How does prayer protect you from being conned?
There is this guy who was arrested last year,his crime?He used to bank tithein his account and then produce fake deposit slips in favour of the church...until his time ran out.

Wah. This is crazy stuff. No wonder i was so paranoid when I wanted to buy my car sometime last year. Any small sneaky feeling about someone, and am off. I suspect I may have wrongly judged a few sellers. Lakini kweli this conography is too much. Who to trust?

This thread is truly informative,they say he who learns from experience becomes wise and he who learns from other peoples experiences awakens.


It reminds me of a pal of mine just mid last year who was lured to enter into the Gemstone business,which am told is booming.After frequent sessions of convincing he bought the idea.Apparently this business promises quick and larger returns,so my pal so this as an opportunity to turn around an year that was not so good for him finacially.

The initial start up capital was to be 250k.He raised this money in all means possible to him within a short time.The Gems were supposedly being outsourced from Dr. Congo..read Zaire and my pal was even told the Dealer was a Congolese National.

The D-day of seeing the Dealer came and the Agent together with my pal tagged along.He was shown the dealer from afar and true he looked congolese in all respects that is Poise,Dress Code etc.But when they moved closer my Pal was awestruck to realise that the Congolese Dealer was indeed his Kenyan Cousin from Nyeri...as they say the rest is History..Moral;Just leave alone the Gem Business especially if a Congolese is involved.

This sharing is good and helps us beware and puts us on our toes. Credit card theft/fraud is rampant, here's a coupla more examples sent by a pal from abroad but equally applicable here:

Be sure to read Scene 3, quite interesting.
SCENE 1.

This is a new one.
People sure stay busy trying to cheat us, don't they?

A friend went to the local gym and placed his belongings in the locker. After the workout and a shower, he came out, saw the locker open, and thought to himself, 'Funny, I thought I locked the locker.

Hmm, 'He dressed and just flipped the wallet to make sure all was in order.

Everything looked okay - all cards were in place.

A few weeks later his credit card bill came - a whooping bill of $14,000!

He called the credit card company and started yelling at them, saying that he did not make the transactions.

Customer care personnel verified that there was no Mistake in the system and asked if his card had been stolen.

'No,' he said, but then took out his wallet, pulled out the credit card, and yep - you guessed it - a switch had been made

An expired similar credit car from the same bank was in the wallet.

The thief broke into his locker at the gym and switched cards.

Verdict: The credit card issuer said since he did not report the card missing earlier, he would have to pay the amount owed to them.

How much did he have to pay for items he did not buy?
$9,000! Why were there no calls made to verify the amount swiped?

Small amounts rarely trigger a 'warning bell' with some credit card companies.

It just so happens that all the small amounts added up to big one!

SCENE 2.

A man at a local restaurant paid for his meal with his credit card.

The bill for the meal came, he signed it,and the waitress folded the receipt and passed the credit card along

Usually, he would just take it and place it in his wallet or pocket. Funny enough, though, he actually took a look at the card and, lo and behold, it was the expired card of another person.

He called the waitress and she looked perplexed.

She took it back, apologized, and hurried back to the counter under the watchful eye of the man.

All the waitress did while walking to the counter was wave the wrong expired card to the counter cashier, and the counter cashier immediately looked down and took out the real card.

No exchange of words --- nothing! She took it and came back to the man with an apology.

Verdict:
Make sure the credit cards in your wallet are yours. Check the name on the card every time you sign for something and/or the card is taken away fo even a short period of time.

Many people just take back the credit card without even looking at it, 'assuming' that it has to be theirs.

FOR YOUR OWN SAKE, DEVELOP THE HABIT OF CHECKING YOUR CREDIT CARD EACH TIME IT IS RETURNED TO YOU AFTER A TRANSACTION!

SCENE 3:

Yesterday I went into a pizza restaurant to pick up an order that I had called in.

I paid by using my Visa Check Card which, of course, is linked directly to my checking account.

The young man behind the counter took my card, swiped it, then laid it on the counter as he waited for the approval, which is pretty standard procedure.

While he waited, he picked up his cell phone and started dialing.

I noticed the phone because it is the same model I have, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Then I heard a click that sounded like my phone sounds when I take a picture.

He then gave me back my card but kept the phone in his hand as if he was still pressing buttons.

Meanwhile, I'm thinking: I wonder what he is taking a picture of, oblivious to what was really going on.

I then dawned on me: the only thing there was my credit card, so now I'm paying close attention to what he is doing.

He set his phone on the counter, leaving it open.

About five seconds later, I heard the chime that tells you that the picture has been saved.

Now I'm standing there struggling with the fact that this boy just took a picture of my credit card.

Yes, he played it off well, because had we not had the same kind of phone, I probably would never have known what happened.

Needless to say, I immediately canceled that card as I was walking out of the pizza parlor.

All I am saying is, be aware of your surroundings at all times.

Whenever you are using your credit card take caution and don't be careless.

Notice who is standing near you and what they are doing when yo use your card.

Be aware of phones, because many have a camera phone these days.