According to SecureWorks, the scammer tells the recipient that he has been hired to "terminate" them but for a fee, he is willing to not go through with it.
"i have being paid a ransom in advance to terminate you with some reasons listed to me by my employer, i have followed you closely for one week and five days now and have seen that you are innocent of the accusation," one e-mail reads. "Do not contact the police or try to send a copy of this to them, because if you do i will know, and might be compelled to do what i have being paid to do, besides this is the first time i turned out to be a betrayer in my job."
The scammer then goes on to say that for a total of $40,000 -- $30,000 up front with $10,000 later -- he will not go through with the hit and he will give the victim a tape recording of the person making the assassination request.
The first of these types of extortion scams was detected in December, according to the FBI. About 115 complaints were filed with the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, according to a written advisory from special agent John Hambrick, who heads IC3.
Hambrick recommended that no one reply to these e-mails.
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