Avoid getting scammed by fake "Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank" emails

What kind of email is "Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank"?

After reading this "Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank" email, we determined that it is spam. This message presents a sob story of an eighteen-year-old seeking aid with retrieving the millions he has inherited. Typically, spam campaigns of this kind seek to deceive victims into revealing their personally identifiable information or sending money to scammers.

"Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank" email scam overview

The spam email with the subject "Good Fortune" (may vary) introduces the sender as an eighteen-year-old whose parents have passed away. His father had left 7.5 million USD in a bank. The sender's circumstances are dire, and he cannot retrieve the money without an older chaperone. The recipient is asked to assist with the retrieval and securement of the funds, and to arrange for housing and schooling in their country. For the help, the recipient is promised 15% of the funds.

It must be stressed that the information in this message is false, and this email is not associated with any real individuals. In most cases, spam mail that uses such lures seeks private data and/or money.

Targeted information can include personally identifiable or finance-related data like ID card details, passport photos/scans, banking account info, online bank account log-in credentials, credit/debit card numbers, and so forth. Scammers can also trick victims into sending them money under legitimate-sounding reasons, such as handling fees or taxes.

In summary, by trusting an email like "Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank" – users can experience severe privacy issues, financial losses, and identity theft.

If you have disclosed personally identifiable or financial information – contact the appropriate authorities without delay.

Spam campaigns in general

Spam mail is used to promote various scams, including phishing, advance fee, refund, technical support, and sextortion. These emails are also used to distribute all kinds of malware.

We have investigated countless spam campaigns; "SOA & Invoices", "Interactive Brokers - Renewal of W-8BEN Form Required", "Changes In The cPanel Webmail Server", "Security Restrictions", "Updated Security Procedures", "Invoice Payment Confirmation", "Suspicious Activity Detected", and "FedEx - Download Shipping Documents" are merely some of our newest articles.

Due to how widespread this mail is and how well-disguised it can be – we highly recommend exercising caution with incoming emails, PMs/DMs, SMSes, and other messages.

How do spam campaigns infect computers?

Malware is commonly distributed via malspam (malicious spam). These emails/messages have infectious files attached to or linked inside them. Virulent files can be archives (ZIP, RAR, etc.), executables (EXE, RUN, etc.), documents (PDF, Microsoft Office, Microsoft OneNote, etc.), JavaScript, and so on.

Once such a file is opened – the infection chain is jumpstarted. However, some formats need additional actions to begin downloading/installing malware. For example, Microsoft Office files require users to enable macro commands (i.e., editing/content), while OneNote documents need them to click on embedded links or files.

How to avoid installation of malware?

Incoming emails and other messages must be approached with care. We advise against opening attachments or links found in suspicious communications, as they can be harmful or infectious.

However, malware is proliferated using various methods. Therefore, we recommend vigilance when browsing since the Internet is rife with deceptive and malicious content.

Another recommendation is to download only from official and verified sources. Additionally, all programs must be activated and updated using functions/tools provided by legitimate developers, as illegal activation tools ("cracks") and third-parties can contain malware.

It is essential to have a dependable antivirus installed and kept up-to-date. Security software must be used to run regular system scans and to remove detected threats/issues. If you've already opened malicious attachments, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate infiltrated malware.

Text presented in the "Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank" spam email letter:

Subject: Good Fortune

Dear kind friend,

My name is Raphael Kamara. I am only 18. I am writing with my last hope. I am crying now as I type. Please forgive my bad words — my hands shake.

My papa, Mr Vincent Kamara, was cocoa seller. Bad men killed him. They steal from him. Mama died after. Now I am alone. I sleep hungry. I am scared every night. I have no family. I have no food. I have no place to stay.

Before he die, papa tell me secret. He hide $7,500,000 in bank for me. He say it for my future. I do not know how to take it. The bank say I need older person to help. I am too small. People come to my house and threaten me. They say they will take the money and hurt me. I am afraid to go out.

Please, please I beg you with my life — help me:
1. Help me take the money from bank.
2. Keep it safe for me.
3. Help me go to your country so I can go to school and live safe.

I promise to give you 15% of the money if you help me. I swear to God I will pay you. But I am not writing for money only — I want one kind person. I want a friend. I want to sleep without fear one night.

If you are kind, please answer me. I will be waiting every day. I pray God send you to me. If you do not answer, I will lose hope. I have nothing left.

May God bless you. Please help me. I am begging you with tears.

Your broken child,
Raphael Kamara.

Instant automatic malware removal:

Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:

By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by RCS LT, the parent company of PCRisk.com.

Quick menu:

• What is "Older Person To Retrieve Money From The Bank" spam email?
• Types of malicious emails.
• How to spot a malicious email?
• What to do if you fell for an email scam?

