FRAUD - Why does it seem to be so prevalent in Nigeria?

Question

I am trying not to make blanket generalisations but my experiences over the past two weeks are making me feel this. I have been advertising my MP3, TV and DVD combi and designer boots on Ebay and another wesite and so far have only experienced responses from Nigerian people. If the item is £45 they want to give me a cheque for £2000, then they want to send a courier to collect the boots and for me to pay the difference from the £2000 in cash to a third party.
Evidently this is a 419 scam but these email responses have been so numerous, all wanting me to post my items to Nigeria under similar conditions, and I've become somewhat angry about it all now.

Why is this activity so widespread in this country? I posted a question on an African website and the response was "learned behaviour", "poverty" and "British oppression" none of which I fell for. Anyone got any suggestions as to why this is so widespread here. Of course, I understand that it also goes on in many other countries....

By the way I am not meaning to be offensive.. It's just that I have nearly been defrauded a couple of times in the past two weeks and I just want to understand the reasoning behind it all...

N.B Forrest... No I don't believe that it is because a group pf people are Black if that's what you are implying! There are plentyof other former British colonies [inhabited by Black people in the Caribbean for example] for example that don't conduct themselves in this way. A further example is India an impoverished country which was part of the British Empire but I don't believe that it's prevalent there...

Something which did make me laugh was a website I came across latterly where a guy has scammed the scammers in a rather complex and intricate manner... responding to their emails, making them travel miles to Western Unions to collect non-existent money, even travelling to Madrid from Africa to collect expectant cash...
http://www.scambuster419.co.uk/signwriter.htm.

Quite funny really!!!

del-d I understand what you are saying but my family are from Antigua in the Caribbean which has no welfare system. In fact many Caribbean, Central and South American as well as Asian countries have no welfare system... yet there is no prevalence of fraud there...?

BTW also travelled extensively around Central America - in particular Nicaragua and Guatemala where the life expectancy in the latter is 45 and the people are very, very, very poor [poorer I would say than Nigerians] and the government is corrupt... yet. no fraud there which is affecting the West??

Answer 1

When a government is terribly corrupt the citizenry tend to survive by any means possible and this "means" is handed down through families and the definition of the world "wrong" is changed.

Example: If you lived in a town where you had to steal potatoes at night to survive and you taught this to your children with the admonition that poor people have to do this to survive and the people with the potatoes are wrong for not sharing and this goes down generations you will end up with people that see no wrong in "taking potatoes".

So, it is in a way "learned behavior".

Answer 2

The situation you are describing is a version of advance fee fraud. It is actually quite prevelant in most of the Western African Countries. The cheques will bounce and may also try to obtain your bank details so they can clear the account. The actual problem is being addressed by the Nigerian Govt. Whilst there still remains problems which go back to corruption at most levels of society, they are cracking down on the problem as they are an emerging enconomy. They don't want to be seen as the bad boys of Africa. The problem you have experienced is because their economy is probably better than most neighbours and this of course leads to better communication systems. More people having access to the internet. You may find a lot are actually sent from other countries than Nigeria but they will be trying to send the money home to relatives. I have seen lots of examples of people working away from home virtually living on nothing and sending lots of money home to support families. The reason for the problem is probably wide and diverse and possibly includes some of the reason you have listed. Don't reply to any of these communications and report them to you ISP. They usually have fairly active policies to close down such operations over the net.

Answer 3

I too was pulled into a scam from Nigeria. It seems that ther are reasons for their cunning but I think that the country has lived with corruption for so long that it has become second nature and there is little money or effort to police it.

Not only that but despite it happening to people all over the world by the Nigerians, certianly the police in the UK dont care. They would rather try bullying innocent UK citizens than work with the Nigerian police to stop it happening and protect other british people.

So I guess its to do with not getting caught or punished

Answer 4

The most important thing about it is to be able to smell the fish, its indeed prevalent. Now corruption has become rumpant in Africa emanating from Nigeria. But remember also the many good men the smae country has exported. Its a mixed grill so we say. Nigerians are just too educated for this small planet, beware of them anyway they always try a new one, they are always gulible people out there. Dont be one of them.

Answer 5

It is state-sponsored in Nigeria, which would be the obvious answer. It's an industry there. It could even possibly be run by foreigners from Europe, South Africa, Australia, who knows. It just uses the Nigerian locals as rank-and-file workers.

Any other country would possibly shut down anything like that very quickly.

Answer 6

Because they have no future security - no welfare system.

The culture is "make every penny you can, whilst you can - because tomorrow you may be starving in the mud"

The country is rich in oil and minerals and the Western oil giants are making a fortune whilst polluting and contaminating the land. The government are on back handers and the ordinary people get nothing.

So it is dog eat dog. They can not beat this system. They have families to provide for and they put providing for them before scruples.

And so would most of us - the difference is that we do not have to

Answer 7

it really is why there's a unsolicited mail section in Yahoo mail. this can be a scam and in case you answer it, you'll in no way get the junk to end coming in. Yahoo won't be able to end it, yet you are able to. Sending this, and others like ito to unsolicited mail blocks the sender. because they replace on a daily basis, you need to save blockading it. Your in undemanding words different decision isn't to have an digital mail handle.

Answer 8

I have wondered about this very question and also do not agree that those suggested reasons you mentioned are the cause.I will check , I hope "we" get some good answers!

Answer 9

don't try to understand them, you could spend years trying to understand and just when you think you do they stab you in the back, just accept that everyones different

Answer 10

I'd tell you why, but that would get me reported.

You already "DO" know the answer!