More Art Scam History

As we have said, there is nothing new under the sun. PaintersKeys.com, an arts website with an extensive artists directory posted this in 2005.

Having the most effective art directory on the Internet has its downside. Our high listing on search engines and general use by a wide range of visitors also has the effect of attracting services of dubious value as well as outright scams designed to rob us. Adding them up since September, 32 artists have written to mention peculiar offers they have been made for paintings displayed on their websites. Yesterday's letter from Constance Hartle of Juneau, Alaska, tells the story:

"An online buyer agreed to purchase a painting for $250. They then mailed a cashier's check for $4,000. Acknowledging their mistake, they asked me to send, via Western Union, the remainder to the shippers. When I wrote back, they decided to buy an additional few paintings to make the sale up to $1,000. Well, the check turned out to be counterfeit, but if I hadn't queried it, and had merely deposited it, and sent the change on my own check, I would have been out $3000. Normally it might take as long as 12 days for a check to clear. It's pretty goofy, but the prospect of someone wanting to make a purchase does cloud the mind."

Constance Hartle makes a good point as to why artists are easily scammed. Our ego is stroked when we get contacted by potential buyers. We would not be making art if we did not think it was salable.

If you do get contacted by potential buyers, beware of the danger signals. A sign of a scam is a cashiers check in an amount greater than you requested.

Your protection? Open a free PayPal account and insist that potential buyers pay directly into that account. Sure, PayPal will take a percentage off the top, but you are protected and potential scammers will have no possibility of gaining your personal information.

Scamming the Scammer

In a twist to the 419 Nigerian Scam, this enterprising person took the art of the scam to a whole new level.

Similar to Ebola Monkey Man, Derek Trotter responds to a scammer named John Boko and works on his greed.

This excerpt follows his emails to a scammer, promising a $25,000 scholarship to a promising artist. He actually got two original art works from the scammers.

A little bit twisted, but his posts provide the same sort of satisfaction you get from watching a Dirty Harry movie!

The Nigerian 419 Scam

By now almost everyone that has an email account has been contacted by the Nigerian Minister of the Interior, or some other banker, deposed prince or government official with millions of dollars they want to launder.

Similar to the art scam which preys on our ego's, the Nigerian scam preys on greed. You might ask why these scammers continue to persist when almost everyone you know deletes the emails immediately?

It is a numbers game. These scammers send out five million emails a day. They only need to hook 3 or 4 people to make it pay off big.

The Ebola Monkey Man has an amusing website (not for the puritanical of mind) where he scams the scammers. This site is a wonderful way to waste an afternoon. Be prepared to laugh your ass off.

Nothing new under the sun

The scam is certainly not anything new. ArtQuest reported on the scam as early as 2004:

Thursday, October 14, 2004
Ripping off Artists Online ArtQuest, an online gallery for artists is warning its members of an increase in scammers trying to rip artists off. Over the past few weeks they have had more than 15 members contact them in regards to scammers. Problems with cashiers checks (cheques), credit cards, and international money orders have been reported.

ArtQuest has started a list of art scammers, along with some information about avoiding these kind of people.

I personally get at least two emails per month from a Nigerian, first letting me know what paintings they like, then asking how they can pay immediately. Their name is different each time, so I hope no legitimate Nigerian art collector ever contacts me by email because they get deleted immediately.

Scamateur

This is an excerpt from an email art scammer that obviously is an amateur at it. He certainly did not put much effort into this email:

Name : frank mark
Email Address : frank.mark63@yahoo.com
Message : Dear Artists My name is Frank Mark,I reside at 144 broad street,cumber land,R.I. 02864, USA?I came across your advert and am highly interested in Purchasing your artwork POSTED ON the sites which you offer for sale,Due to the fact that its been a long time have been searching for it. Please Kindly get back to me as soon as possible with the necessary answers to the question in mind. Are you the artist that owns it? The present condition? Your final asking price? And I will also like you to send me Pictures to enable me view what I intend to purchase I await your urgent response so that we can proceed further. Regards Frank Mark

Another Art Scam

Here is the text from another email art scam dated 4/17/09:

From: peter
Email: peterbill_art01@yahoo.com
------------- Message ------------
Hello to you out there. I am so excited that I came across of your work on internet search,I am interested in purchasing some creative artworks from you let me know their various prices.and how much discounts are you going to give? I will be happy to have these selected artworks hanged in our new home in dublin. As well, I want you to take out the shipping cost.I have been in touch with a shipping firm that will be shipping other house decoratives, We are travelling from our Dallas home to our new apartment as soon as possible.On Paying for the artworks,I will be glad to pay you with a Bank draft or Cashier check in Euro funds that can be easily cashed at your local bank,please let me know on how to proceed, Have a wonderful day..... Take Care, Mr peter bill...

VistaPrint Scam

The Consumer affairs website has this warning of a legal scam perpetrated by Vista Print, used by many artists for printing business cards and rack cards.

If you have ever used Vista Print for cards then you MUST read the information from the consumer affairs link.

It seems that this is a common occurrence - VistaPrint automatically opts you into a "rewards" program through an affiliate. The reward is that the affiliate cleans out your bank account or credit card! You are charged $9.95 a month for a program that supposedly saves you money. If you use a pop-up blocker, you do not even have a chance to opt out.

I learned of the scam from an artist forum as I was investigating the recent scam that involved many local artists from a Caroline Lewis, and other similar scams.