Types of malicious emails:

Phishing Emails

Most commonly, cybercriminals use deceptive emails to trick Internet users into giving away their sensitive private information, for example, login information for various online services, email accounts, or online banking information.

Such attacks are called phishing. In a phishing attack, cybercriminals usually send an email message with some popular service logo (for example, Microsoft, DHL, Amazon, Netflix), create urgency (wrong shipping address, expired password, etc.), and place a link which they hope their potential victims will click on.

After clicking the link presented in such email message, victims are redirected to a fake website that looks identical or extremely similar to the original one. Victims are then asked to enter their password, credit card details, or some other information that gets stolen by cybercriminals.

Emails with Malicious Attachments

Another popular attack vector is email spam with malicious attachments that infect users' computers with malware. Malicious attachments usually carry trojans that are capable of stealing passwords, banking information, and other sensitive information.

In such attacks, cybercriminals' main goal is to trick their potential victims into opening an infected email attachment. To achieve this goal, email messages usually talk about recently received invoices, faxes, or voice messages.

If a potential victim falls for the lure and opens the attachment, their computers get infected, and cybercriminals can collect a lot of sensitive information.

While it's a more complicated method to steal personal information (spam filters and antivirus programs usually detect such attempts), if successful, cybercriminals can get a much wider array of data and can collect information for a long period of time.

Sextortion Emails

This is a type of phishing. In this case, users receive an email claiming that a cybercriminal could access the webcam of the potential victim and has a video recording of one's masturbation.

To get rid of the video, victims are asked to pay a ransom (usually using Bitcoin or another cryptocurrency). Nevertheless, all of these claims are false - users who receive such emails should ignore and delete them.

How to spot a malicious email?

While cyber criminals try to make their lure emails look trustworthy, here are some things that you should look for when trying to spot a phishing email:

• Check the sender's ("from") email address: Hover your mouse over the "from" address and check if it's legitimate. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft, be sure to check if the email address is @microsoft.com and not something suspicious like @m1crosoft.com, @microsfot.com, @account-security-noreply.com, etc.
• Check for generic greetings: If the greeting in the email is "Dear user", "Dear @youremail.com", "Dear valued customer", this should raise suspiciousness. Most commonly, companies call you by your name. Lack of this information could signal a phishing attempt.
• Check the links in the email: Hover your mouse over the link presented in the email, if the link that appears seems suspicious, don't click it. For example, if you received an email from Microsoft and the link in the email shows that it will go to firebasestorage.googleapis.com/v0... you shouldn't trust it. It's best not to click any links in the emails but to visit the company website that sent you the email in the first place.
• Don't blindly trust email attachments: Most commonly, legitimate companies will ask you to log in to their website and to view any documents there; if you received an email with an attachment, it's a good idea to scan it with an antivirus application. Infected email attachments are a common attack vector used by cybercriminals.

To minimise the risk of opening phishing and malicious emails we recommend using Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows. 

Example of a spam email:

What to do if you fell for an email scam?

• If you clicked on a link in a phishing email and entered your password - be sure to change your password as soon as possible. Usually, cybercriminals collect stolen credentials and then sell them to other groups that use them for malicious purposes. If you change your password in a timely manner, there's a chance that criminals won't have enough time to do any damage.
• If you entered your credit card information - contact your bank as soon as possible and explain the situation. There's a good chance that you will need to cancel your compromised credit card and get a new one.
• If you see any signs of identity theft - you should immediately contact the Federal Trade Commission. This institution will collect information about your situation and create a personal recovery plan.
• If you opened a malicious attachment - your computer is probably infected, you should scan it with a reputable antivirus application. For this purpose, we recommend using  Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows.
• Help other Internet users - report phishing emails to Anti-Phishing Working Group, FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, National Fraud Information Center and U.S. Department of Justice.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why did I receive this email?

Spam emails are not personal, even if they include details relevant to the recipients. Cyber criminals distribute these messages by the thousand with the hopes that at least some recipients will fall for their scams.

I have provided my personal information when tricked by this spam email, what should I do?

If you have disclosed your log-in credentials – change the passwords of all possibly exposed accounts and inform their official support. However, if you've provided other private data (e.g., ID card details, passport photos/scans, credit card numbers, etc.) – immediately contact the appropriate authorities.

I have read a spam email but didn't open the attachment, is my computer infected?

Reading an email is harmless. Systems are infected when malicious attachments or links are opened/clicked.

I have downloaded and opened a file attached to a spam email, is my computer infected?

Whether the device was infected might depend on the format of the opened file. Once opened, executables cause infections almost without fail. However, some formats – like documents – might need additional interaction (e.g., enabling macros, clicking embedded content, etc.) to initiate infection processes.

Will Combo Cleaner remove malware infections present in email attachments?

Combo Cleaner can detect and remove practically all known malware infections. Remember that performing a full system scan is essential since sophisticated malicious software usually hides deep within systems.