution to the education initiative already underway, especially as scammers are clearly now expanding into using other, less obvious domains. I first received a scam message from one of these addresses about 3 years ago... ▲ Collapse
 
nrichy (X)
nrichy (X)
France
Local time: 18:43
French to Dutch
+ ...
Just got this one too Jun 18, 2013

From: Jennifer Bullis

Dear Sir/Ma,

Am Jennifer Bullis

Writer,Editor and Proofreader is needed urgently

Get back to me if you are available and i will like you review the document attach and let me know how much you charge per page or words.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Regards.
JB.

Jennifer Bullis
124 east Main Street
#25 new Hampton Iowa 50659.

-----

Th... See more
From: Jennifer Bullis

Dear Sir/Ma,

Am Jennifer Bullis

Writer,Editor and Proofreader is needed urgently

Get back to me if you are available and i will like you review the document attach and let me know how much you charge per page or words.I will be waiting till i hear back from you.

Kind Regards.
JB.

Jennifer Bullis
124 east Main Street
#25 new Hampton Iowa 50659.

-----

There was an attachment, FRENCH.doc, I didn't open it.

No relationship at all with the services I provide.

Take care. ▲ Collapse
 


To report site rules violations or get help, contact a site moderator:

Moderator(s) of this forum
Lucia Leszinsky[Call to this topic]

You can also contact site staff by submitting a support request »

New scam English-Estonian







Protemos translation business management system
Create your account in minutes, and start working! 3-month trial for agencies, and free for freelancers!

The system lets you keep client/vendor database, with contacts and rates, manage projects and assign jobs to vendors, issue invoices, track payments, store and manage project files, generate business reports on turnover profit per client/manager etc.

More info »
Wordfast Pro
Translation Memory Software for Any Platform

Exclusive discount for ProZ.com users! Save over 13% when purchasing Wordfast Pro through ProZ.com. Wordfast is the world's #1 provider of platform-independent Translation Memory software. Consistently ranked the most user-friendly and highest value

Buy now! »