[Tags: scam, internet, hints]
I just received an email offering a position with Advan LTD "Advan Group LTD". This is indeed another poor attempt at a scam.
How do I know this is a scam?
The senders address is different then the reply address provided in the email and the company has little history in a Google search.
Why am I writing about this?
Hopefully this blog will show up in search results and prevent potential victims. Since this is a new scam there were no search results for this company so I thought I should make some.
How does a scam have such a sophisticated website?
Anybody can create a professional looking website in a matter of minutes by copying an existing website. You can do this is Firefox by selecting File->Save as File->Webpage Complete. A scammer would then change the logo and text to coincide with the name of their fictional company.
What's the purpose of this scam
They want to get information from you... SS#(from application), bank account number (from direct deposit info), email address (for spamming), or they are going try get you to transfer your money to them using wires.
What are Common things to look for to spot a scam?
- Are they using a free email provider (ie: @gmail, @hotmail, @aol)? Reputable and professional companies have their own domain and use it in their emails (IE: @thesitename.com).
- Is the "reply to" address stated in the email? Is this different then senders email address? Scammers often distort the header to show different senders addresses so they get passed email filters
- Does the email provide a link to the companies website? Look up the urls registry info by going to http://whois.sc/thesitename.com. Check to see when it the registration was created and if the registry addresses match the companies address. If the website domain was just registered then this means the sender probably created the website just to scam people.
- Use Google and search for "the company scam" or that turns no results just search for the "company name with quotes".
- Does the email offer a Work at home opportunity? It is very hard to find a legitimate work at home job online so these should require extra caution before replying to
- Broken English, misspelling, poor grammar. Most of these scammers are foreigners and can not create a professional sounding email in english.
We have an opening position for your attention. This job offer is limited and can be offered for US citizens only. Our Company is looking for persons for part-time based vacancy. This is home based, online, part-time, fast-paced position. Part-time employees usually works over 4 hours every business day (from Monday through Friday) and typically do not work on weekends or regular holidays. During working process you will accept orders from our clients about purchase of tourist permit. Your starting salary will be from $3,500.00 (depending on employees plan), which will be paid to you in accordance with our standard payroll procedures. In addition, you will be eligible for bonuses. What we do? We buy/sell/exchange touristic tickets, tours, airline tickets, booking and etc. Our marketing management department decided to accept sales orders from international customers, that is why you are reading this job offer letter. During all working process you will be official representative of our company with full rights and standards. You will receive orders/payments/billing records/payment invoices/transactions from our clients, customers and investors Our part-time employees also receive an attractive benefits package. Please note that these opportunities are part-time only working approximately 16 hours per week. Actually we do not require any work experience or base requirements. This job if perfect for students, moms and those who are looking for good part-time/online job. This is a great chance to start your career with us, we are fast growing international company, dont waste your time, start your career right now. Hurry up, this job opportunity is limited.
If you are interested in our offer, we shall send you detailed description of the vacancy. Write to me on e-mail: maloof.marcie@gmail.com
You will get a response in 2-3 days.
Thanks for your time and interest.
NOTE: This is original e-mail letter from ADVAN LTD. This not any kind of: MLM, scam, spam. We will never ask to you to provide any kind of investments.
What should I do if I provided my information to scammers?
- Do not respond to further communications.
- If you sent bank Information: call your bank immediately and tell them what happened. They should be able to change your account number or cancel your account.
- You should consider signing up for automatic credit monitoring LifeLock Identity Theft Prevention
- You can also file a claim with The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3). The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). They are probably overloaded with these types of claim though, so I would not expect an individual response.
- If the email you received was different then the one posted in this post paste it below (or explain the differences) so others will find this warning.
If this post helped you I would appreciate if you left a comment so I know to keep posting these alerts. Thanks!
- Related Articles:
- Job Scam: Vacancy for you - Premier Group - CareerBuilder
- Craigslist Job Scam: Green Group Plastics LTD Office Administrator
- Finally I am getting the respect I deserve
Reader Comments (Page 3 of 4)
Friday December 12, 2008 @ 11:39 AM
I just received this email - different details but the same scam.
