If you run into a seller who only accepts Moneygram and WU as payment options you will see it is most likely a fraud. When you make a payment via Western Union you need a name, address and country of the receiver. The fraudsters will in many cases tell you that you can hide the “secret number” and only show him a printed proof of payment and he will send out the goods. This supposed “secret number” is only a control number to track the status of the order. It’s called MTCN (money transfer control number) and the receiver can pick up money without it. The best thing to do is if we look at an example. Lets say you are paying a person with this name:
Dr. Patrick Krieger
Arthur Avenue 143
Miami, 32003
USA
Now you think only this person can pick up money you have sent, but in fact your money can be picked by a China guy in Shanghai. Western Union has been created mainly for the reason you could send money if a friend got mugged or somehow run out of money in a remote destination or another country. If your friend is out of money there is a high probability he can also be without a personal ID or other official identification documents. So you don’t need an ID to pick up the money. When you are filling the form of Western Union you can require for the receiver to identify themselves, but then again, it can be picked up without the ID.
I shouldn’t tell you how easy it is to fake an ID in photoshop. With little practice and graphical skills you can create a false official document in an hour or you can order one in underground internet. Templates and scanned official documents can be obtained online you only need to change a picture and type in the desired name. A bank employee will surely not have the knowledge to recognize this fake ID and if by chance he does you can just go to the next WU agent.
Don’t get fooled with the MTCN trick. Thieves often repeat you can hide the Secret MTCN and after you have received your package you will release this number to them so they can pick up funds. MTCN, Money Transfer Control Number is nothing but a CONTROL NUMBER with which you can track the process of your money online. Is your bank still processing your order? Have the funds been picked up? It only is a number to check the status, so the receiver doesn’t need any MTCN to pick up the cash. If someone tries this on you, immediately stop any transaction or deal offer because it is definitely a scam.
If you know the person you are sending your money to, then western union can be the best option to send out money. For example, a family member is in a distant location and lost his ID and is out of money. No, problem you just send your support money via western union and he will be able to pick it up without problems. Also good if you are sending gifts or payments to reputable sellers that you thrust. A very fast option of payment, since the receiver gets his funds only hours after you sent it, anywhere in the world!
August 10th, 2010 at 4:21 pm
this guy tried to scam me!! this is an email from him…
My lawyer and i have decided to carry out a simple test on financial ability to pay for my rent before coming for viewing. I would not ask you to send your bank statement. I’ve been fooled so many times and i will not let that happen to me again. I’ve been fooled by several tenant telling me to come from New York to show them my property but when i got there for the viewing, they will never show up and when i called there phone they will keep on banging the phone on me so it has been a very sad and disappointing occasion for me and i waste a lot of money also for transport when coming for the viewing, so i don’t want that to happen to me anymore.
At least 2 month rent and security deposit which is $500 which is refundable after your 1 month stay in my flat, would be required from you to transfer through Western union money transfer agency. You can make the transfer with your name as a sender name and your partner or friend in PA premises as a receiver.
Once you have done this, scan the receipt to me and if you do not have scanner, you may write out the details on the receipt as i will send it to my lawyer to verify if it’s truly genuine and available in your friend’s custody, after verification, then we can proceed for the viewing and you can as well tell your friend or partner to pick up the money and also, i will refund back to you the cost of transfer when we meet.
Please let me know which condo (city) are you interested in because i have 2 condos for rent and i wouldn’t like to make a confusion.
In case you want it, let me know so we can arrange the transaction.
Thank You,
John
August 18th, 2010 at 2:01 pm
[...] http://www.bustathief.com/western-un…yment-options/ if it wasn't obvious getting offered a deal "too good to be true", here's a link that gives some [...]
October 12th, 2010 at 8:00 am
I have been corresponding with someone on facebook who is willing to loan me 50K. Presumably he’s an investor. I submitted a busines plan to him and he approved it pretty quickly.
