The Saga of the Scientific Swindler! (1884-1891)
by Skulls in the Stars
February 24, 2011

When reading of the achievements of a giant of scientific thought such as Einstein, Feynman or Darwin, it is far too easy to envision the person, and scientists in general, as some sort of being above the worries of daily life. The reality, of course, is that scientists are subject to the same emotions and problems as the rest of humanity: they can be irrational at times, angry at others. Scientists can be fleeced by a clever con-man — and can even become the con-man themselves.

In the 1880s, a fascinating chain of letters appeared in the magazine Science and in other publications, including the New York Times. The scientific community was being victimized by a clever confidence man, who was working his way into members’ trust and then stealing from them. The exploits span at least 7 years and stretch over much of the United States. Most surprising about it, however, is that the con artist was so successful because he was apparently trained as one of their own.

Read the whole article here.

Fraud U: Toppling a Bogus-Diploma Empire
by David Wolman
Wired
January 2010

It started with spam. On a quiet August day in 2002, a physics professor named George Gollin was working in his office at the University of Illinois when an ad popped up on his computer screen. The product on offer: college degrees.

In a nearby computer lab, the ads leaped from one monitor to another, seeming to spread like a contagion. The spam barrage was raging across the Urbana-Champaign campus. “They were sending bazillions of them, for weeks,” Gollin recalls. “It was like a telemarketer calling over and over.” He decided to dial the phone number listed in the ad to find out who was behind the electronic assault.

No one answered, so Gollin left a polite message. A few days later he received a call from a man, speaking with what sounded like an Eastern European accent, who delivered a pitch for various degree options from Parkwood University. Gollin, who is 56 and has a BA from Harvard and a PhD from Princeton, listened in amazement as the man cheerfully explained how, for about $4,400, he could supply a PhD in systems engineering. (more…)

Computer Nerd Conned U.S. Military
The Daily Beast
February 20, 2011

So much for military intelligence. For eight years the U.S. government paid Dennis Montgomery, a California computer programmer, more than $20 million for software he claimed could stop al Qaeda’s next attack by detecting secret messages in Al-Jazeera broadcasts, identify terrorists from predator drones, and detect noise from enemy submarines. But the software didn’t work, and the government is invoking national security to keep the details secret. The CIA was so excited about the technology at first, one former agency official says, people called it “the most important, most sensitive” program they had. But when it was used in 2003, it set off a false alarm that led President George W. Bush to order airlines over the Atlantic Ocean to turn around. French officials, annoyed that the U.S. had grounded their planes, launched their own investigation into the program and determined it was a hoax. However, the U.S. kept turning to Montgomery, and in 2008, reacted to another false alarm—this time, Somali pirates plotting to disrupt President Obama’s inauguration. Not only did the government not look into Montgomery, it was determined that no one else should either. In the last few months, the Justice Department has issued protective orders to keep details of his software in court, some, like Montgomery’s former lawyer, say it is to save itself the embarrassment. Montgomery is currently in bankruptcy in Palm Springs, Calif, and facing charges of passing $1.8 million in bad checks at Vegas casinos.

Read the entire amazing New York Times story here

‘My Total Facebook Views’ Scam Spreads On Facebook
by Bianca Bosker
The Huffington Post
January 21, 2011

A new scam that appeals to both our egos and instinct for voyeurism is spreading like wildfire on Facebook.

An app going by various names, including ProfileSpy and Pro Check, claims it will offer insight into how many people have viewed your Facebook profile if you fill out a short survey and grant the app permission to access your information.

The scam has been making its way around the social network via status updates, which include a link to the suspicious service and text that reads, “My total facebook views are: 1245 Find out your total profile views.”

From the flurry of status updates that are appearing on Facebook, it appears many are falling for the phony service.

Don’t be one of them: Not only will completing the survey fail to shed light on the number of views your profile has actually received, but doing so will reward the scammer, who is likely to earn a commission, and, as All Facebook notes, “the whole exercise exposes your profile to malware and shares your personal information with an entity that will send you more spam in the near future.”

