Check your password

I'm a pale imitation of Dr Pack, I know. A friend of mine was recently the subject of a Nigerian scam. They guessed (or 'malwared') his Yahoo mail password, took over his account and sent out begging mails to all the contacts. The mail said he was stranded in Lagos....you know the rest - the text is below.

Fortunately, I sat next to my friend in hundreds of (quite expensive) English lessons some 35 years ago, and I knew he wouldn't commit such sloppy grammar, as was in the text, to a mail.

But my poor friend was reduced to texting his friends to ask for their email addresses to restart a new account.

Now Jack Straw, for it is he, has been the victim of much the same scam.

It's a good prompt to check that your password for any "Hotmail" accounts is unpredictable and relatively complex.

In need of assistance

How's work on your end? This has had to come in a hurry and it has left me in a devastating state. These people won't even allow people write in native dialects as they have configured the systems here to display messages in English only. I am in some terrible situation and I'm really going to need your urgent help. Yesterday, unannounced, I came to visit a new researchers' complex in Nigeria, Imperial College Nigeria, Gallery Section, (South Campus, Nigeria), Nigeria. Well we actually got robbed in the Hotel I booked in and they made away with my wallet (which included my cash, diaries and credit cards). My cellphones were not brought along since I did not get to roam them before coming over. The phone cables have been burnt including internet connection cables and the Hotel's database has been compromised as well. So all I can do now is pay cash and get out of here quickly. I do not want to make a scene of this which is why I did not call the office or my house, this is embarassing enough. Please I want you to lend me a sum of £1200pounds, just to clear my Hotel bills and get the next plane home. The Consulate only cleared me of my travelling documents and ticketing since I came in as a tourist and not on official purpose. Please be rest assured that I'd have your money reimbursed to you immediately I get home.Once again, I thank you so much for your imminent response and please as soon as you are done help me write out the MTCN number given to you by the Western Union official and the details you used in sending me the money. Please scan the receipt and attach it to the mail for me. Thank you so much as I would be waiting to hear from you.

Thank you in advance.

Mr XXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXX