Gaddafi haunts netizens via email scam

Barely a week after his capture and death, former Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi has started haunting the online world – via a new email scam. Computer security firm Sophos said the email comes in the form of a “top secret" letter supposedly from a “chief defender officer" of Gaddafi. “What he is clear about is that he has millions of euros tucked away in a Spanish bank account - some of which he’d like to share with you, and some which he would like to use to set up an orphanage," Sophos said in a blog post. A screenshot of the fraudulent email showed the sender claimed to be hiding in a small European country and is releasing some three million euros. The supposed Gaddafi aide said that since the battle is over, he wanted to use 70 percent of the fund to establish a good investment; and the 30 percent to set up an orphanage. But Sophos warned the email has “all the tell-tale signs of a 419 scam or advance fee fraud." “Inevitably if you start communicating with this fellow he’ll begin to ask you for your personal information, maybe even your bank account details, and request that you send him money to cover expenses... And you, and those orphans, will never see any of the money," it said. Sophos warned people who are vulnerable or elderly may be at risk of being tricked into believing that the offer is real. — TJD, GMA News