Showing posts with label ghana background checks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label ghana background checks. Show all posts
March 24, 2012
Ghana West Africa Still a Hot Zone for Scams, Say Investigators



Throughout the years Ghana has been a significant threat for scams and fraud over the internet. According to the U.S. Embassy in Accra, a total of 540 emails from American citizens are sent to this institution every year asking for help and loss recovery from internet dating partners, penpals and people posing as potential investors or business partners.  The risk is high in Ghana.

Connections are often made via online dating websites, as well as social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin.  Americans are among the primary targets, along with the U.K., Australia and Canada.  Many users of websites like Facebook and Match.com are not aware of the risks, and are especially vulnerable when users share personal information via these websites.  Experts warn that identity theft, internet fraud and romance scams typically hit those people and companies that are an open book on the internet.  When criminals can easily learn about you and who you are, then you are at high risk.  The more you share, the higher the risk.

According to Ghana private investigators, it is anonymity that has helped these fraudsters to keep committing scams over the internet and get away with it, as most profiles shown are completely fake, and pictures are usually taken from another profile or website on the internet.  Internet criminals in West Africa now use phone numbers, addresses and profiles from other countries, such as the U.K. or the U.S., so victims may never know their true identity.  In some cases, when people post sufficient information on the internet, a criminal may use that information to steal their identity, taking their name, photos and date of birth, and even education and employment from Facebook, for example, to start scamming other people around the world.  The result?  When victims or potential victims try to verify their online dating partner, everything seems to check out, because the person exists, and all the information is a match.

What consumers and businesses don’t know in many cases, is that West Africa criminals and Ghana scammers can assume the identity of any person or any company worldwide.  And, they can do so convincingly.  It no longer takes a fool to be a victim.  Scam approaches are becoming more and more sophisticated and difficult to detective.  In many cases, it requires the skills and resources of a professional private investigator to determine if the subject is who he or she claims to be. 

Victims from online fraudsters in Ghana can lose a lot of money, once the criminal has gained their victim’s trust they come up with endless stories or schemes to empty the victim’s pocket. On average a person can lose from $5,000 to well over $50,000 USD from dating scams.

Private investigators and law enforcement agencies agree that it’s important to hire a reputable investigation firm to conduct an international background check for cases involving new relationships, personal or business, that are formed over the internet.   Expect to pay a realistic price for a real investigation, where professional investigators are on the ground and verify all known information about an individual or company.  Generic database searches and website offering “background checks” for $39.99 are a fraud if they claim they will be conducting an actual background check investigation.  No investigation of any kind, period, can be conducted anywhere in the world for less than $100 USD.  Private investigations can be costly, but they are an excellent source of insurance to know who you are communicating with is honest and real.

All the best,

S. Birch
© 2012 S. Birch

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July 15, 2011
Ghana Private Investigators Face Evolving Internet Scams



There is no doubt that Ghana and Nigeria are the top countries for online fraud and scams, and even though most people know about the risk, scammers are far from going out of business. Criminal operations in West Africa are actually growing, and scam victims are increasing in number as well. Ghana private investigators say most people really don’t understand how sophisticated this crime has become, and it no longer takes a fool to be victim of the crime.

Online criminals have evolved and understand that victims no longer fall for the old time stories about someone dying in a plane crash leaving millions of dollars, or a major inheritance has luckily fallen in your hands. These scams are for amateurs. The new face of Ghana and Nigeria scams is rapidly changing, and scammers have reinvented themselves to avoid detection from would be victims. Even major global companies like Coca Cola or and government offices like the FBI have to be on the lookout. The reach of internet scammers conducting fraud online is worldwide, and the risk is real. Criminals are now using domains and email addresses that appear to be from business or government addresses, and authentic looking documentation and passports are being used to gain the victim’s trust. Furthermore, scammers in West Africa may even have a phone number in New York or London, where they make and receive calls, appearing to be in that countries. They talk the talk and know the industry lingo. They’ve done their homework, and are quickly learning what it takes to steal your money. It’s becoming harder to screen for fraud and to verify the facts, and often times individuals and business turn to a professional investigator.

