The Financial Crime Unit is aware of the increasing number of unsolicited email scams being received by Isle of Man residents. Although the type of scam varies, the general theme tends to invite the recipient to eventually provide personal details along with bank or credit card information including passwords. It is not unusual for recipients to be requested to pay sums of money upfront to cover “administration” expenses and “taxation” liabilities before any promised funds are released by the sender.

Needless to say, the promised funds never materialise. The emails are sent by fraudsters.

What can I do if I receive such an email?

Delete it. Do not reply to the email. Doing so tells the sender your account is active, and you may receive further emails. Alternatively, if you want to be proactive you can report the offending email to the relevant Internet Service Provider. This may prevent some other vulnerable person participating in a fraudulent scheme and losing money.

If you receive such emails, ensure you expose the full Message Headers, and send this information with the offending message to “abuse@ name of Internet service provider”. The Internet service provider details can usually be found within the body of the main email message as part of the sender’s email address. The Internet Service Provider is then able to evaluate and, if needed, take action against their subscriber if it is proven that the account is in violation of their Terms of Use. Do not simply forward the email – this will not include the Message Headers which are vital for investigation purposes.

To forward mail with full Message Headers

Using Hotmail:

1. Click “Options” to the right of the “Contacts” tab. The “Options” page appears.
2. Under “Additional Options,” click the “Mail Display Settings” link. The “Mail Display Settings” page appears.
3. Under “Message Headers,” select “Full” and click “OK.”
4. Forward the resulting mail to: abuse@ “name of service provider”

Using MSN Explorer:

1. Open the message and then click “More” in the upper right hand corner.
2. Click “Message Source”. The message opens in a new window with all the header information visible.
3. Copy all the text and paste it into a new message. Send this message to: abuse@ “name of service provider”

Using Outlook:

1. On the unopened mail, place your cursor over the mail, right-click, and click “Options”.
2. Under “Internet Headers”, copy the contents of the full headers.
3. Open the email in question and forward a complete copy of the message, including the full message header you copied at the beginning of the message to: abuse@ “name of service provider”

Using Outlook Express:

1. Select the unopened mail, right-click, and then click “Properties”.
2. Select “Details”.
3. Under “Internet Headers,” select “Message Source”
4. Open the email in question and forward a complete copy of the message, including the full message header you copied at the beginning of your message to: abuse@ “name of service provider”

DO NOT REPLY TO OFFENSIVE EMAILS YOU RECEIVE – DELETE THEM. DO NOT PROVIDE ANY PERSONAL DETAILS. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES SHOULD MONEY BE SENT OR TRANSFERRED TO THE SENDERS.

If you are an Isle of Man resident and have fallen victim to an email scam and have lost money you should contact the Isle of Man Constabulary Financial Crime Unit on 01624 686000, or at fcu@gov.im

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M.J. Venables

Detective Sergeant

Financial Crime Unit