Scam Alert

We have recently been inundated with emails, seeking confirmation of business propositions made to individuals within and outside Nigeria by some people claiming to work for, or affiliated with Shell Companies in Nigeria.

These propositions solicit the help of the recipients in transferring huge sums of money in foreign currency, which the initiators claim are entitlements from Shell Nigeria for some dead relations, or are monies accruing from excess crude oil sales, or have been forgotten in some dormant account. Sometimes they also propose to award huge value contracts to the recipients of such mails. The initiators of such mails will often request details of recipients bank accounts, to enable them to transfer the said monies, usually with promises of some percentage.

We wish to point out that whatever form these mails take, they are nonetheless the footprints of scam artists, who once they perceive a whiff of interest on the part of their intended victims, will proceed to request of huge sums of money, ostensibly to bribe relevant ‘officials’ in Nigeria, in order to facilitate the money transfer. 

There have also been instances where fraudsters make bogus offers of employment in Shell Nigeria, and promises of scholarship awards to unsuspecting members of the public. Those who respond to such offers are often asked not only to pay various sums of money under many guises, but are also requested to provide detailed personal and financial information, which the scammers use for illegal transactions.

A number of distinguishing features mark out these scam mails. In the first instance, most of them are written in very poor English, the mails, purportedly originating from the Shell Companies in Nigeria are not sent from Shell e-mail addresses. The Shell logo, which the fraudsters use on their documents in a bid to prove the genuineness of their proposals, is often a poor imitation of the authentic material.

We therefore wish to dissociate ourselves from any such mails, and to advise the public to do the following:

• Do not respond to unsolicited business propositions and/or offers from people you are unfamiliar with.
• Do not disclose your personal/financial details to anyone you do not know.
• Report any such propositions to - your local law enforcement agencies, or the Nigerian Embassy in your country. In addition, refer such mails to your country’s Embassy/High Commission in Nigeria for investigation.

Finally, for scam mails purportedly emanating from or related to Shell Companies in Nigeria, please contact the Corporate External Affairs Manager.