There are several e-mail scams aimed at photographers. Most start with the sender of the e-mail saying that they came upon the photographer’s web site and they love the pictures. The person will have some sort of urgent photo assignment in the photographer’s area and wants to hire the photographer right away. The person will offer to pay in full in advance.
If the photographer falls for this, the scammer will send a payment cheque for far too much money. When the honest photographer points out this “mistake,” the scammer will apologize and ask the photographer to refund the excess money as quickly as possible. The trusting photographer will be told to wire the money asap. The scammer’s original cheque will later bounce and the photographer will lose whatever money they sent to the scammer.
Another version of this scam is that after the scammer has sent a (fake) cheque, they will say the event has been cancelled and they need the money wired back to them as quickly as possible.
Another version of the scam which I received today:
Hello
My name is David lescott,i am a Freelance modeling agent working under instyle Magazine,i came across your profile while surfing on the internet it’s really great and i will like to do some work with you, I got a fashion outfit which will be coming up in the United States between 4th- 7th may 2011,so get back to me for more details,if you are interested in this job because it is urgent.
i look forward to reading from you soon
David.
Note the generic greeting and the bad spelling and grammar, all of which are common in these scam e-mails. Also the e-mail was not sent directly to my address but rather it was bcc’d to me. If you’ve ever worked for a fashion magazine, you’ll know that none of the information in this e-mail makes any sense.
A quick web search shows that a few other photographers have received this same or similar e-mail over the past two years.
Added July 2011: Another similar scam:
From: henryvosky3@gmail.com
Subject: Photography…
To: henryvosky3@yahoo.seHello and good day I just took a look at your photography portfolio and i love them because they are attractive,so i would like to know if i could buy prints from you framed in size 16×20 inches.Thanks so much and hope to hear from you soon
Regards
HenryHenry Vosky
76-85 Emscote Road,
Warwick CV34 5QG
United Kingdom
Added September 2019: Here’s another e-mail scam with the subject line of “Urgently Needed: Photographer/Videographer”:
Hello,
How are you doing today?. I hope this message meets you in great health. I will like to make an inquiry concerning my daughter’s wedding which would be coming up on the 5th of October 2019, i need a good photographer/videographer who will be covering all the event for at least 4 – 5 hours. Please let me know if you will be available.
Hope to read back from you soon.
Thank you.
Tina Byrd
(The return email is a Verizon.net address with someone else’s name)
While photographers are always looking for more work, don’t let your ego or greed take control over your common sense. If a flattering e-mail promises you work but something seems wrong, then something probably is wrong.
Yet another e-mail scam involves someone offering to sell a “desirable” domain name to a photographer. The domain name will include various photography-related keywords. The scammer will ask for just a couple hundred dollars which is usually a “special discount.” If you fall for this scam and send the money, you’ll never hear back from the scammer and, of course, you won’t get the domain name which was never for sale in the first place.
I have just been approached by this same person. You are right, it does sound fishy…. I did a search because the warning bells were going off in my head, and found this warning. Thanks….
I was recently contacted by this same guy. He claimed to work for InStyle magazine. Seams he caters his emails depending on the photographer, so seeing as i do fashion he chose InStyle magazine.
2 mistakes he made:
1: I’ve shot for InStyle before lol and if he worked there why was he emailing me from a yahoo.com address.
2: He should have done his research on me. I’m a former police officer turned photographer.
I will leave it at that!
I just received the same email scam too. Thanks for posting this and getting the word out! I knew it was fishy but I didn’t know the motive.
Wait! How can he be offering you a job in Toronto, when he told he I was going to get the job in Los Angeles?? :-)
I always love Googling the name on the emails to see who else is talking about these.
I got this same email yesterday. Too funny!! Ha ha. I’ve been in the magazine world for a while now and knew instantly this was a scam. I’m playing along though cause I think it’s hilarious. I’ll update here soon! Worst case scenario I’ll get a photo of a fraudulent cheque and frame it up.
Hi Owen!
We have just been bestowed with the dubious honor of being hit upon by this guy.
