Trying to Figure Out This Scam / ID Theft Attempt

Tucker301

Tucker301

Groundskeeper
Banned !
Feb 13, 2015
9,494
23,366
Southern VA
#1
Got an unexpected package in the mail today from Vanuatu (small Pacific island near Australia becoming well known as a haven for scams).
A very small lightweight envelope with a very small, cheap, lightweight item inside, and a customs label on the outside.
Had to Google WTF the thing actually is. It's a makeup sponge. Light and small, I assume to minimize cost of mailing across the world and to easily pass x-ray at customs.

So far, there's no indication of suspicious activity on my credit cards, Ebay, or PayPal accounts, but this thing came addressed to my legal first name, and I always go by my middle name, meaning whoever sent it, for whatever reason, has access to something they should not.

Search results really didn't reveal anything, so I assume whatever the play is here, it's a fairly new game.

Could Customs or USPS shed any light? I'll take it to the Post Office and ask them about it tomorrow, but I expect them to be just as clueless as I am, if not more.

Again, the item seems insignificant and only there because they had to send me something to launch the scam.

https://www.amazon.com/CAETLE-1-Beauty-Flawless-Blender-Comestic/dp/B01D1JRRCU


 
#5
Tucker301 said:
No. Friends and family never refer to me by my first name. And I don't use a lot of makeup.
Click to expand...

Oh, I just looked at the link u posted, my bad. Humm, gosh I hope there's no "Anthrax" or some shit like that. But agreed, very odd and a head scratcher. Always makes u wonder how and where are personal info is going or being used
 
#6
I think it's lovely and a wonderful accessory for your kit, Bartholomew? ;)

Hope it don't go south buddy. Would send me to the nervous hospital for a few days for sure.
 
#9
southerngolfer said:
Oh, I just looked at the link u posted, my bad. Humm, gosh I hope there's no "Anthrax" or some shit like that. But agreed, very odd and a head scratcher. Always makes u wonder how and where are personal info is going or being used
Click to expand...

Funny you should say that, because it's exactly what I was thinking when I carefully opened the damned thing. The sponge was inside a sealed container of its own, and there it remains. But it looks like a factory container and seal.
 
#10
I guess the good news is that the list of suspects on Vanuatu has got to be pretty fucking small.

If you find him let me know, one of my guys overseas played for Fiji's national Sevens Rugby team. He'd probably still maim a motherfucker for me. Keep in mind that you'd probably owe him a daughter or acceptable substitute as payment though.
 
#11
U want me to skip over there and mess shit up Tucker ? Dont sweat it , ex girlfriend got an attempted
scam from same place . Put ' not at this address RTS ' on the package and send it back .
You are still gonna need to know where they got your details from though . I'm guessing the local
LE may not have a particularly strong cybercrime department there .....
 
#12
Was there any sort of delivery confirmation or automatic RTS in the event that the package was undeliverable? It seems like an attempt to confirm the connection between you and your address. With a reasonable idea about your income level, habits, and possessions from some sort of a purloined database, financial, affinity, or otherwise, they may be qualifying their assumptions. Living out at the end of a long drive in the middle of a secluded parcel could make for a nightmare. I'd think Postal Inspectors.
 
#13
Clearlight said:
U want me to skip over there and mess shit up Tucker ? Dont sweat it , ex girlfriend got an attempted
scam from same place . Put ' not at this address RTS ' on the package and send it back .
You are still gonna need to know where they got your details from though . I'm guessing the local
LE may not have a particularly strong cybercrime department there .....
Click to expand...

Exactly. I've dealt the local LE on cyber and phone scams of some of my IT clients before, and they are little to no help. I usually have to explain it to them several times and then they're like, "Oh, OK. Yeah. We can't do anything about that."
In their defense, no one can do much about it, due to the logistics and cost to investigate.

If you could go to the post office in Port Vila and surveil box 624 for a few days, that'd be great. LOL
Veer, no. There was no signature of proof of delivery as far as I can tell. There was an order number and a reference number on the package, both of which turned up nothing in searches.
In my address, there is what appears to be a phone number, but it's not mine.
853-278-1653

I'll see what the post office has to say about it.
 
#14
Tucker301 said:
Exactly. I've dealt the local LE on cyber and phone scams of some of my IT clients before, and they are little to no help. I usually have to explain it to them several times and then they're like, "Oh, OK. Yeah. We can't do anything about that."
In their defense, no one can do much about it, due to the logistics and cost to investigate.

If you could go to the post office in Port Vila and surveil box 624 for a few days, that'd be great. LOL
Veer, no. There was no signature of proof of delivery as far as I can tell. There was an order number and a reference number on the package, both of which turned up nothing in searches.
In my address, there is what appears to be a phone number, but it's not mine.
853-278-1653

I'll see what the post office has to say about it.
Click to expand...

