Farelf Posted November 15, 2006 Share Posted November 15, 2006 ... The one consitency I see is vulnerability to extortion, i.e. "pay us to stop getting your company's name associated with stock fraud/scamming, or we'll keep at it until no one would consider trading in it, and see to it the authorities are investigating you to death. Have a nice day".Nice, a new nadir in depravity. Appreciation Rod, makes sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooster Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 Here's another iteration of the "captcha" ploy that I saw this morning. At least it looks tidier. The previous renderings looked like the author's scanner was infested with bark beetles; or perhaps he was suffering from terminal dandruff. http://img82.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sp...curantisvo5.png My problem with it is that I instictively try to type the text into a subsciption form; ... and almost feel disappointed when I can't. Benny over on the spamcop ng provided the following link to an interesting article that is germane to this thread. http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2060235,00.asp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jongrose Posted November 17, 2006 Author Share Posted November 17, 2006 Here's another iteration of the "captcha" ploy that I saw this morning. At least it looks tidier. The previous renderings looked like the author's scanner was infested with bark beetles; or perhaps he was suffering from terminal dandruff. http://img82.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sp...curantisvo5.png Yes, I agree. That definitely looks like an attempt to foil any type of OCR readers. I bet there is a software package out there somewhere that intentionally creates these types of graphics. Benny over on the spamcop ng provided the following link to an interesting article that is germane to this thread. http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2060235,00.asp I knew it wasn't just me that has been receiving an alarming number of these spams. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wazoo Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 Benny over on the spamcop ng provided the following link to an interesting article that is germane to this thread. Actually, Possum Trot posted it, Benny quoted it in a reply .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farelf Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 Do you guys need specs or is it me? Thought B e n n y was actually B e r n y? Yep, it is. I shall be charitable and imagine you are both using some Olde English/Anglo Saxon font with quaint "r"s (as the Bishop said to the Actress). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wazoo Posted November 17, 2006 Share Posted November 17, 2006 Do you guys need specs or is it me? You've got me dead to rights ... but then I believe I've mentioned that my monitor sucks (of course, in use 24/7/365 for over three years now, guess it's got a reason to be tired) ... the glasses I'm wearing were the last pair I picked up while still on active duty ... I retired over a dozen years ago .... and using the magnifying glass (the one stored on that shelf right next to the monitor) I'll agree ... I need glasses <g> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooster Posted November 18, 2006 Share Posted November 18, 2006 Benny/Berny ... would you believe I deliberately 'munged' his name to protect his anonymity? Eh, eh??? ...it could happen. And my apologies of course to Postum Trots. Mark Easter also gave us some excellent links this morning in the spamcop newsgroup that expand on the subject at hand. Mike provided additional summary text of his own that is worth taking the trip over to read. "SpamThru trojan articles" http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2060235,00.asp 'Pump-and-Dump' spam Surge Linked to Russian Bot Herders http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2034680,00.asp spam Trojan Installs Own Anti-Virus Scanner 'field' trial of infected bot http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1895,2029720,00.asp Is the Botnet Battle Already Lost? - machine infected with the self-replicating Wootbot network worm. Analysis of spamthru control at SecureWorks http://www.secureworks.com/analysis/spamthru/ Other names for the trojan http://www.secureworks.com/analysis/spamth...-virustotal.png Iweek article on MessageLabs report http://www.informationweek.com/news/showAr...cleID=193501739 Trojan One-Two Punch Sends spam Rates Soaring Infection modality http://www.esecurityplanet.com/prevention/...cle.php/3640546 fooster blundery bay, bc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
