Definitely a scam. The lying little turd IMed me in a chatroom today, saying, "please help me am in danger". Yeah, right. You IM strangers in chatrooms when you're in danger.

That said, you can manage spam by using disposable email addresses. Yahoo! Mail offers this service. They call it "AddressGuard". Here's a link: http://au.antispam.yahoo.com/addressguard . My understanding is that it's something you pay for if you're in the US, but I'm Australian, and it's free for me. You set up an email address and put a note to yourself to remind you of who you gave the address to, and if you start getting spam, you'll not only be able to delete the address (and stop the spam coming through) but you'll also know WHO is responsible, if you only give each disposable address to one party. Then you know not to give them your details ever again.

If you have your own website, you can often create your own email addresses for your domain, and do basically the same thing.

Generally speaking, any email you receive that plays on your emotions, promises money and/or asks you for personal details to "claim" a prize or inheritance, is going to be a scam. Think about it. This guy says he is "dying of hunger", but he can afford Internet access and a phone service? I don't think so! And signing off, "Your Son" - what?! I think not. Red flags are popping up everywhere from reading that email. Sadly, though, there must be people who get sucked in, because these scam artists keep on sending the emails. Don't be another victim.

I get ones like these all the time, they very from millions left to you from a distant relative, tragic accident, lost family, lottery. If it comes from Africa or Israel I've seen a few from as well then ignore it or report it as spam.

Here it is :


HELLO

Good day, how are you I hope that you are in good health?

My name is Henry Konan, am from Cote D’Ivoire/ Ivory Coast located in West Africa am 17 years old of age, my fathers name is Late Mr. Felix Konan and my late mother was Rita Konan am an orphan.

Please I want you to take me as your son and I promise to make you proud, never to let you down, help me because of what ever you worship, give me a try and see the end of what will happen, please am suffering a lot here in my country because am an orphan now, I have suffered a lot please help me, I will always love you and be there for you when you be come old, take me as your son.

My late father was poisoned by his only brother who he his business partner because they do joint business exporting cocoa to Europe, he called my father one afternoon on the 3rd of this month September 2009 and took him out to have drink with him, my Late father trusted him because he was his brother not knowing that he has some thing bad in mind ,when they got there he poisoned my father ,my father came back home that day not feeling fine ,the next morning been the 4th he was sick and cant work, vomiting blood, he was taking to hospital and the doctor said that he drinker poison ,in his hospital bed he told me all that happened. He died on the 4th evening at 7.30pm.

He told me that I should be very careful of his brother, after he was buried his brother have taking over their business and investments, he also planed to poison me also as the first son who will Inherit my father assets when I grow of age ,but God saved me by touching the heart of his daughter who heard him talking it with his wife and she came to tell me to run away from the house, right now am in deep danger because he may find me and kill me, am now in another city near the city we was living in a refuge camp, hungry is killing me here; no good food and good water ,the camp belongs to Liberians who run here when they have war ,please help me out.

Before my father’s death he told me that he deposited the sum of 4.3 Million dollars in the bank here that I should not tell him or any body here, that I should use the money to help my self and further my education ,now I have the certificate of deposit with me, I went to the bank and the bank said that am very young, that I cant handle or invest the money and that they will only release the money if I can present my Guardian or my late father foreign business partner ,please help me am dieing of hunger so that I can present you to the bank and you will tell them that you are my late father business foreign partner and my Guardian so that they release and transfer the money to you, while you prepare my travelling documents over there and send to me, so that I come to your country to be saved, further my education while you also invest the money.

Am dieing of hunger please help me, call me with my number here +225 08 65 42 39 /Email me henry_excel_ci@yahoo.com

Waiting for your urgent responds
Your son
Henry Konan