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"A reputable translator needed"
Thread poster: John Fossey
John Fossey
John Fossey  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 00:11
Member (2008)
French to English
+ ...
Jan 22, 2013

Just received a broadcast email which I consider suspicious:

Subject: A reputable translator needed

Hello,
I have a project at hand which i want you to handle for me kindly get back to me with the language you handle best cause it is needed in different languages.
I await your reply ASAP.
Regards.
M--- K----


My suspicions:

- generic free email address
- no particular language - wants ME to tell them what lan... See more
Just received a broadcast email which I consider suspicious:

Subject: A reputable translator needed

Hello,
I have a project at hand which i want you to handle for me kindly get back to me with the language you handle best cause it is needed in different languages.
I await your reply ASAP.
Regards.
M--- K----


My suspicions:

- generic free email address
- no particular language - wants ME to tell them what language ???
- strange subject line. Should I respond by saying "Sorry, I don't meet your criteria because I'm not a reputable translator" !!

[Edited at 2013-01-22 14:54 GMT] ▲ Collapse
 
La Mi
La Mi  Identity Verified
China
Local time: 12:11
Member (2013)
English to Chinese
+ ...
Good. Jan 22, 2013

I do believe you have done sth correct.
 
Enrique Cavalitto
Enrique Cavalitto  Identity Verified
Argentina
Local time: 01:11
Member (2006)
English to Spanish
Looks like an overpayment scam Jan 22, 2013

Hi John,

Thanks for sharing, this is most likely an overpayment scam. Could you please submit to staff the whole message you received, ideally showing full headers, through a support request?

Kind regards,
Enrique
 
Neil Coffey
Neil Coffey  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:11
French to English
+ ...
Indeed... Jan 22, 2013

You could always tell them that your working language pair is Swahili to Ancient Siberian and see if they're still quite so desperate to contract your services for the secret mysterious "project" about which they can disclose no further details

Though seriously of course, you should just move to trash and not engage with criminals.
 
John Fossey
John Fossey  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 00:11
Member (2008)
French to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Will do Jan 22, 2013

Enrique Cavalitto wrote:

Hi John,

Thanks for sharing, this is most likely an overpayment scam. Could you please submit to staff the whole message you received, ideally showing full headers, through a support request?

Kind regards,
Enrique


Will do
 
David Wright
David Wright  Identity Verified
Austria
Local time: 06:11
German to English
+ ...
Thank God ... Jan 22, 2013

I'm a disreputable translator!
 
Steve Kerry
Steve Kerry  Identity Verified
Local time: 05:11
German to English
Delete Jan 22, 2013

Or is that too simple...?

Steve K.
 
Robert Forstag
Robert Forstag  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 00:11
Spanish to English
+ ...
Apply the smell test Jan 22, 2013

I suppose that we can be thankful that the people who perpetrate such scams are generally such rank amateurs.

A good question to ask when receiving such an e-mail is whether you have ever received a genuine offer that was written in such a way. I know I haven't, and I don't think too many others have either.
 
Thayenga
Thayenga  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 06:11
Member (2009)
English to German
+ ...
Agreed Jan 22, 2013

David Wright wrote:

I'm a disreputable translator!


At least when it comes to this kind of queries.
 


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"A reputable translator needed"







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