If you receive a death threat email, you’re in good company. The so-called “Hitman email” scam has made a comeback.
Around since at least 2006, the content of the death threat email has evolved some, but the general gist of it remainds the same: the Hitman email claims that someone wants you dead, that the Hitman email sender has been hired to kill you, and that if you come up with a sufficient amount of money, they will spare your life.
According to the FBI, the Internet Crime Complaint Center “continues to receive thousands of reports concerning the hit man e-mail scheme. E-mail content has evolved since late 2006; however, the messages remain similar in nature, claiming the sender has been hired to kill the recipient.”
The FBI then goes on to say: “Two new versions of the scheme began appearing in July 2008. One instructed the recipient to contact a telephone number contained in the e-mail and the other claimed the recipient or a “loved one” was going to be kidnapped unless a ransom was paid. Recipients of the kidnapping threat were told to respond via e-mail within 48 hours. The sender was to provide the location of the wire transfer five minutes before the deadline and threatened bodily harm if the ransom was not received within 30 minutes of the time frame given. The recipients’ personally identifiable information (PII) was included in the e-mail to promote that appearance that the sender actually knew the recipient and their location.”
Did you catch that? The recipients’ personally identifiable information was included in the e-mail to promote the appearance that the sender actually knew the recipient and their location.
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Indeed, earlier this year, a recipient of the emailed death threat responded to the scammer, telling the scammer to leave him alone, and the scammer wrote back and included personal details about the recipient, including his work address, his marital status, and his daughter’s name.
Does that mean that the scammer actually knew him, and really had a contract to kill him?
Or, does it mean that, generally speaking, way too much of our personal information is available on the Internet, ripe for picking to be used in a scam?
Here are some examples of the form and text of the Hitman email:
Dear Friend,
Goodday to you.
Am very sorry for you my friend, is a pity that this is how your life is going to end as soon as you don’t comply. As you can see there is no need of introducing myself to you because I don’t have any business with you, my duty as I am mailing you now is just to KILL/ASSASINATE you and I have to do it as I have already been paid for that.
Someone you call a friend wants you Dead by all means, and the person have spent a lot of money on this, the person also came to us and told me that he want you dead and he provided us with your name, picture and other necessary information’s we needed about you. So I sent my boys to track you down and they have carried out the necessary investigation needed for the operation on you, and they have done that but I told them not to kill you that I will like to contact you and see if your life is Important to you or not since their findings shows that you are innocent.
I called my client back and ask him of you email address which I didn’t tell him what I wanted to do with it and he gave it to me and I am using it to contact you now. As I am writing to you now my men are monitoring you and they are telling me everything about you.
Now do you want to LIVE OR DIE? As someone has paid us to kill you. Get back to me now if you are ready to pay some fees to spare your life, If you are not ready for my help, then I will carry on with my job straight-up.
WARNING: DO NOT THINK OF CONTACTING THE POLICE OR EVEN TELL ANYONE BECAUSE I WILL KNOW. REMEMBER, SOMEONE WHO KNOWS YOU VERY WELL WANT YOU DEAD! I WILL EXTEND IT TO YOUR FAMILY, INCASE I NOTICE SOMETHING FUNNY.
DO NOT COME OUT ONCE IT IS 7:30PM UNTIL I MAKE OUT TIME TO SEE YOU AND GIVE YOU THE TAPE OF MY DISCUSSION WITH THE PERSON WHO WANT YOU DEAD AFTER YOU HAVE COMPLIED WITH MY DEMANDS, THEN YOU CAN USE IT TO TAKE ANY LEGAL ACTION. GOOD LUCK AS I AWAIT YOUR REPLY
Regards
And…
Subject: Merry Xmas to you and stay alive………..
Attention ,
I Want you to read this message very carefully, and keep the secret with you till further notice, You have no need of knowing who i am, where am from,till i make out a space for us to see, i have being paid $150, 000.00 in advance to terminate you with some reasons listed to me by my employer,its one i believe you call a friend and a Home Builder you do business everyday with,i have followed you closely for one week and tree days now and have seen that you are innocent of the accusetion,Do not contact the police or try to send a copy of this to them, because if you do i will know, and might be pushed to do what i have being paid to do,beside this the first time i turned out to be a betrayer in my job.
Now listen,i will arrange for us to see face to face but before that i need the amount of $150,000.00,you have nothing to be afraid of,i will come to your office or home, so determine when you wish we meet,do not set any camera to cover us or set up any tape to record our conversation,my employer is in my control now,$80, 000.00 will be paid to the account i will provide for you,after our conversation,i will give you the tape that contains his request for me to terminate you, which will be enough evidence for you to take him to court(if you wish to), then the balance will be paid.
You don’t need my phone contact for now till am assured you are ready to comply good.
NOTE: I have you whole details.
Lucky You.
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Has anyone seen this one:
Hello. I have bad news for you. One of your best friends ordered me and my people, so that we would deprive you of life. My people follow you for a few days, maybe you noticed my people on the streets.
I offer you a bargain. I will provide you with a photo, video materials where you can see where your friend is ordering your death in my people.
You can not turn to the police, but I’ll find you quickly.
You need money 5000 $. after payment I will provide you with proof
Think about yourself and your family, what will happen to you if your house explodes or the car in which you will go shoot my people.
I wait 24 hours if you do not send me $ 5,000 someone will die or you or someone from your loved ones. Solve only you.
My Bitcoin account: 1J5EvnekvYpSzCoPZDgNWHbx9o72zscM9e
How to transfer money to bitcoin information is on the Internet.
Don’t email me I won’t answer you for the sake of my safety I send you the photo and video evidence after payment.Think about whether your life is 5000$
P.S Servant Of Allah
im getting a threat on face book,, over 30 bucks$!!! Im 40 and this kid is 15.. what should i do,, I want to scare him not hurt him..
I just received the same “death threat email”, as Judy (comment #4) did. Email Received: June 10, 2009, 9:07 pm.
One should check out their IP at the time, and just see where it bounced off from when they sent it. Stupid people…I’m in bankruptcy, I have no money, so they wouldn’t be gaining anything from me but a headache.
Reporting email:
—– Original Message —–
From: “Bary Gary”
To:
Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2009 9:09 PM
Subject: xxxxxxxxxx
XXXXX
To You!
Just to let you know that fews weeks from now you will be out of the
surface of the earth if you dont comply with me, I have all it takes now
to kidnap and kill you, i have been sent by somone very close to you and
your family even in your work place to kidnap and kill you. I have all
the neccesary informations i need to carry out my mission, I know where
you go from time to time, i know who you visit i know your work place, i
know when you nomarly live the house for work or any where, i belive
very soon you will be dead, it takes me time to draw out your map now i
have all i want to kidnap and kill you, My boys are around you any where
and every where you go to.
Mind you dont act smart by trying to inform the police or any other
authority about this, as it may interest you to know that i have
connections any where and every where in the world even in your country
there where you live, I have conections with the FBI,LAPD, even with top
Governments officials in high offices. Dont bother to know who i am or who
sent me, because that is not neccesary now all you need now is to contact
me through my private e-mail if you want to comply and know mor about this
(E-mail:bary.blackkiller.gary9@gmail.com). For now i say Bye meat.
Regards
Bary Gary
xxxxxxx
Reporting death threat email……
—– Original Message —–
From: “Bary Gary”
To: “undisclosed-recipients:”
Sent: Wednesday, June 10, 2009 10:31 PM
Subject: xxxxxxxxxxxx
XXXXX
To You!
Just to let you know that fews weeks from now you will be out of the
surface of the earth if you dont comply with me, I have all it takes now
to kidnap and kill you, i have been sent by somone very close to you and
your family even in your work place to kidnap and kill you. I have all
the neccesary informations i need to carry out my mission, I know where
you go from time to time, i know who you visit i know your work place, i
know when you nomarly live the house for work or any where, i belive
very soon you will be dead, it takes me time to draw out your map now i
have all i want to kidnap and kill you, My boys are around you any where
and every where you go to.
Mind you dont act smart by trying to inform the police or any other
authority about this, as it may interest you to know that i have
connections any where and every where in the world even in your country
there where you live, I have conections with the FBI,LAPD, even with top
Governments officials in high offices. Dont bother to know who i am or who
sent me, because that is not neccesary now all you need now is to contact
me through my private e-mail if you want to comply and know mor about this
(E-mail:). For now i say Bye meat.
Regards
Bary Gary
xxxxxxx
——————————————————————————–
No virus found in this incoming message.
Checked by AVG – www.avg.com
Version: 8.5.339 / Virus Database: 270.12.62/2168 – Release Date: 06/10/09 18:30:00
I receiveed death threats to my email…need to report!…where do i go?
this is too funny for words. i’m sitting in a house full of guns and they’d threaten me with an e-mail? lock and load.
“gunner”
How come I never get any of these things? Maybe it’s because there is very little about me on the net. I learned to keep a low profile while during my employment with Uncle and it still pays off.
Rich