Ms Eclectic and I both received the following email from a friend this morning. We'd read about this scam, so we didn't believe it:
Sorry to bother you this time but this seems to me more than a dreadful ill-luck for me and my family.I am in Simferopol (UKRAINE) right now for a short vacation and unfortunately i ran out of cash, i have tried to access my credit card from the cash machines here but it keeps saying network errors.
I also tried to withdraw funds from my own bank account here but the lady at the paid desk informed me that i can't withdraw from my account here in a foreign country,wondering if i could get a quick loan of ($2,550 USD) from you to clear some little things here and also take a cab to the airport i promise to refund it as soon as i get back home later this week.
I anticipate your response .
It is addressed as it came from her [email protected], but when you click on reply, it goes to an account at yahoo with a slight misspelling of her name.
If you receive something like this, write separately (i.e. do not click "reply") to check with your friend and let them know about the scam.