One of the most common and modern scams is the Nigerian scam, also called the 419 scam (419 referencing the section of Nigerian criminal law dealing with fraud). They entail a request for advance payment in return for money from a locked bank account. A scammer posing as a Nigerian prince or government official will request help in transferring their funds from one account to another. The victim is told that a down payment is required before the account can be opened and once the transaction is complete, they will be given a portion of the money as will the scammer. After the initial payment is made, the victim will likely never hear from the person again.
In extreme cases, the victim will be asked to meet in perosn for transactions and will travel to a remote location in Africa, treated well as they gradually hand over the money, and, once they are fully trusting of their captors, will have the rest of their money seized. This scam, because of the necessity for trust, often relies on the building of credibility with numerous appeals to Ethos. The most successful of these scams have proper diction and syntax, with minimal gramatical and spelling errors. Oftentimes, these scams are written by people whose first language is not English, making these errors inevitable and forcing other forms of rhetoric to substitute and increase the credibility. These scams were previously unknown in the early 2000s and took many victims unaware. They now heavily rely on preying on the less technology proficient elderly generation. Sending out mass emails to hundreds of thousands of users, they are able to get even just a few to send them money, worth it for them if they are making upwards of $1000 each time. |
Nigerian Scam Rhetorical ANalysis
While fraud and scams have existed for decades, the expansion of the Internet usage has made them substantially easier to implement. In particular, scams through email, such as the Nigerian “419” scam, have become more prominent. With this specific instance, author Robert Mueller III, addresses an unknown victim, with the purpose of convincing the victim to give $180 in order that they gain $850,000. The author poses, with an instructive and urgent tone, the potential for monetary gain due to presumably fabricated corruption in the Nigerian government. Employing a plethora of rhetorical strategies, the email seeks to evoke greed from the intended recipient to subsequently appropriate their money.
The composer of this email put copious amounts of thought into ensuring it would relate to the reader in the best and most convincing way possible. In the opening paragraph, there is an abundance of second person pronouns referring to the money as “your fund.” This rhetorical strategy is primarily an effort to connect the reader with the situation from the start. By reading through this, a reader will start to associate the money with themselves, even subconsciously. By doing this, the author hopes to set up an initial connection with the reader, to later capitalize upon credibility that is built throughout the letter. This credibility is established initially with the use of numerical evidence and details. Including the values of 7 months, 3 days, and $850,000, the story gains minutiae that make it more informative and believable. Establishing this initial credibility gives the means to later scam the reader out of money, which is the ultimate goal of the author.
As his persuasion advances, the author incorporates detailed references to organizations such as the United Nations Organization, the National Central Bureau of Interpol, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He attempts to associate himself with these reliable organizations and simultaneously juxtapose himself from the “corrupt government officials” that have supposedly taken the victim's money. Establishing an appeal to Ethos in this manner that contributes to the credibility of his persona, the writer is able to further lure the victim into believing their story. Clarifying that the reader is not the only victim subject to these potential monetary gains is also fundamental to the author’s argument. It would be far less believable if the reader was the only one to befall these supposed unfortunate robberies of such large sums. The author, because of this, makes a brief mention of “other individuals and organizations” who have been similarly affected. This, once again, is a method of making an appeal to Ethos and making his narrative more believable.
The latter portion of the email consists of the actual attempt to attain the reader’s money. Initiated by a direct question to the reader, the author hopes to engage the reader into take advantage of the fabricated opportunity that has been previously presented. Posing a direct question ties the reader back in and brings in the idea that the reader must take action, directly relating to the author’s purpose which requires such action by the reader. This question also sets up the next strategy employed by the author, a dichotomy of sorts. In this dichotomy, the reader is presented with the choice to either have an ATM card or a direct check. Through the ATM card, funds can be slowly drawn out and it requires a manual to use as it has numerous instructions. With the check however, the money is deposited in full within 48 hours under the condition that the reader pays $180. This option is much more convenient and sound for the reader. By first offering a dichotomy and then making one option out to be substantially better at a relatively small upfront cost, the author is directly contributing to his purpose by setting up a situation in which the reader is likely to give the desired money. The subliminal request for this money is followed by an accusation that anyone else who would charge the reader more is a “fraudster.” This accusation is an attempt to draw attention from the recent request for money and pose the author as reasonable for asking for only $180 in contrast to a scammer that would charge more. This is a final attempt by the author to establish the whole plot as realistic and not a scam, adding to his goal with an appeal to Ethos through contrast.
Overall, despite questionable grammar at times, the author is able to employ rhetorical strategies that have the potential to catch uninformed readers unaware and victimize them for monetary gain. Scam artists rely heavily on the use of establishing credibility because, once credibility is established and the reader believes their story, all they need to do is collect the money. As is evident through his strategies, the focus of this particular con-artist was purely increasing his credibility to the reader, which was definitively enhanced by his myriad of rhetoric.