Letter bomb returned to sender mailed from anonymous PO.


Edited to say 'bad idea' the customs inspector probably would not appreciate it.
 
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#15
You're in a simple directory somewhere. In my work I have to find people that don't want to be found. Unbeknownst most people are in some sort of subscription directory. We get unsolicited shit via USPS every day. Yours is just a little unusual is all.
 
#16
Apparently someone thinks you are spongeworthy.

I found a coconut on my front porch in January a year or so ago. I live in NE and coconuts are not exactly in season in January around these parts.

I brought it inside and thought WTF. Excited to show my kids what the inside of a coconut looks like I whacked it with a kitchen blade and a shit ton of liquid started to spread across the counter top and right than was when I started to recall we were in the midst of Black Lives Matter and I have a marked cruiser in my front driveway.

I called work and the local PD to let them know if the family and I are found dead the evidence of the delivery device will be in my trash can.

Next day one of my daughters friends explained it was a souvenir from her Florida trip.

Thankfully it was not a drive by nutting. I still look at all unaccompanied fruit and nuts suspiciously now.
 
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#17
It's not that difficult to get your address and full name, my local library provides deep web subscription services to its members. I can search zip codes, cities, counties or states by income bracket and generate a "marketing list" and to double check the name most county tax assessors offices have a search function and you can search by address and get a full legal name, whatever name is on the records at the courthouse. This shit is far easier than it should be, otoh their access to you info may be far more sinister, let's hope not.
 
#18
I just have to think that it's a large scale operation with them taking care to send something cheap and inexpensive. Wondering if they are trying to somehow generate proof of former residence with a delivery receipt or something in order to try to get an address change done and then start buying shit with a skimmed card.
 
#19
I think the pictures you have posted over the years of your posh estate were the bait that brought this on. Now Then, if you had posted "after" pictures of the party that FM and others were promoting at your digs, this wouldn't be an issue.
 
#22
I think you could soak that sponge with some gun oil, and use it to wipe down any of your weapons.......you could cut it in to little pieces, and jam it down the bore as well.......you have received a very useful piece of sponge.....hopefully it didn't cost much....
 
#23
In my looking around, here is probably the most likely reason for this ghost package: https://www.reddit.com/r/RBI/comments/3yyitn/i_keep_receiving_empty_packages_any_ideas_as_to/

Nuts and bolts of it, you got a ghost package for someone else being scammed and the package was sent to show proof of sending/delivery to eBay. Most likely not you as the chump here, other than someone somehow came up with your mailing address from a public records search within the same zip code.
 
#24
I hope that's all it is, but I am still concerned that they had my name and address. I buy a lot of computer parts from Ebay, so it's all over the place. I guess if they got into someone else's email or account who has dealt with me that's all they need. I tried every number on the package in tracking and they all came up empty.
 
#25
I haven't had to deal with this scam yet. And, like you, I am scratching my head trying to figure out their end game. As far as getting enough of someone's information to mail them a package is easy. It's the "why would they pick me" that makes you think a little harder. I have always received a lot of help form the post office. If your Post Master won't help ask for a Postal Inspector to give you call. I had no clue the extent of their data bases, knowledge, and experience with everything mail related until our paths crossed on a few intercepted drug packages that we got to deliver.
 
#26
Not quite the same but I had some iD theft going on involving a credit card, the douchebags actually deposited ten dollars into my account,along with multiple 50.00 withdrawals, only when they went for the big withdrawal was I notified( I had a verbal consent on my credit cards on transactions over 1000.00) . I would love to run into these fucktards and deliver some justice.srange days indeed.
 
#27
jrassy said:
Not quite the same but I had some iD theft going on involving a credit card, the douchebags actually deposited ten dollars into my account,along with multiple 50.00 withdrawals, only when they went for the big withdrawal was I notified( I had a verbal consent on my credit cards on transactions over 1000.00) . I would love to run into these fucktards and deliver some justice.srange days indeed.
Click to expand...