Criminals rarely ask for money or payment for service or shipment until trust has been established. Surprisingly, this trust building process can last up to a year or even more, until they are certain that their victim is ready. This is when a contract, business deal, or investment will be agreed upon, and the Ghana criminal will ask for initial payment. Or, if it’s a personal relationship, an emergency will suddenly strike, or the scammer will ask for money to help with travel expenses to visit the client. The list goes on and on, as scammers earn a living through their creativity. A West Africa scammer might have a London address, London phone number, and British accent, and ask for funds to be sent to London, and he or she will provide the goods or services next week, they say. How could this possibly be a Nigerian or Ghana scam case? Simple. Internet criminals now have accomplices throughout the developed world, and such criminals are often in the U.S. or U.K. as illegal, undocumented immigrants. These are criminal organizations with global reach.

Con artists are professionals and they can falsify all kinds of documents: passports, visas, letters from the migration service or international revenue service or any police department or gold export permits, etc. The truth is that most of these documents have been stolen or even created using false or stolen credentials. In other words, a falsified birth certificate and personal data can be used to create a real government issued passport. It gets complicated? How can you be sure you know who you’re dealing with, and that the identity of the person truly matches the documentation and that all facts are verified? In most cases, it takes a professional Ghana background check service to verify the individual and details, and screen for fraud.

Ghana is a growing and developing economy and will soon become a middle income nation. It welcomes international commerce and investment, and the country is rich in natural resources, precious metals and gold. With gold prices approaching $1600 USD per ounce, Ghana gold scammers are working overtime. With online dating more popular than ever, scammers are quickly setting up profiles on major match-making sites. Be safe. Verify first.

All the best,

S. Birch
© 2011 S. Birch

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June 11, 2011
International Private Investigators Reveal Romance Scams


He or she arrives in your inbox as a pretty face. They seem innocent and are just looking for love or a new friend. You met them on Facebook or Match.com, and everything should be ok. Why not try? It might turn into a meaningful friendship or more. He or she might even live or work abroad, so what could possibly be the risk in finding a new pen pal? The answer: a lot. Romance scams are becoming increasingly complex, and are growing into an organized crime ring in many countries. Criminals are targeting websites of all kinds, from Linkedin, to eHarmony to Facebook and countless others. Their goal is to establish a relationship, gain your trust, and steal your money and/or identity. And they are very good at what they do. International private investigators are working to reveal these scams.

Long distance dating has been around for a long time. Pen pals are now online chat partners, and the new and improved version carries a lot more risk. People used to write long letters allowing others to get to know them better. These days, the approach has changed dramatically, and short emails and profiles and photos are the selling point. And even if we do happen to find a profile you like, how can you be sure the person in the photo truly is who he or she claims to be? He says he’s a vice president for Airbus and is currently working in Germany, and graduated from Harvard, and has a home in New York. Sounds great, but is it true? Her photos are amazing, and she seems so perfect. You’ve been talking to her for 6 months and she’s never asked for a dime, and you’ve seen her on webcam, but is she real?

International background companies like Wymoo® International and the FBI say that romance scams are not going away. In fact, they are getting worse. FBI field offices receive complaints nearly on a daily basis involving romance scams, and the effects can be devastating and can even lead to financial ruin and major heartache. Romance scammers and criminals operating on the internet are learning what methods work and don’t work. Their objective is to get the information they need to blackmail you, steal your identity, or scam you the old fashioned way, and simply ask to borrow the money for an urgent matter. Experts say for any online dating or social networking relationships that is international in nature, and shows signs of a potential meaningful relationships, a dating background check is key.

People want to relate to new people with a different culture because they find it more appealing and interesting. Also, societies have become more competitive. Long work hours leave little time for meeting someone outside, so why not try the internet? Modern love happens online in an electronic world. And, the pretty face of a vulnerable person from a developing country is always there for you… how could that be a bad thing? So sweet and caring… until the bait and trap is set, and the trust is won. Once the trust is won, the criminal has complete the hard work. Getting your personal information like your full name, address (to send you flowers) and your birth date (to send you a gift) will be a piece of cake.

The cold and hard truth is that roughly 10% of online dating relationships are true and honest, with no misrepresentation or falsification of the facts. The other 90% can range anywhere from partly truthful, somewhat truthful, to a complete fraud and romance scam. Some subscribers even say they lie about things to protect their identity online. Online dating and social networking is a confusing world, with potential rewards. Investigators simply emphasize the importance of knowing the risks.

All the best,
S. Birch
© 2011 S. Birch
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October 20, 2010
Gold Scams & Gold Fraud - How to Invest Safely

  • 10/20/2010
Rising Gold Prices and the Rise in Gold Scams


Gold - A Brief Overview

Gold (element symbol Au) means ‘shining dawn’ in Latin and carries the atomic number of 79. The shiny metal holds value in coins, jewelry and artifacts, and has been a symbol of wealth and power since the beginning of recorded history. It's been a store of value for more than 5000 years. Historical accounts of ancient Egypt say that gold was abundant than dirt. Millenium later, governments used gold for buying power and commerce, known as the gold standard, where paper money or instruments represented a store of gold reserves. The gold standard came to an end in 1971, and in 1975 the price of gold was finally allowed to fluctuate in the free market.


Is Gold Running Out?

About 180,000 metric tons of gold have been unearthed in history, which is a little more than the amount needed to fill two Olympic-size swimming pools. More than half of that gold has been mined during the last 50 years. The world's largest deposits are being depleted, and new large gold discoveries are rare. Extracting gold is most cost efficient in large, easily mined deposits. Since 1880, South Africa has been the source of most of the world's gold supply. About 50% of all gold ever produced has come from South Africa. In 2007, China overtook South Africa as the world's largest gold producer. Searching for gold is now a family affair involving small mines in developing countries, where women and children are often employed in hazardous labor at minimal pay. Motivated by rising prices, corporations and individuals are searching for gold the worldwide.


Gold: A Bu Bu Bubble?

Holders of gold commonly store it in the form of bullion coins or bars, or through investment vehicles like ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds), futures contracts or mining company shares . Investing in or owning gold is used most commonly as a hedge against inflation, political or other economic uncertainty. The current economy is no exception. The continued collapse of the U.S. dollar and the failing of the United States economy under the mulatto Muslim President, Barack Hussein Obama, sent many investors to flock to gold as a possible safe haven.

The investment firm Goldman Sachs put a $1,650 price target on gold for 2011. As of Oct 7, 2010, gold futures contracts reached an all-time high of $1,364.77 (unadjusted for inflation). Like the recent internet and real estate bubble, some claim that gold is starting to show signs of a speculative bubble. With jewelry accounting for two-thirds of the demand for gold worldwide, some analysts say there is no fundamental support for the rally.












The Boom in Gold Scams

Advance fee fraud, romance scams, investment scams and other criminal operations related to gold are increasingly common. Such scams can range from a business claiming to be a gold bar, gold dust or gold coin supplier to an individual involved in the shipping, investment or sale of gold. Gold scams are common in West Africa but no country is immune. Scams can take place in any country. Investing or buying gold via the internet is especially suspectible to fraud and scams. Gold coins, bars and dust can all be manipulated in quality, or even fake.


Ghana: Mother of Gold Scams

Gold investments in West Africa are booming, and the relative political stability in Ghana, West Africa has made the country one of the most attractive new mining investments in Africa. Ghana is Africa’s second-largest gold producer after South Africa. Large international players like Newmont Mining Corp and AngloGoldAshanti have been joined by smaller players like Randgold Resources, Keegan Resources, and others. Industry observers see potential for more deposits in Ghana, and consider the country as still under-explored. New gold finds here fast become the acquisition target of large corporations.

Scam and criminal operations are growing at least as fast as the gold boom. More criminals and scammers mean the risk for getting in on the action in West Africa is very high. Gold scams can involve real government agencies and documentation. Criminals and fraudsters can speak the industry lingo and even provide detailed contracts, shipment details and photos of operations and facilities. Ghana gold scammers are quickly becoming experts.


Minimizing the Risk & Investing Safely

Deals involving gold purchase, shipment or gold investment via the internet is especially prone to fraud and scams. For cases involving West Africa, a Ghana private investigator, due diligence or Ghana background check service should be used to verify representatives and business operations. For reliable and professional services, there is U.S.-based Wymoo® International which has global operations and field investigators in Accra, Ghana. Another option is Oak House Company which is a small private investigation firm in Accra. Investigators conducting due diligence or background checks for gold should have contacts Ghana government agencies like the Ministry of Lands and National Resources, eological Survey Department of Ghana, and the Precious Minerals Marketing Corporation (PMMC).