99clunk Posted November 21, 2006 Share Posted November 21, 2006 With any luck, we might not have to report Pump and Dumps for much longer... This link culled from 'The Register' We'll see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooster Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 With any luck, we might not have to report Pump and Dumps for much longer... This link culled from 'The Register' We'll see. That piece seems to support the POV that at least some of these stock "scams" are not P & Ds. If they are, the ones doing it are losing a lot of money pretty 'reglar'. Even a spammer should have been able to figure that out by now. Like: "Bank account bigger; good. Bank account smaller; bad. What wrong? Me soon broke!" !!!! It just hit me this very instant!!! How could I have overlooked it! What we might be looking at is poetic justice that borders on sublime. For what seems like ever, I have been wondering who could be gullible enough, greedy enough and/or drunk enough to fall for these "InvestTools", "WizeTrade" and the "Forex" System scams that run on latenite/early moring TV. Answer: someone with the brain* of a spammer. They typify a human* subset of depraved mendacity and flaccid intellect that would make them easy marks for such 'easy money' schemes. When they try to blend their spammers' tools with those ersatz computer programs flashing dynamic, multi-coloured, charts and graphs that show you exactly when to buy and when to sell that come packaged with these "systems", the inside of the spammer's skull must be a virtual riot of concupiscence. He must be completely mesmerized like the gambling addict who wears "Depends" while working his "personal" casino slot rather than risk surrendering it to someone else by getting up to go do Number 1. By similar reasoning, perhaps we might also speculate as to why the price of Real Estate in the US is taking a dip. There are so many deluded subscribers to the "System" that espouses anyone can buy property for "No money Down" wandering around making offers of "Nothing Down", they are artificially depressing the market. Oh well; why should I worry? I've just enrolled in a seminar that's going to teach me how I can make $5000, $10,000, even $15,000 a month with my computer, working at home in my spare time. Don't worry; I'll still keep in touch; seriously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jongrose Posted November 22, 2006 Author Share Posted November 22, 2006 With any luck, we might not have to report Pump and Dumps for much longer... This link culled from 'The Register' We'll see. That's good to know. Incidentally, those pink sheet stocks mentioned in the article are all of the same ones I've been getting too. Maybe my report to junkbusters did have an effect. That piece seems to support the POV that at least some of these stock "scams" are not P & Ds. If they are, the ones doing it are losing a lot of money pretty 'reglar'. Even a spammer should have been able to figure that out by now. Like: "Bank account bigger; good. Bank account smaller; bad. What wrong? Me soon broke!" !!!! It just hit me this very instant!!! How could I have overlooked it! What we might be looking at is poetic justice that borders on sublime. For what seems like ever, I have been wondering who could be gullible enough, greedy enough and/or drunk enough to fall for these "InvestTools", "WizeTrade" and the "Forex" System scams that run on latenite/early moring TV. That is a possibility. Many people are very naive when it comes to financial matters, so it is highly possible that spammers operating out of third world countries or places with extremely low education levels could be under the impression that they would be able to gain by these schemes, and it turns out it doesn't, as is what happens with most all shady investments. I could even imagine a scenario where the spammers themselves are possibly even the victims of a MLM type scheme, where there is one person selling a software kit to send out stock picks, and then recruit others to do the same to try and increase the possibility of gullible people thinking that it really is a "hot" pick if they are getting so many emails about it. My theory is that the P&D market just got over saturated. It probably started off with just a few operators doing this, and as word spread around about the money to be made from running the penny stock picks, everyone started to try and get in on it. For example, most people realize that the 419 scams are obviously bogus because there has been so much media attention on it. So, after that operation ran it's course, the scammers moved on to other techniques to try and rip people off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rooster Posted November 22, 2006 Share Posted November 22, 2006 That is a possibility. Many people are very naive when it comes to financial matters, so it is highly possible that spammers operating out of third world countries or places with extremely low education levels could be under the impression that they would be able to gain by these schemes,... I really was kidding; ... or dreaming; ... or both; at least about the technical part. The part about spammer brain functions; that I meant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexus Posted November 29, 2006 Share Posted November 29, 2006 Very interesting discussion, especially as I've been hit by exactly those same spammails myself. Now, these mail come from all over the world, judging by the reports sent by SC. I'm wondering how these people again and again find recruits, being willing to send these mails? Newsgroups? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wazoo Posted November 29, 2006 Share Posted November 29, 2006 Very interesting discussion, especially as I've been hit by exactly those same spammails myself. Now, these mail come from all over the world, judging by the reports sent by SC. I'm wondering how these people again and again find recruits, being willing to send these mails? Newsgroups? zombie-net is the magic word .... computers hooked up to the 'net' by folks that don't know what's actually going on .. no firewalls, no anti-virus, no clue about the dangers of those wild and wonderful offers that show up in their InBoxes, belief that those pop-ups are being sent from someone trustworthy and accepting those offers will really result in exactly what was 'promised' .. on and on ... brand new zombies made available daily .... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexus Posted November 30, 2006 Share Posted November 30, 2006 zombie-net is the magic word .... computers hooked up to the 'net' by folks that don't know what's actually going on .. no firewalls, no anti-virus, no clue about the dangers of those wild and wonderful offers that show up in their InBoxes, belief that those pop-ups are being sent from someone trustworthy and accepting those offers will really result in exactly what was 'promised' .. on and on ... brand new zombies made available daily .... OK, I see, thanks. Well, somone above had the idea it might stop all by itself as these stocks have gone down lately. I sure hope he is right about that. But the opposite might just as well happen, even more spam to get their money back..I keep getting the crap, as usual. And keep reporting it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexus Posted December 1, 2006 Share Posted December 1, 2006 Today, I received more stock spam. It keeps coming from all over the place, but this same operator stick out: numericable.fr. So I sent them a mail - maybe I should not have done that, I know - but this is part of the reply I got: "<abuse[at]numericable.fr>: host mta.numericable.fr[82.216.111.1] said: 550 <abuse[at]numericable.fr>: Recipient address rejected: MailBox quota excedeed since: Fri Nov 3 01:06:29 2006 (in reply to RCPT TO command)" No wonder nothing happens, one might think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jongrose Posted December 1, 2006 Author Share Posted December 1, 2006 This is a little off topic, but... Today, I received more stock spam. It keeps coming from all over the place, but this same operator stick out: numericable.fr. Just as with stock spam, any spam can come from anywhere in the world, and isn't centralized in one place. A spammer might find one target system whose admin didn't lock down the ship, it will be found and exploited until the hole is closed, then they'll move on to another. They're always scanning the net from all the millions of subaddresses for vulnerabilities, exploits, and the like so they can keep spewing their junk. The trend nowadays is towards using zombie-bot networks of improperly patched home computers that they use to send spam, but it will always be a cat and mouse game. The best you can do is just keep reporting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jongrose Posted February 28, 2007 Author Share Posted February 28, 2007 http://img452.imageshack.us/img452/2746/lifelw2.th.gif For some reason or way, this image got shifted from a thumbnail redirect, to just a thumbnail. I also can't seem to go back and edit the post. The full image can be viewed here: http://img452.imageshack.us/my.php?image=lifelw2.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farelf Posted March 1, 2007 Share Posted March 1, 2007 For some reason or way, this image got shifted from a thumbnail redirect, to just a thumbnail. I also can't seem to go back and edit the post...I can see no explanation for any change - so I've edited that earlier post to substitute your preferred link. That leaves only the quoted link in your last as a link to the thumbnail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jongrose Posted March 2, 2007 Author Share Posted March 2, 2007 I can see no explanation for any change - so I've edited that earlier post to substitute your preferred link. That leaves only the quoted link in your last as a link to the thumbnail. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farelf Posted September 9, 2007 Share Posted September 9, 2007 Update from Rooster by PM Hi Steve; Back when, I was agitating to get clear on what was really going on with what was being summarily called Pump & Dump spam operations. I remember feeling unsatisfied with this glib assessment, suspecting there was more to it than met the retinas. I came across this a few minutes ago. It pretty much supports my erstwhile suspicion, although it says it much more concisely. The 'meat' starts down at para 7. http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2007/September/07_crm_683.html ... Which reference says in partAccording to the charges to which all of the defendants have pleaded guilty, the stock manipulation schemes employed by the co-conspirators for each of the companies followed a similar pattern. In general, the co-conspirators either solicited the company directly or were introduced to the company by a co-conspirator. In most instances, the companies were small privately-held companies that needed to raise money. A member of the conspiracy would offer to help the particular company raise significant funds through the sale of the company’s stock, usually by a method similar to that of a “direct offering†or by conducting a reverse merger of the company into a dormant, but publicly traded shell company. Members of the conspiracy facilitated the process by arranging for the company’s shares to be quoted on the Pink Sheets, a price quotation system primarily used for the trading of the securities of small corporations. Through this process the co-conspirators would cause the shares of the company’s stock to become free-trading. Members of the conspiracy would then cause the company to give the co-conspirators and/or entities controlled by them, control of the majority, if not all, of the free-trading shares of the stock, often without the company’s knowledge. As part of the “pump,†the co-conspirators then engaged in deceptive and manipulative trading practices to boost the price and volume of the company’s stock in an effort to entice members of the investing public to invest in the stock. ... Read the rest, if you will, through the link. Net result $20 million which might seem worthwhile when they get out of clink except (hopefully) if the govt. exercises the "proceeds of crime" confiscation provisions which are (hopefully) applicable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
showker Posted September 19, 2007 Share Posted September 19, 2007 In January '06 I ran a 13 week series on the "Pump and Dump" spammers. With some considerable research and tracking, we did bring in the SEC on the project. You'll remember, then in October they suspended trading on a dozen of the top offenders. See: Pump and Dump Stock Schemes, and the follow-up. The series then followed in the User Group Network "Safe Netting" department. But we haven't done anything on it recently because it looks like only a handful of stocks. The series then ran through April, following the scams and stock reports, actually listing the stocks, company contacts, etc. We did receive threats, and a number of companies asking to be "removed" from their list. One rather prolific spammer threatened a law suit -- we said, "See you in court" ... they were never heard from again -- AND -- after that they stopped including their URL "Stock Tips" link in the spams. P&D stock scams are difficult to trace and connect the actual spammer with the company. Through investigation, we found the majority were, indeed, involved directly with the trading company. Yet others were believed to be driven by organized crime cartels in the middle east, China and Russia. In ALL cases of a GIF graphic used to elude spam trackers, we would include the link-to within the HTML, including the stock ID and company. EFFECTIVE, but takes human intervention, and much time! After the SEC suspension, the P&Ds actually all but disappeared. But this summer, they started back up again. I've been told the SEC watches this situation, and is now tracking. But there have been no new suspensions, unfortunately. I think they're basically just overwhelmed. Keep reporting them! SEC has a facility for reporting AND believe it or not is acting... See: SEC Charges Three in Pump and Dump Price Manipulation Scheme Involving spam E-Mails Touting Penny Stocks Post this link to your web site, and tell as many people as possible to read it: the “pump and dump†scheme SEE the SEC Internet Enforcement Program POST your Complaints: SEC Center for Complaints and Enforcement Tips The best way to stop it is not to buy the stock, and let the pumpers get dumped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farelf Posted September 24, 2007 Share Posted September 24, 2007 ... SEC has a facility for reporting AND believe it or not is acting... See: SEC Charges Three in Pump and Dump Price Manipulation Scheme Involving spam E-Mails Touting Penny Stocks ... Settlement of a civil action against the two I referred to in the DOJ criminal proceeding further above was reported in http://www.sec.gov/litigation/litreleases/2007/lr20269.htm "Disgorgement" answers the query I had about the proceeds of their scam and the criminal case presumably remains to be decided. Yes, the SEC does act and it acts in concert with law enforcement where applicable to ensure penalties have some real authority and bite, 'should that please the court'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stock-guy Posted October 30, 2009 Share Posted October 30, 2009 There are many agencies in US that deal with the issue for eg. Internet Fraud Complaint Center (IFCC) , Traps and Scams - Financial Traps & Scams and many more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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