He now wants me to send money to his broker in the UK in order to expedite the money transfer to my bank. I already paid the initial fee and then there was some other fee involved, which apparently deals with a debt that exists on his bond fund. If I pay this added fee I’ll be into this for over 2K. He can’t pay it himself because he’s out of the country.
Also, I should note that when I tried to send the remaining money to this UK person today, western union declined it, saying it was an illegal recipient.
Meanwhile, this person has a reference, which I checked out, and I can’t find anything negative about him online. Please help!
November 8th, 2010 at 10:08 pm
Yes Lorismel Mendezmatos is a crook I was lucky pay pal gave my money back and froze his account I still lost $ 10.00 and did not get what I paid for.. Time for police to arrest this guy
DAVID Says:
June 11th, 2010 at 7:56 pm
THIS IS TO EXPOSE AN EBAY SCAMMER. EBAY ID IS keepup2010. REQUESTED PAYMENT VIA WESTERN UNION EXPLAINING HE HAD SOME ISSUES WITH PAYPAL VERIFICATION. THIS GUY PICKED UP THE MONEY WITHOUT MTCN OR TEST QUESTION INFORMATION. BELOW ARE HIS DETAILS
LORISMEL MENDEZMATOS
8328 SPRING DESERT PL
RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA 91730
909-244-9792
lorismel26@yahoo.com
lorismel@AOL.COM
Steven Says:
June 17th, 2010 at 5:17 pm
Hello, I have also had a run in with this ebay scammer who’s ID is keepup2010 whom sold me an item then emailed me less than an hour latter requesting that we try to complete this transaction with another form of payment. He informed me that his paypal account had been frozen and that he would not be able to use his funds for more than 21 days and suggested we use another method of payment,ie Personal check,bank check,electronic transfer ect. The more I questioned him about a way to work this transaction out the less I have heard from him. I suspected that there might have been something not quite right when I received an email from this ebay seller KEEPUP2010 requesting funds that I emmediately decided not to send this guy money. Also on my paypal account the name of James Purnell whom this guy claims is a room mate,is the person whom my payment thru paypal was credited to. Is this an ALIAS? Could be.Thats why I am here,I have tracked this guys feedback from ebay as well done a web search and that led me to this site.
More information:
User Id: keepup2010
Lorismel Mendezmatos
8328 Spring Desert Pl.
Rancho Cucamonga, Ca. 91730
email:lorismel26@yahoo.com (I have seen this one,but not the other one)
Paypal:
Payment To: James Purnell
Sellers Id: KEEPUP2010
email:JPRANDB@yahoo.com
There is something strange going on here,and not even paypal and/or ebay have caught onto it yet. Two different names,two different emails same user Id. (BEWARE).
VICKKY Says:
June 23rd, 2010 at 12:41 pm
PLEASE BE ON THE LOOK OUT FOR THIS EBAY SCAMMER. HE SCAMMED ME VIA WESTERN UNION. ANY WAYS TO GET HIM WILL BE APPRECIATED. BELOW IS HIS INFO. AND HOW HE SCAMMED ME
NAME : LORISMEL MENDEZMATOS (Dj Mendez)
ADDRESS: 8328 SPRING DESERT PL
RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA 91730
Phone: 909-244-9792 (disconnected after received money)
951-271-1591
Email address:
lorismel26@yahoo.com
Lorismel@aol.com
djmendez84@yahoo.com
Ebay id: keepup2010
Driver license number is D7708513
Subject: Re: has sent a question about item #150453463421,
ending on Jun-16-10 02:59:37 PDT – Numark NS7 Serato Itch Controller & FlightCase Received:Jun-10-10 From:keepup2010Expires:Jun-10-11To:ynash11ItemId:150453463421
Dear keepup2010,
Hi… this is really interesting. I can understand the ish with your paypal account. but you wouldnt even accept credit card too. so basically you want a check sent to you first, then it clears and before you ship out? clearly this is against ebay policy. I am a serious buy but please come up with a little bit secured payment plan for both of us! I am not in disbelief that this is a genuine sale but c’mon its lots of money we talking about here you know. thanks for your understanding.
