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Friday, June 4, 2010

Google helps a phisher steal my account and keep it!

Help me get my Google account back. Read this and then share it with everyone you know (Yeah, I know, I'm usually against spamming the world, but I'm hoping that enough people will hear about this that Google will wake up and help me! I appreciate any help you can offer...)

Here's the scenario:
  • This morning, someone hacked into my Gmail and Facebook accounts.
  • My phone soon started ringing -- all of my friends wanted to know if I was OK. I was initially baffled with the first call, but then I got this e-mail on one of my other accounts (e-mail and name blanked out to protect me):

    From: Tim ----- [mailto:pr-------ad@gmail.com]
    Sent: Friday, June 04, 2010 8:37 AM
    Subject: My predicament!!!

    Hello,

    I'm sorry for this urgent email, I'm writing this with tears on my eyes due to the situation of things right now,I'm stuck in London United Kingdom with my family,we came down here on vacation and we got Mugged at GUNPOINT.worse of it was that cash cell phone and credit cards were stolen it's such a crazy and terrifying experience for us, we need help flying back home, the authorities are not being 100% helping, but the good thing is that we still have our passports,Our return flight Leave back home Today,But i still have problem in sorting out the hotel bills,Please reply me back and let me know if you can help us with the bills i promise to pay back as soon as i get back home.

    I'm freaked out right now.

    Thanks
    Tim

  • I had tears on my eyes reading his plight. How can I ever help?
  • So they hacked into my Gmail account, spammed all my friends, and hacked into my Facebook account and did the same.
  • I quickly figured out that I could no longer use my Gmail, my iGoogle pages, my Google Voice account, nor any of the services on my Motorola Droid cell phone that tie into my Google account.
  • Apparently, this form is the only way to get help from Google for my account. Go ahead and take a look at it.
  • Here is the automated response that I received back after submitting it:

    From: accounts-support-ara@google.com
    Subject: Re: [#652711343] I can't access my account
    Date: June 4, 2010 11:18:23 AM EDT

    Thank you for your report. We've completed our investigation and cannot return your account at this time. We were unable to verify that you own this account based on the information you provided.

    If you can provide additional information to verify that you own this account, please visit http://www.google.com/support/accounts/bin/request.py?ara=1 and submit another report. Whether we can return access to this account depends on the strength and accuracy of your responses, so be sure to provide as much information as possible. If you're unsure about specific dates or information, provide your best guess.

    To create a new account, please visit https://www.google.com/accounts/NewAccount

    We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your cooperation and understanding.

    Regards,
    The Google Team

  • I tried again, entering five addresses that I frequently e-mail (I mostly use my Gmail account for notifications from my online accounts and don't send e-mail that much), four labels in Gmail (I was able to get this off my Droid), and answering such questions as "Account creation date" (really Google? How many people actually know that?).
  • I got the same e-mail response back. I tried several different variations and submitted a few more times until I got this response:

    From: accounts-support-ara@google.com
    Subject: Re: [#652735939] I can't access my account
    Date: June 4, 2010 12:44:12 PM EDT

    Thank you for your report. For account security, we limit the number of requests that can be processed about the same account. Please wait a few days and try filling out the form again.

    Regards,

    The Google Team

  • Sure...I'll wait a few more days while this chump tries to bilk my friends out of money using my e-mail account. No problem Google!
  • I even tried calling Google. I got someone on the phone who was very polite and all, but was entirely unable to help me and directed me back to the same online form.
  • So, what to do? I figured, why not have some fun? So, since my other e-mail account has my name on it, I pretended to be "Dad" and play along with this scumbag's game. Here's the full dialog back and forth:

    Me: Hey, is everything OK?
    Me: Dad

    Scumbag: I'm so glad to hear back from you and may god bles you,I'm scared and so worried right now,it's was so Terrifying goodness i still have my life and passport,my return flight leave back to the state in few hrs time,but i still have problem in sorting out the hotel bills,i was just wondering if you can loan me some cash till i get back home i promise to refund you back.all i need is $1,500 and you can have it wired to my name via Western UnionHere are the details you need

    Name : Tim M----
    Address : 30 Leicester Square
    City : London
    Country : United Kingdom

    I'm so happy you are helping and I promise to pay you back, please get back to me with the confirmation number as soon as you are done with the transfer.
    Many Thanks

    Me: Everything will be OK. We are praying for you. How can I know that you will get the money at this address? Haven't used Western Union before. -Dad

    Scumbag: Thanks very much Timothy i will get the cash with the Address and the western union is 3 blocks away from me here please do that fast before i miss my flight and i promise to pay you back as soon as i get back home.

    Me: Since when do you call your dad by his first name? You'd better show me some respect if you expect me to bail you out of trouble again!

    Scumbag: what do you mean please help me out before i miss my flight

    Me: I mean, I'm your father and you don't call me by my first name. If you want me to help you, show me some respect.

    Scumbag: ohh Dady is because of my situation that is why i dont know what to do please help me out and i promise to pay back.

    Me: OK...I understand. So, how do I go about doing this whole Western Union thing? I don't even know where there's a Western Union near me.

    Scumbag: Thanks Dad you can look for any store Around you or any walmart you will find a western union down the street..please Dad do this fast before i miss my flight. Many thanks

    Me: Your mother just reminded me that your cousin Paul is currently in London on business. We're trying to find his phone number for you to call. Don't worry if you miss your flight. We'll figure it all out. -Dad

    Scumbag: No Dad i have to be back today please just locate western union and have it done please in the name of God.

    Me: Son, you know that I can't get around as well as I used to. Really, getting in touch with your cousin is the best bet. Just let us know where you are staying and we'll have him come help you out. We may not be able to get you home today, but we'll work it all out. I know how distressing this whole thing must be for you, but hang in there. -Dad

    Scumbag: can you try this online westernunion.com?

    Me: Don't you want your cousin to help you? You could probably stay the night with him if you needed to.

  • Haven't heard back from him, but I haven't given up hope that I can help him! :)
  • So, I'm asking everyone out there to help me get my lousy Google account back and kick this guy to the curb. Post a link to this blog on Facebook and wherever else you go! A call from Google would be nice (they can just look at my Google Voice account and give me a call). There are so many ways that I can prove that it's my account, but unfortunately Google doesn't care. They're more willing to let a phisher have his way.
  • For now, anyone that wants to contact me can reach me at:

    circularfile@gmail.com
Tim

Read Part 2

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