A generic death threat conveyed by phone text message and coming from unknown persons claiming to be hired hit men is fast circulating. The offenders try to extort thousands of dollars from their victims.
The text message is simple; it’s a warning that the recipient has been targeted for death- but will be spared if they pay up.
These death threats involve SMS messages arriving from what appears to be an international number (some say coming from Thailand or Asia in general). In many cases though the number is be blocked.
An example may read: "Someone paid me to kill you. If you want me to spare you, I'll give you two days to pay $5000. If you inform the police or anybody, you will die, I am watching you."
Some messages are long and contain much text, while others are shorter.
The requested amount can vary from between $1000-$50,000. The scam includes payment details and an e-mail address for their victims to contact them when payment is complete.
This scam is designed to frighten people into paying money and has already snared victims across many countries.
If you’ve received an e-mail like this don't respond under any circumstances. Most people think the people sending these are just guessing random numbers, but if you respond they will know the number is lead.
Don't send any money.
Don’t provide personal information, especially not your banking details- You risk being a victim of identity theft.
Report the incident to authorities as they may be able to trace the number.
If you are scared for your safety consult police.
Telegraph Article : Army Wives Receive Phone Death Threats
Wives and family members of soldiers fighting in Iraq have received telephone calls, believed to include death threats, from insurgents, according to military documents seen by The Sunday Telegraph.
The "nuisance" calls have been made with increasing frequency over the past few weeks after insurgents managed to obtain home numbers from soldiers' mobile telephones.
The growing number of calls has led to an investigation by the Royal Military Police, which has issued a warning to all soldiers in Iraq to take great care when using mobile telephones to call home.
The extent of the problem emerged in a restricted Army document issued to soldiers of the London Regiment, a Territorial Army unit, which has soldiers from its ranks serving in Iraq.
The document warns soldiers preparing to take part in operations that insurgents in southern Iraq have managed to obtain the home telephone numbers of soldiers by using electronic intercept devices to hack into mobile phone systems.
Read the full Telegraph Article Here
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment