The alleged mastermind behind a Nigerian letter email scam
remains in police custody today, in Sydney, Australia. Nick
Marinellis, 39, was refused bail in courts on Friday and is charged
with 17 offences including conspiracy to defraud.
New South Wales Police allege that Nick Marinellis masterminded
one of the 'Nigerian letter' scams - rife through most email users'
inboxes. The scam involved the distribution of spam emails which
conned people into believing they could claim millions of dollars
through lottery winnings or an inheritance if they first sent off
money for "expenses".
According to news reports, NSW Police have accused Marinellis of
using the internet to steal up to AU$5 million from people in more
than 10 countries and court documents allege he deposited almost
AU$1.5 million into a number of bank accounts. Court documents also
allege that an office complex in Nottingham, in the United Kingdom,
a AU$970,000 house in Sydney, seven other properties in the NSW
area, five cars, several bank accounts and other property were
seized by police.
In a police statement, NSW State Crime Command Assets
Confiscation Unit Commander Inspector Jennifer Thommeny, said, "We
have identified victims who have been approached in NSW, South
Australia, Victoria, Cyprus, Malaysia, Japan, Norway, Greece,
Indonesia, Hong Kong and England, who in many cases have been
conned into handing over hundreds of thousands of dollars."
According to Rob Forsyth, Sophos's managing director for
Australia and New Zealand, this arrest highlights the risks a
person takes when they enter into financial communications with
unknown people across the internet.
"If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is. With the
increase of spam email, the old adage of Caveat Emptor - let the
buyer beware - should be written in bold across the top of every
computer screen. Internet users should take the advice of the
Australian Internet Industry Association that 'When in Doubt: Don't
Try - Don't Buy - Don't Reply'," said Forsyth
"Anti-spam legislation has so far done little to reduce the
amount of spam email arriving in inboxes. However, this action may
start to give those who use the internet to break the law a few
sleepless nights," Forsyth continued.
Sophos recommends companies protect themselves with a consolidated solution which can defend
businesses from the threats of both spam and viruses.
More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, web, email, and network access control solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centers. With more than two decades of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.
Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.