Tourist agency "Advan Group" has vacancy for position of "Tour Manager". We received your CV from Employment Center so now we offer you opportunity to work for our company. It's not a Spam and it's sent only to you as you've been chosen among many candidates. About us:
"Advan Group" was founded in 2001 and Head office is located in Sweden. We are part of the best 10 tourist agencies in Europe. We have been working in USA since 2006. Please visit our web-site for additional information. About Job:
You will be official representative of our company in USA
Your duty is supporting our american clients during their tours around Europe. We don't require any special knowledge from you. Our manager will train you and will be happy to assist any time. We encourage our employees who carries out responsibly in their work. Your monthly salary will be 4000 USD but in the future it will be increased. It's a part-time job you have to work only 3-4 hours daily. We'll provide you with career opportunity, after 3 months employment we review the results if our clients are pleased with your work your salary will be increased and you will be promoted. So your career will depend on how you cope with a task.
If you are interested in this job you can email us only at: jarrettadvmorton[at]gmail.com
after that we will send you detailed job description: Our company "AdvanTour" don't offer you any kind of fraud and do not demand investing money in our company.
We just offer you to be a part of our company.
Friday December 12, 2008 @ 03:58 PM
I received the same one & I'm glad someone's posting these but I wanted to share one I thought was a lil different. I receive these scams all the time.
Job Offer $25 /H
cnhiredesk[at]juno.com [cnhiredesk[at]juno.com]
You replied on 10/17/2008 12:29 PM.
Sent: Friday, October 17, 2008 11:15 AM
Attachments:
Good Morning,
I Saw your resume on Thejobplanet.com and presently Under review . Listed
below are necessary information that will be required of you by the Firm when
you are hired & i will like to know if you will be able to carry out the listed
activities Below.
Job Description
===================
Clerical and Administrative knowledge Compile, sort and verify accuracy of date
before input Locate data entry.
Errors must be able to work under pressure or deadlines must be flexible to help
around office with other tasks.
Be able to sit for long periods of time.
Book Keeping
Payment Rate
===================
$25-$30/HR
Requirements
===================
A high school diploma, preferably with courses in Accounting,Mathematics and
Computer Applications, with +1 yr work experience; Good organizational,
analytical, verbal and written communication
skills. Detail and deadline oriented and proficient in Microsoft Office ;
Benefits
===================
Health Insurance
Vacations
Bonuses
I Also Have a few questions to ask :
- Do you have office Equipment at home.i.e Fax
Machine,Scanner,Computer and Internet.
- Do you have another Job and if yes, Is it a full time Job or a part time Job.
- Will you be able to dedicated at least 4 hours per day
Get back to me immediately if you handle this job
Human Resource Dept
Computer Network System
This one was a lil different cause they didn't ask for any personal info. No bank account or anything & the email I had never heard of "juno" before unlike "gmail, yahoo, and aol". Just wanted to share this one.
Friday December 12, 2008 @ 11:17 PM
Thanks Darcy. I didn't receive that one and I'm sure it will be helpful to others.
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 01:06 AM
Glad this came up in search, been out of work 2 months and obviously getting desperate, because I clicked.. Good looking out.
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 10:02 AM
Glad to see this out there. Was just about to post something myself. Just received email from "advan group" two days ago. I requested further info. They responded with word doc similar to posted ones above. I'm concerned that with the number of folks out of jobs and their multi step process that they'll catch a good number of folk. The "follow up" email is copied below:
-------------------------
Dear Name
I am informing you that we have received and reviewed your profile and you are qualified
for the position of Sales Manager/Representative position, commencing December 15, on the terms
set forth in job description enclosed. Various benefits offered by our organization to new
employees are described in attachments to this letter.