- ME
Dear ME,
come over and pick it up or sent someone you know who lives close to me, it is the only way we can do this other than a check
- keepup2010
From: ME
To: keepup2010
Subject: Re: ynash11 has sent a question about item #150453463421, ending on Jun-16-10 02:59:37 PDT – Numark NS7 Serato Itch Controller & FlightCase
Sent Date: Jun-10-10 13:19:48 PDT
Dear keepup2010,
lol..you must be kidding me.I reside in MD. well….well…well… you need to understand where am coming from buddy, been burnt a few times with similar offer. BUT i still believe in your business.
So tell me why you selling off this item and beside it only takes few days to be verified by paypal. can I have a call back number? sorry for so many question..this is the result of cash down but taking caution
- ME
VICKKY Says:
June 23rd, 2010 at 12:42 pm
From: ME
To: keepup2010
Subject: Re: ynash11 has sent a question about item #150453463421, ending on Jun-16-10 02:59:37 PDT – Numark NS7 Serato Itch Controller & FlightCase
Sent Date: Jun-10-10 13:19:48 PDT
Dear keepup2010,
lol..you must be kidding me.I reside in M. well….well…well… you need to understand where am coming from buddy, been burnt a few times with similar offer. BUT i still believe in your business.
So tell me why you selling off this item and beside it only takes few days to be verified by paypal. can I have a call back number? sorry for so many question..this is the result of cash down but taking caution
- ME
Dear ME,
Of course, here is my number, 909-244-9792 I can explain to you whats going on with my paypal account
- keepup2010
*** I called this scam artist and we spoke for over 30mins. He explained why is account is been verified by paypal. He said he received over $1000 for an item and paypal put a hold on his account because it wasn’t verified before the transaction. I asked him detailed question about the item. He had a full knowledge of the item.
From: ME
To: keepup2010
Subject: Re: ynash11 has sent a question about item #150453463421, ending on Jun-16-10 02:59:37 PDT – Numark NS7 Serato Itch Controller & FlightCase
Sent Date: Jun-10-10 13:42:08 PDT
Dear keepup2010,
Aww…that was a good conversation. thanks for the time. please send different pictures to exxxx@yahoo.com
please also send the payment information.. your full name, address and all those good stuffs…
once i am confident..I will update you and send payment!
- ME
From: ME
To: keepup2010
Subject: Re: ynash11 has sent a question about item #150453463421, ending on Jun-16-10 02:59:37 PDT – Numark NS7 Serato Itch Controller & FlightCase
Sent Date: Jun-10-10 14:02:20 PDT
Dear keepup2010,
Yes I did, I will get the cashier check tomorrow and post it to you. Once that is done I will notify you. I am doing this based on TRUST buddy. like you said, no one will want to jeopardize their life for less than a $1000 bucks.
Should I go ahead and buy it now on Ebay? please confirm the infomation below:
LORISMEL MENDEZMATOS
8328 SPRING DESERT PL
RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA 91730
- ME
****He convinced me to buy the item now that over 92 people were watching the item and I should pay via western union for him to ship it next day. I did a background check on his name and address, even used google earth to view what the apartment or house look like, ran a check on his phone number..was just trying to be sure if this wasn’t a scam.
VICKKY Says:
June 24th, 2010 at 7:22 pm
PLEASE BE ON THE LOOK OUT FOR THIS EBAY SCAMMER. HE SCAMMED ME VIA WESTERN UNION. ANY WAYS TO GET HIM WILL BE APPRECIATED. BELOW IS HIS INFO.
NAME : LORISMEL MENDEZMATOS (Dj Mendez)
ADDRESS: 8328 SPRING DESERT PL
RANCHO CUCAMONGA, CA 91730
Phone: 909-244-9792 (disconnected after received money)
951-271-1591
Email address:
lorismel26@yahoo.com
Lorismel@aol.com
djmendez84@yahoo.com
Ebay id: keepup2010
Driver license number is D7708513
Chad Says:
November 13th, 2010 at 1:42 pm
Dont EVER believe that someone will send you goods or services when you pay them using western union.
