Beware of emails from a Mr. Wagner Antonova. The e-mail will read something like this:
Scammers using email are always tweaking and improving upon their techniques so they can increase the percentage of people they trick into giving up their money and/or goods. In a way, artists are not a new target for scammers. Everyone is a target for scammers and there is just an increase in the customization of their emails for different audiences. In the case of artists, it is often that they have found you somewhere online - your website or your participation in a message board community or someplace where they can then send you an email. They often even mention the actual names of some of your artwork pieces and say they are interested in buying them. They try to save mentioning certain things in the first email that would give them away as a scammer. At first, they just want you to reply, because even if they don't end up tricking you out of your money or artwork, they at least have validated your email as "active" and can then sell that to scam database email collectors for more spams.
They will reference in the first (or typically later) email that they have a shipping company or agent arranging for moving of all their possessions.
In the end, they will ALWAYS send money for more than the amount due - a LOT more, and have some convoluted story as to why they are sending more, and then tell you to just take your amount (and some say a little extra for your "trouble") and mail the "difference" back via Western Union to their shipping company. THIS is what they are targeting for the whole scam. The cash difference you send to them. There is no shipping company. Just them picking up your money from Western Union in an untraceble way.
I see this your beautiful work through my searching, do you still have it available? The work am talking about is listed on the Subject of my email, i will be expecting the price if you still have it available.
I wish you Happy new year Wagner Antonova
Scammers using email are always tweaking and improving upon their techniques so they can increase the percentage of people they trick into giving up their money and/or goods. In a way, artists are not a new target for scammers. Everyone is a target for scammers and there is just an increase in the customization of their emails for different audiences. In the case of artists, it is often that they have found you somewhere online - your website or your participation in a message board community or someplace where they can then send you an email. They often even mention the actual names of some of your artwork pieces and say they are interested in buying them. They try to save mentioning certain things in the first email that would give them away as a scammer. At first, they just want you to reply, because even if they don't end up tricking you out of your money or artwork, they at least have validated your email as "active" and can then sell that to scam database email collectors for more spams.
They will reference in the first (or typically later) email that they have a shipping company or agent arranging for moving of all their possessions.
In the end, they will ALWAYS send money for more than the amount due - a LOT more, and have some convoluted story as to why they are sending more, and then tell you to just take your amount (and some say a little extra for your "trouble") and mail the "difference" back via Western Union to their shipping company. THIS is what they are targeting for the whole scam. The cash difference you send to them. There is no shipping company. Just them picking up your money from Western Union in an untraceble way.