You also can visit our website here: http://tour-advan.com
If you would like to apply for this job offer please do the following steps
1. Read JOB OFFER (find enclosed file).
2. If you agree with terms of job offer go to step №3.
3. Send me e-mail contains this text.
I, [ your name ] agree with terms of job offer and want to apply to this position.
MM, DD, YEAR
4. You will receive application forms and documents in 24 hours.
If you have any questions about job offer, terms or conditions, please do not hesitate to
contact me directly, I will assist you at any step of recruiting process.
I am very glad to see you in our team and wish you good luck.
Sincerely Yours, Carmen Ellis
mailto:carmenadvellis[at]gmail.com
----------------------
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 02:29 PM
Thanks for the warning! I appreciate it.
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 03:49 PM
Thanks so much for the warning, it did look like a scam so I'm so glad I went to look up the company and found this. let the jobsearch continue
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 04:34 PM
Glad you posted this. I just received the e-mail today. As it was an unsolicited e-mail, I googled the e-mail and this came up on the search. Seemed like a scam, nice to know my instincts were right. Here's the e-mail I received:
---------------------------------------Tourist agency "Advan Group" has job on position of "Tour Manager". We
received your CV from Employment Center so now we propose you
opportunity to work in our company. It's not a Spam and it's sent only
to you as you've been chosen among many candidates.
About us:
"Advan Group" was founded in 2001 and Head office is located in
Sweden. We are part of the best 10 tourist agencies in Europe. We have
been working in USA since 2006. Please visit our web-page for
additional information.
About Job:
You will be official representative of our agency in USA
Your duty is supporting our american clients during their tours around
Europe. We don't require any special knowledge from you. Our manager
will train you and will be happy to assist any time. We encourage our
employees who carries out responsibly in their work. Your monthly
salary will be 4000 USD but in the future it will be increased. It's
a part-time job you have to work only 3-4 hours daily. We'll provide
you with career opportunity, after 3 months employment we review the
results if our clients are pleased with your work your salary will be
increased and you will be promoted. So your career will depend on how
you cope with a task.
If you are interested in this vacancy you can email us
maloof.marcie[at]gmail.com after that we will send you detailed vacancy
description: Our agency "AdvanTour" don't offer you any kind of fraud
and do not demand investing money in our agency. We just offer you to
be a part of our firm.
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 06:11 PM
Dude, great article. I knew when I got this email something was suspicious. Needless to say I didn't respond and I applaud you for being the watchdog that you are. Too many people are being prayed on with the way the economy is right now. again, Bravo!
Monday December 15, 2008 @ 07:16 PM
Thanks guys for the info. I received the same email myself.
Tuesday December 16, 2008 @ 01:36 AM
I got this email from them
Tourist company "Advan Group" has job on position of "Tour Manager".
We received your CV from Employment Center so now we offer you
opportunity to work for our company. It's not a Spam and it's sent
only to you as you've been chosen among many candidates.
About us:
"Advan Group" was founded in 2001 and Head office is located in
Sweden. We are part of the best 10 tourist companies in Europe. We
have been working in USA since 2006. Please visit our webpage for
additional information.
About Job:
You will be official representative of our company in USA
Your duty is supporting our american clients during their tours around
Europe. We don't require any special knowledge from you. Our manager
will train you and will be happy to assist any time. We encourage our
employees who carries out responsibly in their work. Your monthly
salary will be 4000 USD but in the future it will be increased. It's
a part-time job you have to work only 3-4 hours daily. We'll provide
you with career opportunity, after 3 months employment we review the
results if our clients are pleased with your work your salary will be
increased and you will be promoted. So your career will depend on how
you cope with a task.
If you are interested in this vacancy you can email us
Lisa.BessoADV[at]gmail.com after that we will send you detailed vacancy
description: Our company "AdvanTour" don't offer you any kind of fraud
and do not demand investing money in our agency. We just propose you
to be a part of our company.
Tuesday December 23, 2008 @ 08:03 PM
Yes helped alot since now they are Advan Group, Advan Group Ltd and the *[at]gmail address made me supicious so finding your page helped may that doubt a reality THESE PEOPLE ARE SCAMMMERS.