December 7th, 2010 at 2:53 am
hi…someone emailed me and hired me to work in his office at london. he said, he’s the one that will pay all the expenses going there and he added that he paid the immigrations for processing my visa documents trip to london. the Home Office, UK Border Agency emailed with visa document attached. it states there that one of the requirements in immigration is to go to any Western Union Money Transfer agent near me and make a deposit of £3,000 in my name as the receiver while the sender can be some other person’s name. because they said that upon my arrival to UK i will be the one to withdraw the money.
how can i determine if it is true or not? thanks.
December 22nd, 2010 at 11:37 pm
To Apple:
I had the same offer. Is the lawyer referred Tamara Finkelstein? If yes, we are scammed by the same people. I hope my reply is not too late.
January 9th, 2011 at 8:10 am
@Serena: Hi there! I’m interested on how you dealt with your situation. What happened?
January 10th, 2011 at 3:41 am
To apple and serena:
is this really true? someone also emailed me the same thing. but hadn’t mentioned anything about going to western union. is this really true? the lawyer is said to be TAMARA FINKELSTEIN.
January 11th, 2011 at 6:31 pm
To Serena,
Would you mind sharing what happened? The same person emailed me too…
January 25th, 2011 at 8:46 pm
To Serena and Apple
Would you mind sharin your story?
I got an ESL tutor job offer from a Chinese family In England. He even sent me pictures of his family and the apartment I will be staying in.And Offered to pay for all of my expenses included the Visa. Yes it doe look too good to be true but I get the same Deal working in Asia, so I thought it was a normal ESL offer. However the lawyer’s name is Tamara Finkelstein. I sent her an email to find out the Visa requirements and she sent me forms. The only issue I have is that her email adress does not sound like someone from the UK border office. And Afert googleing her name I found this.
So I guess I would’ve been scammed too if it were not for you guys sharing.
January 26th, 2011 at 11:04 am
To Curly-sue
I did get the same offer. Luckily I found this post before I sent them any documents – I did some research and realized that they can steal my identity if they have copies of my passport, transcript and the likes..
It really seemed like a good deal… I hope that other people were not scammed…
February 8th, 2011 at 7:05 am
I recieved mail with in the iMesh website saying that I had won some kind of reward from Western Union in the amount of $600,000 and it would be paid out to me $4500 dollars a day until all 600000 was paid….. Needless to say I did not respond but they were asking for all of my personal information including a copy of my ID. What should I do? Has anyone else got an e-mail of this nature? Obviously this is one of those too good to be true things…… right?
February 10th, 2011 at 8:14 am
Guys, as Im reading all this, I get so angry. Got scammed outta 300 pounds, WU. i sent it because WU assured me only my friend can pick it up.. with all documents.
Yes I was stupid but its still WU’s fault these ppl claim theyre 100% secure, theyre investigating i DEMAND my money back!!
DONT EVER EVER EVER SEND ANYTHING VIA ANYTHING TO ANYONE U DONT KNOW, NO MATTER HOW GOOD IT SOUNDS.. ESP IF THE PERSON LIVES IN ANOTHER PLACE AND NEEDS TO TRAVEL TO OPEN UP A FLAT FOR YOU TO VIEW.. OR EBAY OR ANYTHING..
THEY HACKED INTO MY GMAIL, GOD KNOWS WHAT ELSE THEY KNOW..
ITS ALWAYS A SCAM, DONT USE WU TO EVEN SEND MONEY TO FRIENDS, ANYONE CAN PICK IT UP, THEY HACK IN OR HAVE EMPLOYEES THAT ARE CORRUPT.
JUST DONT!!
February 10th, 2011 at 10:27 pm
Oh my to curly-sue,
I had the same offer like you do..Oh my God, I am about to send the money,when I thought Western union isnt the best to give my money….thanks to all these….
March 31st, 2011 at 8:34 am
WARNING SCAM and CON artist. Information below.
