Anyone care to shoot this down in flames?

[linney]

Quote from an E-mail doing the rounds..............

Subject: FW: PLEASE READ!!! IT WAS ON THE NEWS!!!!!

Hi,
I know we are all cynical about these things - but it seemed a tiny thing to do, so just in case.........


To all of my friends, I do not usually forward messages, But this is from Pearlas Sandborn and she really is an attorney.

> >> If she says that this will work - It will work. After all, What
> >>have you got to lose? SORRY EVERYBODY.. JUST HAD TO TAKE THE
> >>CHANCE!!! I'm an attorney, And I know the law. This thing is for
> >>real. Rest assured AOL and Intel will follow through with their
> >>promises for fear of facing a multimillion-dollar class action suit
> >>similar to the one filed by PepsiCo against General Electric not too long ago.
> >>
> >> Dear Friends; Please do not take this for a junk letter. Bill Gates
> >>sharing his fortune. If you ignore this, You will repent later.
> >>Microsoft and AOL are now the largest Internet companies and in an
> >>effort to make sure that Internet Explorer remains the most widely
> >>used program, Microsoft and AOL are running an e-mail beta test.
> >>
> >> When you forward this e-mail to friends, Mic rosoft can and will
> >>track it ( If you are a Microsoft Windows user) For a two weeks time
> >>period.

> >> For every person that you forward this e-mail to, Microsoft will
> >>pay you $245.00 For every person that you sent it to that forwards
> >>it on, Microsoft will pay you $243.00 and for every third person
> >>that receives it, You will be paid $241.00. Within two weeks,
> >>Microsoft will contact you for your address and then send you a check.
> >>
> >> Regards. Charles S Bailey General Manager Field Operations
> >> 1-800-842-2332 Ext. 1085 or 904-1085 or RNX
> >> 292-1085 Charles_Bailey@csx.comCharles_bailey@csx.com
> >> <mailto:Charles_Bailey@csx.comCharles_bailey@csx.com>
> >>
> >> I thought this was a scam myself, But two weeks after receiving
> >>this e-mail and forwarding it on. Microsoft co ntacted me for my
> >>address and within days, I receive a check for $24,800.00. You need
> >>to respond before the beta testing is over. If anyone can affoard
> >>this, Bill gates is the man.
> >>
> >> It's all marketing expense to him. Please forward this to as many
> >>people as possible. You are bound to get at least $10, 000.00. We're
> >>not going to help them out with their e-mail beta test without
> >>getting a little something for our time. My brother's girlfriend got
> >>in on this a few months ago. When i went to visit him for the
> >>Baylor/UT game. She showed me her check. It was for the sum of $4,
> >>324.44 and was stamped "Paid in full"
> >>
> >> Like i said before, I know the law, and this is for real.
> >>
> >> Intel and AOL are now discussing a merger which would make them the
> >>largest Internet company and in an effort make sure that AOL remains
> >>the most widely used program, Intel and AOL are running an e-mail
> >>beta test.
> >>
> >> When you forward this e-mail to friends, Intel can and will track
> >>it( if you are a Microsoft Windows user)for a two week time period.
> >>
> >> TRy it; What have you got to lose





END QUOTE............

 

[rvnguy]

linney,

Hey like it says "What have you got to lose"

I actually believe that I have this archived from over a year ago. I forget where I got it from and of course had to AV it to death before opening it. Just in case there was something craftily hidden in it. I never forwarded it. And guess what I never received any check either.

I think that it is just making the rounds again.


rvnguy
"I know everything..I just can't remember it all

 

[micker377]

Oh God - not again! Note the date on this report:

Microsoft and AOL Merger Hoax
October 1999

Listed below is another giveaway hoax. This one has Microsoft and AOL merged and giving away money if you send this message to everyone you know. It even includes a testimonial.

Date: Thursday, October 07, 1999 10:56 AM
Subject: Broadcast: Microsoft and AOL Merger


FROM: xxxx
COMPANY: RE/MAX Commercial Services, Inc.