Thursday January 15, 2009 @ 01:41 PM
They are now using the name Atez Travel Agency. I tried a google search for atez and nothing came up not even as a scam. Upon further review of their website I found the name advan-group I. Their privacy policy and that's how I got here. Rule of thumb: " if it sounds to good to be true, IT IS!"
Monday January 19, 2009 @ 10:55 AM
I recieved from Atez Travel agency as well and I googled it and it gave a pretty website but then it had Advan group in there to. Thanks this website really helped.
Wednesday January 21, 2009 @ 10:54 AM
I received a second email from Atez Travel and I was still skeptical. Your blog is right on .... incorrect use of the English language, ".gmail" for the email address, etc. I had already Googled the company and didn't find anything except for their pretty website and your blog. Nice work! Thanks so much!
Wednesday January 21, 2009 @ 01:00 PM
Received several e-mail and even phone calls to see if I was able to except a wire transfer today. Nothing came up when I searched. Here is the orginal e-mail I recieved.
Tourist agency "Atez Tour" has vacancy for position as "Tour Manager".
We received your CV from Employment Center so now we propose you
opportunity to work for our company. It's not Spam and it's sent only
to you as you were chosen among so many candidates.
About us. Atez Tour was founded in 2001 and Head office is located in
Sweden. We are part of the best 10 tourist agencies in Europe.We have
been working in USA since 2006. Plese visit our web-site for
additional information.
About Job. You will be official representative of our company in USA
Your duty is supporting our american clients during their tours
around Europe. We don't require any special knowledge from you. Our
manager will train you and will be happy to assist any time. We
encourage our employees who carries out responsibly in their job.
Your monthly salary will be 4000 USD but in the future it will be
increased. It's a part-time job you have to work only 3-4 hours daily.
We provide you career opportunity, after 3 months employment we review
the results if our clients are pleased with your work your salary will
be increased and you will be promoted. So your career will depend on
how you cope with a task.
If you are interested in this job you can email us
jose.nieves.atez[at]gmail.com after that we will send you particulars of
the job
Attention : Our firm "Atez Tour" don't offer you any kind of fraud and
do not demand investing money in our company. We just propose you to
be a part of our firm.
Wednesday January 28, 2009 @ 01:24 PM
I got the Atez-Tour offer as well. Thanks TJ for the heads up!
Wednesday January 28, 2009 @ 01:31 PM
I would also like to point out that the language from the "about us" portion of the Atez-Tour site was plagiarized directly from the "about us" sections of the All-Travel.com
Wednesday March 25, 2009 @ 06:15 AM
Tourist agency "Atez Tour" has vacancy for position as "Tour Manager".
We received your CV from Employment Center so now we offer you
opportunity to work for our firm. It's not Spam and it's sent only to
you as you were chosen among so many candidates.
About us. Atez Tour was founded in 2001 and Head office is located in
Sweden. We are part of the best 10 tourist agencies in Europe. About
Job. You will be official representative of our firm in United Kingdom
Your duty is supporting our english clients during their tours around
Europe. We don't require any special knowledge from you. Our manager
will train you and will be happy to assist any time. We encourage our
employees who carries out responsibly in their work.
Your monthly salary will be 4000Euro but in the future it will be
increased. It's a part-time job you have to work only 3-4 hours daily.
We provide you career opportunity, after 3 months employment we review
the results if our clients are pleased with your work your salary will
be increased and you will be promoted. So your career will depend on
how you cope with a task.
If you are interested in this job you can email us
robertsimonsatez[at]gmail.com after that we will send you particulars of
the job.
Attention : Our firm "Atez Tour" don't offer you any kind of fraud and
do not demand investing money in our company. We just propose you to
be a part of our company.
If it sounds too good to be true it is.
Friday December 12, 2008 @ 09:01 AM
Thanks for posting this! I just got the same email today, 12-12-08! You showed up in my search, "Tourist agency "Advan Group". Awesome!