Sent from FAKE Ebay detail item information using this account: kaparesis5@gmail.com
Received countless conversation to get money using this account: davos325@gmail.com
Fraudster:
Used Ebay account under user ID: momosworld
Chris Darwood
12 Rathburn Rd
Toronto, ON M9C 3T2
Canada
June 8th, 2011 at 12:41 am
i just send money to france and the reciver not yet recived the money when i went to the western union counter and asked about that transaction they told that the money is already paid in france when i ask them more detailss they said that money is paid in clermont ferrand but the person whom i send was there is strasburg so what can i do now is my money lost or i will get it back????
August 30th, 2011 at 7:56 am
Tom Plunchit on Alibaba claims he is in the sales department of Thailand paper plc, his real name is MARCELLINUS EWOLO from Cameroon, he gives you very low prices for A4 paper, then he asks to send him money to send you the samples , in fact no sample will be sent and the money is stolen.
This is a big SCAM & FRAUD
WATCH OUT!!!
September 25th, 2011 at 3:43 am
Hello.
I need to end money to my friend in Greece. (in trouble)
I know him personaly, but he dont want to give his real ID when receiving the money fo personal reasons related to the ecomic situation in Greece.
I choosed to send the money via direct delivery by an agent at his door and with a password. My quetion is, will the agent ask for an ID verification when delivering the money to my friend?
September 27th, 2011 at 10:56 pm
I m the recent victim of rental scam.lost my money.somebody picked it up before I pick up.is there any way to get a refund from w.u.I sent money to my girlfriend and told the mtcn number to the scammer so that he can see the transaction.he took the money.WTF is western union doing with the security system?????
October 16th, 2011 at 7:56 pm
Never was going to buy but wanted to see what he would try..
From ebay…
eBay sent this message to Craig Cater(cparkin)
Your registered name is included to show this message originated from eBay.
Congratulations – eBay Transaction Started – 2 x Apple iPhone 4S 64GB Brand New Unlocked
Invoice for eBay Purchase Program, Case ID R9731GBR05, between Murphy Watson, as Seller, and Craig Cater , as Buyer.
Transaction Details:
2 x Apple iPhone 4S 64GB Brand New Unlocked
Brand: Apple iPhone Inspection Period: 7 business days
Model: 4S 64GB Price:
US $1,400.00
Case ID: R9731GBR05 Shipping: US $0.00
Description: Brand new , factory unlocked, 100% original Apple iPhone 4S 64GB in sealed boxes. 1 Year international Apple Care warranty.
Seller:
Name: Murphy Watson
Address:
20 Cochrane Street
Glasgow , G78 1RF
Scotland
Payment Details:
Invoice # : R9731GBR05
Due Date: OCT/19/2011
Sale price: US $1,400.00
Shipping costs: US $0.00
Total: US $1,400.00
Need help ?
Buyer:
Name:
Address: Craig Cater
2343 19th st
Seattle 94114
United States
How to make the payment
Locate the nearest Western Union office click here.
Make the payment with cash using the eBay Representative details.
Please send us a copy of the Western Union receipt by fax at :
International : 001 206-202-1630
USA : 206-202-1630
You have to send the money to our eBay Representative.
WARNING: Do not send the money to the seller directly.
We can not guarantee the safety of your transaction if
the seller have the money before you get your items.
eBay Representative Details:
First Name : Jurstil
Last Name : Travis
Address : 14 Patrick Street
City : London
Zip : W1U 4DE
Country : United Kingdom
Amount to be sent: US $1,400.00
Note: We will receive the money in GBP
We will refund your WesternUnion fees after you receive and approve your merchandise.
The payment receipt must include:
Money Transfer Control Number
Sender’s Name and Address
City, State and zip code from where the transfer was sent
We will keep the payment until you send us your confirmation that you are satisfied with the product you received. As soon as we receive your confirmation we will make the payment to the seller. Until then the seller won’t be able to access the money you sent and in any case you decide not to continue with the deal you will receive a full refund.