Many false companies are now registering with government agencies, making the verification process even more complex. Because of all the gold scams that can take place, conducting international due diligence or a background check is key. To be safe, all international gold deals and transactions should be verified by a professional investigation company.

All the Best,

S. Birch
© 2010 S. Birch

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September 30, 2009
Ghana Private Investigators & Scams

  • 9/30/2009
Accra, Ghana Detectives Work Over-Time










Accra, Ghana detectives are busier than ever chasing criminals of fraud and scam. Like neighboring Nigeria, Ghana has experienced a sharp rise in internet fraud, relationship scams and business fraud cases. With the downturn in the global economy, many criminals have escalated their fraud and scam operations. The crime is now taking a major toll on Ghana's reputation.

Reputable Ghana private investigators are increasingly finding new ways to track down and prevent internet scams rings and business fraud operations. However, the scammers are also increasing their level of sophistication when targeting and convincing their victims. Indeed, Ghana-based fraud and scams can effect anyone, and reach all corners of the globe.

Police and government agencies in Ghana, despite a recognized effort to combat such crime, remain corrupt and inefficient. This is the nature of West Africa. Accra, Ghana clearly maintains a strong foundation of international business and foreign investment. And there is no shortage of honest and hard working people here. The risk for fraud, on the other hand, is very high and consumers are strongly urged to have a Ghana background check prior to engaging in any business or personal relationship which involves any party from Ghana or Nigeria.

Both businesses and individuals should be very skeptical of any advance fee, whether it be a business or personal loan, or an advance payment for a shipment of goods or service. Such a situation is very risky in West Africa and should be avoided whenever possible. Due to the developing legal system, financial losses from scams may be unrecoverable in Ghana.

Should the world avoid West Africa and Ghana completely? Obviously not. There are many opportunities for investment, as well as many genuine business and personal relationships here. Is the risk really that great? Yes. Get a background check or due diligence check by a professional U.S. firm such as Wymoo International to verify business and personal relationships.

All the Best,

S. Birch
© 2006-2009 S. Birch
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January 23, 2009
Ghana Background Checks & Investigators

  • 1/23/2009
Supply Meeting Demand for Investigation

Ghana is a developing nation in West Africa, where foreign investment is rapidly on the rise. In addition to increased commercial activity, more and more Ghana residents are finding their way online, and tourism activity from foreign visitors continues to increase. The result is there are more international relationships developing with citizens of Ghana. Due to the high level of fraud in that country, there is a strong demand for Ghana background checks. This article discusses some of the services available, and how to choose a reliable company.














Whether you have met someone via the Internet from Ghana, or whether you are involved in foreign investment in Ghana, it would be wise to have this person or company verified. The amount of scams in Ghana is staggering. To be sure the person is who he or she claims to be, a background check by a professional investigation firm can serve as valuable insurance.

The Warning Signs, and the Advance Fee

Be wary of Ghana business deals or romantic relationships, especially those begun over the Internet, that request financial assistance as some form of advance payment. A request for money from someone in Ghana as an advance payment or as payment for some form of emergency is a red flag, and should be verified. There are many good people in Ghana and many competitive business ventures. A background check should be used in any case, however, due to the risk of fraud.

Private Investigator Supply Meets Demand

As the demand for private investigation and background checks has increased, so too has the supply of competent investigators operating in Ghana. Wymoo International now has field investigators in Accra and is probably the most reliable and professional firm offering Africa background checks and investigation in West Africa. Extra caution should be used if choosing a local company in Ghana, since many local firms lack the proper training, tools and ethical business practices.

Beware of websites that offer "background checks" for a very low price, such as $39.95 or $99.95. Almost all of these sites are scams themselves. For a real background check investigation, with real research and evidence, expect to pay somewhere between $300 and $600. Often, you get what you pay for.

Lastly, be sure to search the Internet for any company that you are considering for a Ghana background check to find out what others are saying about the company. As the services available increase, consumers should stick to industry leaders.

All the Best,

S. Birch
© 2006-2009 S. Birch
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