Top Taliban negotiator in secret talks with Afghan officials an ISI ‘impostor’?
Afghanistan News.Net
23rd November, 2010 (ANI)

Top US and Afghan officials have apparently been conned by a man claiming to be a leading Taliban negotiator in secret talks with Afghan officials.

For months, the secret talks unfolding between Taliban and Afghan leaders to end the war appeared to be showing promise, if only because of the appearance of Mullah Akhtar Muhammad Mansour, one of the most senior commanders in the Taliban movement, The New York Times reported.

But now, it turns out that Mansour was apparently not Mansour at all, as US and Afghan officials now say that the Afghan man was an impostor, and high-level discussions conducted with the assistance of NATO appear to have achieved little, it added.

“It’s not him,” said a Western diplomat in Kabul intimately involved in the discussions. “And we gave him a lot of money.”

On Monday, American officials confirmed that they had given up hope that the Afghan was Mansour, or even a member of the Taliban leadership, the paper said. (more…)

From Scott Beale of Laughing Squid:

The Zombie Network: Beware ‘Free Public WiFi’
NPR
October 9, 2010

It’s in your airports, your coffee shops and your libraries: “Free Public WiFi.”

Despite its enticing name, the network, available in thousands of locations across the United States, does not actually provide access to the Internet. But like a virus, it has spread — and may even be lurking on your computer right now.

Wireless security expert Joshua Wright first noticed it about four years ago at an airport.

“I went to connect to an available wireless network and I saw this option, Free Public WiFi,” he remembers. “As I looked more and more, I saw this in more and more locations. And I was aware from my job and analysis in the field that this wasn’t a sanctioned, provisioned wireless network, but it was actually something rogue.” (more…)

Tokyo’s ‘oldest man’ had been dead for 30 years
BBC News
29 July 2010

He was thought to be the oldest man in Tokyo – but when officials went to congratulate Sogen Kato on his 111th birthday, they uncovered mummified skeletal remains lying in his bed.

Mr. Kato may have been dead for 30 years according to Japanese authorities.

They grew suspicious when they went to honour Mr Kato at his address in Adachi ward, but his granddaughter told them he “doesn’t want to see anybody”.

Police are now investigating the family on possible fraud charges.

‘Living Buddha’

Welfare officials had tried to meet Mr Kato since early this year. But when they went to visit, family members repeatedly chased them away, according to Tomoko Iwamatsu, an Adachi ward official.

Authorities grew suspicious and sought an investigation by police, who forced their way into the house on Wednesday.

They discovered a mummified body, believed to be Kato, lying in his bed, wearing underwear and pyjamas, covered with a blanket. (more…)

Submitted by W.J. Elvin III:

Facebook Users Warned of Sexy ‘Candid Camera Prank’ Attack
by Ellen Messmer
NetworkWorld
May 18, 2010

Security firms are warning Facebook users to beware of what’s being called the “Candid Camera Prank” attack recently spotted on Facebook that tries to use the lure of a sexy video of a scantily clad woman on a bicycle to download a video player that’s actually Hotbar adware, and maybe worse.

Also: FBI details most difficult Internet scams

Websense and Sophos are among the security firms pointing out the dangers of the “sexiest video ever” trick, posted automatically on users’ profile pages, that shows a message posted on the walls of Facebook users, seemingly by their friends, of a movie thumbnail of a woman on a bicycle wearing a short skirt in a video entitled “Candid Camera Prank.” (more…)

Editor’s Note: This video depicts graphic and deadly American military action against unarmed, non-combatant people, two of whom were Reuters journalists holding cameras standing on a street in Iraq in 2007. The incident was vetted by the military and apparently covered up. WikiLeaks obtained the footage from military whistleblowers and stands by its authenticity. It is difficult to watch. Proceed with caution.

Collateral Murder – Short Version [17:47]

WikiLeaks has released a classified U.S. military video depicting the indiscriminate slaying of over a dozen people in the Iraqi suburb of New Baghdad — including two Reuters news staff. Reuters has been trying to obtain the video through the Freedom of Information Act, without success since the time of the attack. The video, shot from an Apache helicopter gun-site, clearly shows the unprovoked slaying of a wounded Reuters employee and his rescuers. Two young children involved in the rescue were also seriously wounded.

