A New Twist on Fraudulent Order Schemes

BookSense.com has been alerted by a number of booksellers to a new fraudulent order scheme that is being perpetrated on member bookstores. In the new scam, booksellers are receiving handwritten orders via postal mail from Nigeria, accompanied by a check for several thousand dollars. In the past, fraudulent orders have typically taken the form of an e-mail, or an order placed through a store's online shopping cart, for a large number of books, with the purchaser being based in a foreign country. These orders were usually from somewhere in West Africa or Southeast Asia, and the books being ordered were medical reference texts or bibles.

Len Vlahos, director of BookSense.com, recently sent an e-mail to BookSense.com stores warning, "This is a growing scam, and one that could cost you thousands of dollars. Under no circumstances should you secure merchandise or ship books based on receiving such a check in the mail without first carefully consulting your local banker, and without giving more than ample time for any such check to be proven legitimate. Better yet, don't fill such an order, and contact your local authorities instead."

Booksellers receiving overseas orders that are suspect should report them to the closest local field office of the U.S. Secret Service. For the telephone number of your local field office, go to www.secretservice.gov/field_offices.shtml.

The Secret Service has also posted a warning about similar schemes at www.secretservice.gov/alert419.shtml.