First email from scammer:
From: serena wilcox [serenawilcox0147@live.com]Second email:
Subject: ORDER ENQUIRY!
Hello,
I want to place an order in your store,and i will like to know if you ship to Australia and my method of payment will be credit card. So please let me know if you can assist me with the order ,And please do not forget to include your web page in your replying back to my mail.I will await your prompt response as soon as you receive this mail
Serena.
From: serena wilcox [serenawilcox0147@live.com]Third email, scammer has complete memory loss:
Subject: Re: Quote Needed!
Hello,
Here is my order :
pitcher Wood fired salt glazed stoneware
QTY:1
salt glazed stoneware coffee server and cups
QTY:1
Stoneware Coffee Server with Cobalt Shino and Natural Ash Salt Glaze
QTY:1
Large Wood fired stoneware vase
QTY:1
stoneware Teapot Salt Glaze
QTY:1
.
Please get back to me with the total cost estimate for this order so that i can make my payment via my USA issued credit card. I am an American but I live and work here in Australia and I want these products here.
Do not worry about the shipping , I will make arrangement for the pick up of these items from your place thru my shipping agency.
PLEASE LET ME KNOW THE GRAND TOTAL WEIGHT OF THESE ITEMS FOR SHIPPING REASON.
Serena.
From: Serena Wilcox [serenawilcox0147@live.com]
Subject: RE: Quote Needed!
Hello
Thanks for the mail, can you email me with list of titles you have in stock for the selected artist so i can make my choice and get back to you with the list of choosen work.
Thanks with regards
Serena.
I just received same inquiry today and responded to her but something didn't feel right so I googled her name and found this! I think I will play with her and see what her game is.
ReplyDeleteI received exactly the same email from Serena Wilcox in Australia. The person inquired about the purchase of one of my most expensive works. When I realized that she was interested in purchasing the original painting I was initially excited, especially in these difficult times for artists. I thought perhaps this individual was someone important enough to have some sort of publicity so I googled her and found this great blog. Thank you all for saving me from this disaster.
ReplyDeleteLen,
ReplyDeleteYou are quite welcomed! It's why I started this blog in the first place. I hope to just keep posting these and hopefully artists will google the name of the person emailing them if their "gut" tells them something is off, and we can help confirm - and save artists from falling victim. I've also started a facebook page called Stop Art Scams and hope to begin spreading the word even further.
July 28th, 2010. Thank you for the info. I just got one in Hawai'i. Thanks to your post, I did not respond.
ReplyDeleteI received the same e-mail and played along, but I am so happy to see this blog. As a working artist for over 30 years, I knew it was too good to be true. Thank you, Patrick
ReplyDeleteWe got the same thing with the name "Alice Drew" or "Alice drew"
ReplyDeleteThe atrocious grammar tipped us off, plus the redundant requests. Thanks for posting this!
Any idea what this is about, or what the end-game is? I sell craft supplies (glass bead making materials) and got this same email a few days apart with 2 different names, so I knew it was a scam - but a scam for what? Obviously it's a robot that gathers info from an ecommerce site, so they have my URL and Email address... I don't ship without payment, so they're not getting anything free, and they're not asking for finacial information of any sort... So has anyone played this game to the end? What was the result?
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info in advance!
Doug,
ReplyDeletethe scam goes like this: they pretend they want to buy something, perhaps a bunch of things. They say either they are working in a foreign country (lately it seems to always be Australia) or they are moving to a foreign country. They promise to Fed Ex a check or money order (sometimes they say credit card if they have access to fraudulent cards) and they will pay you the amount plus the shipping fee but their "shipping company" is handling everything and they will pick the items up.
You'll then get a check for more than the amount stated, with some story about why its more and a request to just send the "difference" back to them. Of course the check is bad and you are out the check as well as the "difference" you sent back, which in many cases can be as much as a couple thousand dollars, whatever you shipped to them.
That's how the scam works.
My job is to keep as many people from falling for this as possible.
A non profit art space in NYC was contacted by Serena Wilcox as well.
ReplyDeleteWe're not following through with any flat files sales and for that we thank you for your posting and warning.