Note: Transfer fees will be deducted from the rest of the total amount when you and the seller will finalize the transaction.
Payment must be submitted via Western Union to our eBay Representative. eBay will secure the payment until the Buyer receives, inspects and accepts the item. Or, if it is the case, eBay will refund the payment to the Buyer.
When payment is received, it will be verified and secured into a non-interest bearing trust account. Payment verification process usually takes less than 24 hours. After payment is secured, the Seller is authorized to ship the item. Your funds will not be released to the Seller until you have received and approved the merchandise you are purchasing.
The Buyer receives the item and has 7 business days to inspect it. If it is complete and as described, the Buyer should accept the item. If he refuses the item, the Buyer must ship the item back to the Seller within 3-5 business days since the item was inspected.
After the inspection period is over, the Buyer must contact eBay Purchase Program Team with the result of the inspection. If the Buyer refuses the item, the refund will be sent to the Buyer after the tracking number for the returned shipment is verified. If the item is accepted, eBay Financial Department submits the payment directly to the Seller within 3 business days.
All the transaction, payment and personal information is considered confidential and will not be released under any circumstances.
Our main and constant priority is the safety of our customers
Live Help
For any questions you can contact eBay Transactions Customer Support by replying to this e-mail.
Please use the following button to chat with an eBay Representative right now.
October 22nd, 2011 at 1:45 am
Morni…..pls just 2 ask dis questn….. Can a person be track down or located….i mean to get his location by his/her mail address…is it possible.? Because i’m dealing with some issues online so that i can know my stand before i move in deeply…. Pls help me out in this question as soon as possible…
October 22nd, 2011 at 1:56 am
I’m about to claim some fund of $3.5 us dollar… Which i was required to produce some documents and it must be stamped by a senegales base lawyer….or chief justice.. I was linked with a man and he asked me to forward the message i recieve from the bank to him so that he can know how to handle the case..is this a scam or real..? Before i move deeply in it..?
October 28th, 2011 at 6:45 pm
Do anyone know of a guy called Paul Michael Sherman. He sent a copy of passport and a MOU, company name, email, telephone, fax and cellphone numbers all registered in LONDON, ENGLAND. I check his IPS address which reveal a USA location. Out of curiosity, I telephoned the number and got the operator that the number is invalid. I research the company and its address, and the address doesn’t exist in London, England. He claims he is an investor who is will to give me an investment of 10% AROI. This guy wants to give me $900,000USD if I help him to transfer $2million USD. However, to receive the investment loan of $900K, I must send him $10,000USD first as Perforance Bond Insurance (PBI). This smell like money laundry and scsm. Nobody pays money to get money. He claims he telling the Gospel truth and he is an honest and God fearing person. When I question him further, he said he will send a check. I gave a Merchant Account and asked the Merchant Account to investigate the check carefully. What we found was shocking. The check was originated in California from a well known drug manufacturing company and then re-routed to Canada, signed by someone then back to California. The check had a genuine watermark(but then, anyone can do an excellent job with PhotoShop software). what was so remarkable and strange, the person made an error of transcribing the incorrect amount from the figure. Immediately, we stop communication. Couple weeks later, he wrote to say that his agency’s bank account under VAINGLORY is closed/suspended and therefore he would send his address and account etc… for me to transfer PBI to him to a CYPRUS bank. I wrote back to him to request the address of the company and did a research. The company and its address do not exist either. When I told him all the information that I had found, he got very angry, swore and proclaimed he is a very HONEST man. Very interesting.
December 5th, 2011 at 10:10 am
THIS IS ALL SCAM!! THERE IS NO MONEY EXCEPT FOR WHAT YOU WILL SEND TO SCAMMERS FROM NIGERIA VIA WESTERN UNION OR BANK TRANSFER – LOST FOR EVER! IT’S SO CALLED 419 ADVANCE FEE FRAUD – STAY AWAY FROM THEM!
December 9th, 2011 at 7:51 pm
Sophia please help me follow my cv in your company,i have already sent my cv to your company email,please i need urgent response
jane from dubai