The composer of this email put copious amounts of thought into ensuring it would relate to the reader in the best and most convincing way possible. In the opening paragraph, there is an abundance of second person pronouns referring to the money as “your fund.” This rhetorical strategy is primarily an effort to connect the reader with the situation from the start. By reading through this, a reader will start to associate the money with themselves, even subconsciously. By doing this, the author hopes to set up an initial connection with the reader, to later capitalize upon credibility that is built throughout the letter. This credibility is established initially with the use of numerical evidence and details. Including the values of 7 months, 3 days, and $850,000, the story gains minutiae that make it more informative and believable. Establishing this initial credibility gives the means to later scam the reader out of money, which is the ultimate goal of the author.
As his persuasion advances, the author incorporates detailed references to organizations such as the United Nations Organization, the National Central Bureau of Interpol, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He attempts to associate himself with these reliable organizations and simultaneously juxtapose himself from the “corrupt government officials” that have supposedly taken the victim's money. Establishing an appeal to Ethos in this manner that contributes to the credibility of his persona, the writer is able to further lure the victim into believing their story. Clarifying that the reader is not the only victim subject to these potential monetary gains is also fundamental to the author’s argument. It would be far less believable if the reader was the only one to befall these supposed unfortunate robberies of such large sums. The author, because of this, makes a brief mention of “other individuals and organizations” who have been similarly affected. This, once again, is a method of making an appeal to Ethos and making his narrative more believable.
The latter portion of the email consists of the actual attempt to attain the reader’s money. Initiated by a direct question to the reader, the author hopes to engage the reader into take advantage of the fabricated opportunity that has been previously presented. Posing a direct question ties the reader back in and brings in the idea that the reader must take action, directly relating to the author’s purpose which requires such action by the reader. This question also sets up the next strategy employed by the author, a dichotomy of sorts. In this dichotomy, the reader is presented with the choice to either have an ATM card or a direct check. Through the ATM card, funds can be slowly drawn out and it requires a manual to use as it has numerous instructions. With the check however, the money is deposited in full within 48 hours under the condition that the reader pays $180. This option is much more convenient and sound for the reader. By first offering a dichotomy and then making one option out to be substantially better at a relatively small upfront cost, the author is directly contributing to his purpose by setting up a situation in which the reader is likely to give the desired money. The subliminal request for this money is followed by an accusation that anyone else who would charge the reader more is a “fraudster.” This accusation is an attempt to draw attention from the recent request for money and pose the author as reasonable for asking for only $180 in contrast to a scammer that would charge more. This is a final attempt by the author to establish the whole plot as realistic and not a scam, adding to his goal with an appeal to Ethos through contrast.
Overall, despite questionable grammar at times, the author is able to employ rhetorical strategies that have the potential to catch uninformed readers unaware and victimize them for monetary gain. Scam artists rely heavily on the use of establishing credibility because, once credibility is established and the reader believes their story, all they need to do is collect the money. As is evident through his strategies, the focus of this particular con-artist was purely increasing his credibility to the reader, which was definitively enhanced by his myriad of rhetoric.
Nigerian Scam Stories
After seeing a posting on Craigslist, this man applies for a job in all seriousness, soon to recognize that it is a scam based on various failed rhetoric in the scammers advertisement including extensive details on irrelevant information, multiple cases of begging the question, and generally poor grammar.
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The below article details a successful Nigerian Scam
http://www.vice.com/read/i-am-an-idiot-0000167-v20n12 This scam takes advantage of the fact that scams of its type were less common and less known. It identifies and selects a proper victim and addresses its audience carefully. It capitalized on the man's need for money due to debt, using this to gain his trust more easily. Through a series of measures to lead him on, they appealed to Ethos so well that they were able to maintain his trust even through nearly direct warnings of other people. In retrospect, it is easy to see flaws in a scam, as pointed out in this article, however, to the right victim, a scam seem very appealing and greed can overtake sense. |
Nigerian Scam Song
This song provides insight into the culture behind 419 scams. Proudly sung by a Nigerian, it shows that being a scammer is a noble profession, as it brings money into the economy of otherwise impoverished areas. He calls himself the master and his victims Mugu, Nigerian for big fool or coward. Because of Nigerian scams, he says, he can build national airports and stadiums, for the sake of his country rather than himself. His message is further related back to the 419 scams when he calls the president his sister brother, meaning they are related thus he could be called a Nigerian Prince. While not directly related to rhetoric, the song gives an interesting perspective on 419 scams from the point of view of the scammers.
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