Councilman's Aide Falls For Internet Scam; Friends Get Money Plea from Africa
The Rockaway Wave tells us that Donovon Richards, district manager for Councilman James Sanders, Jr. of Rockaway, got an email purporting to be from "the administrators of Hotmail.com." The email said his account would be terminated if he didn't reply with his "email address, password, date of birth, and country." Richards, who unsuccessfully tried to gain a Democratic Assembly nomination this year, is apparently new to this internet thing, and sent them the requested information. Soon his hundreds of hotmail contacts received an email from Richards' address, telling them that Richards was "sorry i didn't inform you about my traveling to Africa" but he was writing "from the city Library and I only have 30 min" to ask them for $2300 because he lost his wallet and couldn't pay his hotel bill and "I don't even have money to feed myself."
Apparently Richards' hundreds of friends and acquaintances were smarter than he, and did not send the money.
Donovan now tells the Wave that "you must always be careful and make sure you change your passwords regularly, around once a month."
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