In purging my Spam Folder today, I actually scanned the list of spammers before deleting. Every now and then, I'll find one e-mail that has found its way there inadvertently. Most often, though, I just hit DELETE  and move on. 

But, as I had recently placed an ad on Craigs List (hey, it's free...what do you expect?) promoting scenic photos I've taken, this spam message caught my eye: 

 

On Wed, Jan 5, 2011 at 8:44 PM, Curtis Smith <hsiaoshenghsiuoo@hotmail.com> wrote:

Attention Cl User,

My name is Curtis Smith, Chief executive officer of Craigslist. We have recently partnered up with Apple for a one-time promotional event today, we are giving away complimentary Apple iPads to randomly selected folks who have posted an advert on Cl. You have been picked as one of our most recent winners for today. We randomly select numbers to match up with ads on Cl and your advertisement matched with our latest drawing.

We have partnered up with Apple to advertise their hottest product yet, the Apple iPad. Once yet again, we are running this campaign for one-day only. All you need to do is CLICK HERE to check out our website made for this promotion and type in your email to obtain yours for free. Simply make sure you enter your email so we can locate our records to ensure that we have reserved one for you. That's it!

Congratulations on winning a free Apple iPad (valued at $800). In case you have any question or concerns, feel free to email me back. However, you should claim your free iPad 1st to ensure one will be reserved for you before the deadline ends. We do understand that you may well not receive this e-mail until after the deadline, however, we suggest you check out the site and enter your email to see if we still have yours on hold, which we often-times do because others haven't claimed theirs in time.

Curtis Smith
CEO, C-list

 

(My reply to Mr. Smith)

 

Ok, cool.

So, you're from Craigs List. Not only "from" Craigs List, you're the CEO.

Wow! I'm privileged.

So, I would assume that you're a pretty bright person, with a position like that, right? 

But. Your e-mail address: <hsiaoshenghsiuoo@hotmail.com>

Hotmail? Really?
For the CEO of Craigs List?

And, I wonder how your "offer" ended up in my Spam Folder? Somebody, or some anti-spam software, out there is much smarter than the CEO of Craigs List? 

Cool...I think I'll keep my smart spam filter and pass on your "opportunity". Makes me wonder, though, what your scam is and how many folks who post ads on Craigs List actually fall for it.

 

I did NOT click on the offer. There's no telling where that would have taken me. Either a scam-site, a porn site, or some site loaded with viruses, no doubt.

One more time (I say that because all of us have heard it time and again): if it sounds too good to be true, you can rest assured that it isn't true.

There are very few free rides out there. That is, unless you're an illegal alien. You didn't think I'd let this day go by without taking at least one shot, did you?