The military did not reveal how the Reuters staff were killed, and stated that they did not know how the children were injured. After demands by Reuters, the incident was investigated and the U.S. military concluded that the actions of the soldiers were in accordance with the law of armed conflict and its own “Rules of Engagement”…

For further information and/or to see the longer version of this video, please visit the special project website, CollateralMurder.com

thanks Don

HOAX NEWS: Russia attacks Georgia, Saakashvili killed
Russia Today (RT)
March 13, 2010

If one of your main news channels said your country’s been invaded and your president murdered – you’d no doubt be extremely scared. In Georgia, that’s just what’s happened. What’s worse is that the TV station only gave a brief warning that the Russian attack was a hoax – before frightening its primetime viewers for a good thirty minutes.

Related links:

Van Causes Scare Day Before Times Square Revelry
1010WINS
30 December 2009

New York (1010 WINS/AP) — A white van without license plates parked in the heart of Times Square caused a security scare Wednesday that rattled New Yorkers and thousands of holiday tourists milling about amid preparations for the city’s massive New Year’s Eve celebration.

Just weeks after a police-involved shooting in the area, the NYPD blocked off part of Times Square for about two hours starting at 11 a.m., calling in counterterrorism and bomb squads after officers noticed the 1992 Dodge van, which had a bogus law enforcement placard in the windshield, parked on Broadway between 41st and 42nd streets. (more…)

Insurers Trick Facebook Users Into Opposing Health Care Reform
Center for Media and Democracy / PR Watch
Source: The Business Insider
December 9, 2009

A coalition of insurance industry groups called “Get Health Reform Right,” led by Blue Cross Blue Shield and including America’s Health Insurance Plans, the American Benefits Council and others, has been caught tricking Facebook users into sending electronic letters opposing health care reform to their Congressional representatives by paying them with “virtual currency.”

Here is how it works: Facebook users often play habit-forming, online social games with names like “Friends For Sale,” “FarmVille” and “MafiaWars.” The games utilize virtual currency which allows players buy objects within the game and advance their progress in the game. Ads appear during the games offering Facebook users more virtual currency if they agree to take an online survey which, when filled out, automatically sends an anti-health care reform email message to their Congressional Representative. (more…)

Palestinian files $110M libel suit over ‘Bruno’
1010WINS
by Brett Zongker
December 9, 2009

In this Sunday, June 21, 2009 file photo, British actor Sacha Baron Cohen, who plays the part of Bruno, poses in front of the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin as part of promotional activities of the movie “Bruno.” A Palestinian shopkeeper and father portrayed as a terrorist in the movie “Bruno” is suing film star Sacha Baron Cohen, David Letterman and others for libel and slander. The lawsuit filed last week by Ayman Abu Aita in District of Columbia federal court seeks $110 million in damages.


Read the whole article here.



How fake sites trick search engines to hit the top
by Jordan Robertson
1010WINS
December 8, 2009

San Francisco (AP) — Even search engines can get suckered by Internet scams.

With a little sleight of hand, con artists can dupe them into giving top billing to fraudulent Web sites that prey on consumers, making unwitting accomplices of companies such as Google, Yahoo and Microsoft.

Online charlatans typically try to lure people into giving away their personal or financial information by posing as legitimate companies in “phishing” e-mails or through messages in forums such as Twitter and Facebook. But a new study by security researcher Jim Stickley shows how search engines also can turn into funnels for shady schemes. (more…)

Submitted by W.J. Elvin III: Come out Santa, it’s safe. Looks like it’s ok to let your jelly belly roll:

Peru officer suspended over human fat killers ‘lie’
by Dan Collyns
BBC News, Lima
December 2, 2009

Peru’s police chief has suspended a top investigator for saying he had caught a gang who were murdering people to sell their fat.

Last month, top organised crime investigator Felix Murga said police had arrested four suspects who confessed to murdering up to 60 people.

He said they were selling their fat for thousands of dollars a litre.

But the macabre tale now appears to be nothing more than a tall story – or a big fat lie. (more…)