Earlier this week I received the following email from my website’s contact form. I’ll discuss why this is a scam in a moment.

From: Lee <leeosb570@gmail.com>
Message:
Hello Karen

My name is Lee Osbourne, I am an academic event organizer and I’m hearing impaired, i hope you treat me like any of your other customers and my disability doesn’t affect our dealings. I got your contact details online, I need the service of an artist or illustrator/cartoonist to work on a project for an upcoming workshop, I’ll give the idea of what I need to be illustrated/drawn and you can get back to me with the price to get it done, I’ll pay your fees up front if you want. Please get back to me for more details.

Warm regards.

Lee Osbourne.

Earlier this year I got this one, also from my contact form:

From: Flores <floresjohnson058@gmail.com>

Message:
My name is Flores I am an academic event organizer and an Apraxia patient. I got your contact details online. I need the service of an artist or illustrator/cartoonist to work on a project for an upcoming workshop. I will give the idea of what I need to be illustrated/drawn and you can get back to me with the price to get it done. I will pay your fees up front if you want.

Warm regards

And this one a few months earlier, as an email rather than a contact form submission.

From: Childers. Larry1 <childerslarry11111@gmail.com>
Message: Hello, Karen

My name is Childers Larry, I am an academic event organizer and an Apraxia patient. I got your contact details online. I need the service of an artist or illustrator/cartoonist to work on a project for an upcoming workshop. I will give the idea of what I need to be illustrated/drawn and you can get back to me with the price to get it done. I will pay your fees up front if you want. Please get back to me for more details.

Warm regards

602-804-5336

You notice the similarities, right? A lot of it is word-for-word.

Very fishy.

So, what’s the deal?

I’m not the first to bet targeted with this scam. The SCBWI has posted about it here. Apparently, if you respond, they string you around with details until they finally send you a payment. But then something goes wrong, and they ask for or demand a refund. You, being a reasonable and ethical artist, refund their money. Only, then the original payment disappears from your account as well. What the hell?

I think what happens is it’s a money transfer scam. They’re paying you with a stolen account and it’s actually the rightful owner’s bank who is rightfully taking back the fraudulent payment. But the upshot is that you’re out the amount of the refund.

So, be careful out there. If something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t.