Same, years ago some fuckstick charged up a couple thou on the east coast on one of my cards in a bridal shop of all places. Got a phone call from the card company asking me about the charge. I only use that card for fuel, only, so they picked it up immediately. Not to mention I haven't traveled far from home for some time during that period. I was impressed they got ahold of me so quick and wrote it off. Haven't had another problem since. Well, of course unless you wanna count Grafs, Midway, Brownells, yada yada. They keep charging me for all kinds of shit. :cool:
 
#29
It's either an eBay scam or its somebody testing the waters to see if they can get something through customs to your area. Lot of people get steroids, and other illegal prescription drugs shipped through customs disguised in shit like this. It's not hard to find out your first name. It's all over online in places you wouldn't think of. Many counties have public ways for you to look up residential addresses and who the property owners are. I wouldn't put too much thought or concern in it right now, especially of none of your financial information has been compromised.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#30
1J04 said:
Same, years ago some fuckstick charged up a couple thou on the east coast on one of my cards in a bridal shop of all places. Got a phone call from the card company asking me about the charge. I only use that card for fuel, only, so they picked it up immediately. Not to mention I haven't traveled far from home for some time during that period. I was impressed they got ahold of me so quick and wrote it off. Haven't had another problem since. Well, of course unless you wanna count Grafs, Midway, Brownells, yada yada. They keep charging me for all kinds of shit. :cool:
Click to expand...

The first step is recognizing that you have a problem.

What problem?

 
#31
Culpeper said:
Think hard. You shop a lot online late at night.
Click to expand...

I saw a comedian say one time that his favorite thing to do was get really drunk and go shopping online. For the next week it's like Christmas every day, getting packages that you have no idea what might be in them, and experiencing the excitement of opening each one to find out.
 
#32
Here's something scary to think about. I learned this at a state internet, social media investigation class. I'll try to be short but explain what happened.

I magazine editor type guy wanted to test a theory. Could he find and meet a person if knowing nothing but the time and location of a picture being taken. He went to Golden Gate Bridge and waited. He watched a woman take a picture. So, he knew nothing more than where and when the picture was taken.

He watched social media and found a few possible matches. Looking at other pics this person had posted on social media, he was able to use computers and Google to find her. After watching her routine a short time, he was able to meet her and get a date. I'd love to have known how that went!

It's amazing how much WE allow to be out on the web. That's, why I have no social media accounts, my location is turned off, and I rarely post any pictures in the open.
 
#33
About 15-20 years ago the body of a young Marine from Massachusetts was recovered from Betio Island, Tarawa Atoll. Some time after he was buried I figured on my motorcycle trip to visit a friend in Florida MA Id stop in Bernardston and pay respects.

As soon as I got in the cemetery I figured this was a useless endeavor because there were lots of stones and I didn't have time to look at every one. I rode down two or three roads and just thought to stop and right beside me was the Marines resting place. I thought it weird at the time to stumble upon the right place in like five minutes tops.

I also thought to myself that sending a kid from Bernardston, MA to Tarawa Atoll might as well have been akin to sending him to the Moon. Who the hell knew what Tarawa Atoll was prior to November 20, 1943 unless you were a ships navigator or something.

It was a bigger world back than, now might as well be 7 billion people all living in my bathroom.
 
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#34
Slash0311 said:
Here's something scary to think about. I learned this at a state internet, social media investigation class. I'll try to be short but explain what happened.

I magazine editor type guy wanted to test a theory. Could he find and meet a person if knowing nothing but the time and location of a picture being taken. He went to Golden Gate Bridge and waited. He watched a woman take a picture. So, he knew nothing more than where and when the picture was taken.

He watched social media and found a few possible matches. Looking at other pics this person had posted on social media, he was able to use computers and Google to find her. After watching her routine a short time, he was able to meet her and get a date. I'd love to have known how that went!

It's amazing how much WE allow to be out on the web. That's, why I have no social media accounts, my location is turned off, and I rarely post any pictures in the open.
Click to expand...

I once found a piece of property I was interested in on craigslist. He gave the town and 4 or 5 pictures but wouldn't answer his emails and left no phone number. There was an old house with the rusted tin roof with the sun in the back ground and one of the High Tensile power lines as well. I got on Google earth and I started at the power plant (10 miles away) and there were only 2 lines that ran toward the town. Got lucky on the first line and saw the house. It was all oriented right, got the tax info, Googled the name, had his phone number on facebook. I gave him a call and holy geez! He thought I was scamming him or that I had ill will toward him. I never got past that first phone call. He didn't believe a word I said. hahaha
 
#35
If you start to get more packages you are likely being set up in a sales scam. They will send you several then a bill. When you won't pay they threaten to put you in collections. The only way to avoid this is to send the package back to the sender. If you don't send it back they have an opening to say you ordered it because you never sent the stuff back. And now you are scamming them. Beware.
 
#37
Poor Tucker had to beg for that sponge.

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gfDyOyrY-zM?ecver=1" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
 
#38
My brother in law had something like this happen to him, from Amazon also. Got a small nondescript piece of junk from big A shipped to his house, figured someone just messed up a shipping address. Next wk he starts getting all these $400 shirts in the mail. Someone had skimmed his card, used his address to ship to, then they call Amazon and complain they never received their order. Amazon automatically sends the person a gift card in the amount supposedly lost. Done.
 
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