INFORMATION ABOUT PHONE TAP

PHONE TAP INFORMATION
(from a site visitor)
Hello Everybody,

I am receiving very distressing news from friends of a new form of
scam being perpetrated here in Nigeria.

It would seem that some people with access to NITEL's switchboards are
tapping into people lines before and during phone calls and often
diverting calls to a different location. By listening in to
conversations held with relatives and colleagues abroad, they are able
to intercept calls as they come in to Nigeria from outside and pose as
someone close to or in the employ of the person at the Nigerian end.

They tap into official and residential numbers at any time of day.
They even seem to have been able to tap into embassy lines. It seems that
(at this stage at least) they are targeting the diplomatic community, but
there are reports from staff of oil companies too - basically
institutions with high levels of exposure to foreigners and a very high
frequency of international calls.

The calls are characterised, sometimes by an initial disconnection in
the middle of a valid conversation with ones' relatives. An attempt at
reconnecting will then be diverted to a bogus number where the story is
spun and the victim strung out. In most instances, the story is so
distressing that the victim does not have the presence of mind to
question its accuracy.

Specifically, these people answered phone calls from relatives of
expatriates in Nigeria and told them that their loved ones had been in a
car crash involving a Nigerian citizen. As a result, they are not only
in intensive care but also under arrest and because there is no one else
here to help (a likely story!), they need the urgent transmission of
funds (sometimes through Western Union) to: 1. Pay for medical expenses
and 2. Post bail.

Because the relatives called the number they know to be right, they
never stop to think and pick holes in the stories. In one instance, a
lady actually had a nervous breakdown before she was able to confirm
that her son (on his first trip to Nigeria, Africa even) had not been
involved in a horrific accident. It was five long hours before she 
was finally able to get though to her son's hosts only to find that he 
was on the beach happily sunning himself, but even that generated a mini
scare down here as the hosts immediately believed something might 
have happened to him at the beach, prompting a high speed car chase etc.
etc.

The con "artists" (if I can even call them that!!), will try and wring
out as much information from the shocked relative, phone number, fax
number, bank details (if possible) and spend the rest of the day,
calling every hour to add to the story and build up the hype and
suspense! They have also been known to give contact details for
themselves, one of which was traced to a police station here in
Lagos!!!!

Details are sketchy, but as you can see, it is happening and it may
actually have happened to you or someone you know, so please beware. If
any response you get sounds suspicious, ask as many questions as
possible and don't give away your own details. The crime is all the
stronger because it is playing on people's emotional attachments to
someone here, as opposed to the normal 419 that just plays on greed.

If you live abroad and call Nigeria often, please be warned.
Similarly, if you live in Nigeria, please advise those who often call you.

            All the best