What a mook, let us know when he contacts you again for money and we can sic interpol on him.
My guess is that this is one of the same teams of degenerates that trolls craigslist photography pages.
Accurate communication and awareness kills fraud.
We were also contacted by this same person after he made an inquiry regarding our 16×20 prints:
“Hello Debbie
Thanks so much for your reply and for taking time to read and reply my email,it means so much to me,also regarding the prints that i need in size 16×20 inches,they are listed below and i have copied a link/location of where the prints are so all you need to do is to copy the link and open it on your browser,so please check them out and give me more information’s on them and also availability/price/framing etc,also i am so sorry that my response to your email came late it was because of dad,he has been so sick and i had to take care of him
Secondly as regards the shipment of the prints that would be taken care of by my private shipment broker because i have had some bad experiences in the past with the couriers and postal agencies,also he has some other items in the US to pick up for me for shipment so he told me that his agent in the states would come over to your place to pick up the prints as soon as you have received payment,so in order for this to be possible i would be needing your phone numbers inclusive of mobile and your full mailing address for the shipment broker
Finally as i said earlier in my previous email payment would be remitted to you via a check or money drawn in USD funds from a US financial institution on my behalf,so i would be needing the name to be written on the payment and the full mailing address for it to be sent to,so thanks so much for taking time to read this email and i am so happy that you appreciate me in as much as i do appreciate your works,hope to read from you so that we can proceed asap
regards
Nigel
Nigel coker
76-85 Emscote Road,
Warwick CV34 5QG
United Kingdom”
We get these types of inquiries all the time, including one bold fellow from Seattle who actually sent us a counterfeit check! He placed an order online to pay via check and it never arrived. When we emailed him to notify him that we don’t even start an order until the payment clears he sent a fake check. It must work on somebody or they wouldn’t go through all the effort.
Hi Debbie,
You’re right that this type of scam has to be fooling someone somewhere.
I wonder how many people fall for those e-mail scams about: (i) someone in another country has millions of dollars and they need help to move the cash, or (ii) someone in another country has died and left them millions of dollars.
But there is a scam that *is* working:
An unsuspecting person will receive an e-mail supposedly from a friend claiming the friend has been robbed while vacationing in another country. The friend has lost all their cash, credit cards and passport. The friend urgently needs $500 sent to them so they can get home. The friend promises that they’ll repay the money as soon as they return home.
I had exactly the same thing happen to me. Only the name I was given was Nigel Cocker. Even the address was the same.
I told him that I wouldn’t begin with the prints until the check or money order cleared my bank. He stopped writing and I have not heard anything since.
Let’s get the work out about this!
Darrin
Thanks for sharing. I just got this e-mail today:
Hello Izabela
Thanks so much for your reply and for taking time to read and reply my email,it means so much to me,also regarding the prints that i need in size 16×20 inches,they are listed below and i have copied a link/location of where the prints are so all you need to do is to copy the link and open it on your browser,so please check them out and give me more information’s on them and also availability/price/framing etc,also i am so sorry that my response to your email came late it was because of dad,he has been so sick and i had to take care of him
Secondly as regards the shipment of the prints that would be taken care of by my private shipment broker because i have had some bad experiences in the past with the couriers and postal agencies,also he has some other items in the US to pick up for me for shipment so he told me that his agent in the states would come over to your place to pick up the prints as soon as you have received payment,so in order for this to be possible i would be needing your phone numbers inclusive of mobile and your full mailing address for the shipment broker
Finally as i said earlier in my previous email payment would be remitted to you via a check or money drawn in USD funds from a US financial institution on my behalf,so i would be needing the name to be written on the payment and the full mailing address for it to be sent to,so thanks so much for taking time to read this email and i am so happy that you appreciate me in as much as i do appreciate your works,hope to read from you so that we can proceed asap
regards
Jamie
Jamie Goodie
76-85 Emscote Road,
Warwick CV34 5QG
United Kingdom
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It’s exactly what Debbie received, even address is the same! Photographers should know about this!
Izabela