[Gllug] Scam

[Philip Hands]

On Mon, 1 Nov 2010 11:04:34 +0000, James Courtier-Dutton <james.dutton at gmail.com> wrote:
...
> I think the bank has about 6 months to decide if the cheque is fake or not.
> So, if you receive a check, and then you make a payment out from that money.
> The bank can grab the check money back 6 months later, but you will
> not get your payment out that you did back.
> Conclusion:
> Checks are not worth the paper they are written on.

I have a feeling cheques never irreversibly clear these days.

It seems that many of these scams use stolen genuine cheques, which are
then washed to remove the original amounts and payee, so you are sent a
cheque drawn against a real legitimate business, with a valid signature.

The scammer just needs to get the victim to trust the "cleared" funds
long enough for them to send the change, or whatever the supposed deal
is.  When the fraud comes to light, possibly weeks later when the
company notices a discrepancy when reconciling their bank statements,
the fraudster is long gone, as is the victim's money.

Cheers, Phil.
-- 
|)|  Philip Hands [+44 (0)20 8530 9560]    http://www.hands.com/
|-|  HANDS.COM Ltd.                    http://www.uk.debian.org/
|(|  10 Onslow Gardens, South Woodford, London  E18 1NE  ENGLAND
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