Subject: Microsoft and AOL Merger

I am forwarding this because the person who sent it to me is a good friend
and does not send me junk. Microsoft and AOL are now the largest Internet
company and in an effort make sure that Internet explorer remains the most
widely used program, Microsoft and AOL are running an e-mail beta test. When
you forward this e-mail to friends, Microsoft can and will track it (if you
are a Microsoft Windows user) for a two week time period. For every person
that you forward this e-mail to, Microsoft will pay you $245.00, for every
person that you sent it to that forwards it on, Microsoft will pay you
$243.00 and for every third person that receives it, you will be paid
$241.00. Within two weeks, Microsoft will contact you for your address and
then send you a check. I thought this was a scam myself, but two weeks
after receiving this e-mail and forwarding it on, Microsoft contacted me for
my e-mail and within days, I received a check for $24800.00.

Brent Jones
FCG Inc.
Wayne PA
610 225 6787
bjones@fcg.com

And here is another variant from April 2002

Dear Friends,
Please do not take this for a junk letter. Bill Gates is sharing
his fortune. If you ignore this you will repent later. Microsoft
and AOL are now the largest Internet companies and in an effort
to make sure that Internet Explorer remains the most widely used
program, Microsoft and AOL are running an e-mail beta test.

When you forward this e-mail to friends, Microsoft can and will
track it(if you are a Microsoft Windows user) for a two week time
period. For every person that you forward this e-mail to, Microsoft
will pay you $245.00, for every person that you sent it to that
forwards it on, Microsoft will pay you $243.00 and for every
third person that receives it, you will be paid $241.00. Within
two weeks, Microsoft will contact you for your address and then
send you a cheque.
Regards.

Chinu! I thought this was a scam myself, but two weeks after
receiving this e-mail and forwarding it on, Microsoft
contacted me for my address and within days, I received a
cheque for US$24,800.00. You need to respond before the
beta testing is over. If anyone can afford this Bill
Gates is the man. It's all marketing expense to him. Please
forward this to as many people as possible. You are bound
to get at least US$10,000.00

 

[lbrown13]

http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/nothing/microsoft-aol.asp

It is false.


Larry

 

[IHateXP]

Only one snag I can see, without the originating email headers how will BillG know who's sent what as they can't track every email, or has the Big Brother State taken over LOL What do you think?

 

[GwydionM]

All such schemes would work fine if there were an infinite population to expand into. Supposing that they were not also plagued by an infinite number of such schemes.

Since everyone gets money from someone else, any gain has to be balanced by someone else's loss.

------------------------------
An old man who lives in the UK

 

[s0121]

I'm sure this same piece of CRUD.. was started in the Window 95 early days... it is good for a "Laugh"


Frank Smith irc.dhcnetwork.com

SomeWhere in Kansas Near Dodge City

 

[PalmTest]

Four things pop into my mind reading the message:

1: The originating person claims (multiple times) that he/she is trustworthy.
2: It involves a company that acts worldwide.
3: I have to send the message immediately to everybody in my addressbook.
4: There is absolutely no way you can verify the message, no homepage no e-mail address no telephone numbers, no CNN coverage

Sometimes it is a young kid suferring a terrible disease who has to be helped, sometimes it is a student urgently searching for something, and sometimes it is an african prince offering a great deal of money.
Hmm... they don't get creative anymore.

 

[erikhertzel]

For most anything of this sort, you can look at the following website:

http://www.truthorfiction.com

which researches all kinds of claims like this.

Anyhow, doing a search on this one and you will find this link:

http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/m/msoffer.htm

Erik

 

[pmonett]

For me, UrbanLegends is the prime site where I check such things when I have a doubt.

But here, there is no doubt at all. This message presents all the signs of a hoax :

1) it purports to validate its own authenticity
2) it promises some wonderful thing (here, money)
3) it requires you send it to everyone you can (that's called spam)
4) it references some well-known entity by name
5) not once does it include any link to any official site by which you could actually verify that it is true

Any message that asks me to send it on is already taunting my Del key, but yet another version of the never-ending stupid e-mail tracking thingy is long gone before I even finish reading it.
Besides, suggesting to me that Microsoft, IBM, Intel or any multinational company whatsoever is actually going to give out money is an insult to my intelligence. And I'm not even a shareholder.

Pascal.