The China Bank Scam. It’s Every Week Now.

Not sure if the number of China bank fraud cases is increasing due to China’s declining economy or if the China lawyers at my firm are simply getting more emails on them simply because we so often blog about them, but the number of these emails definitely started accelerating rapidly a few months ago.

Just finished responding to yet another China bank scam email (I am so used to dealing with these China bank scam emails these that the whole series of communications took us less than five minutes), as per the following (modified slightly to camouflage the victim):

First email from the U.S. based victim, a not insubstantial manufacturing company:

I found you via your law blog. I am a current victim of Chinese payment fraud.

I have contacted my foreign exchange company to recall the wires–but I’m not very optimistic. What additional steps should I be taking?

I sent the payment only a few days ago. Any tips you can provide is much appreciated and I’m not asking for anything for free.

I immediately responded as follows:

What you are doing is most important of all. How much are we talking about? Was this a company with which you had a previous relationship?

1. Talk to the Chinese company and pressure them to share in the loss by insisting that it is their fault that this happened as they should not have allowed their computers to get hacked.

2. Report this to your insurance company. I know a lawyer who has handled a number of these cases against insurance companies and if your insurance company balks, you should consider hiring him. We wrote about this option in Cheated By China. Check Your Insurance.

3. Spend a lot of money trying to track down who got the money and then using a lawyer and maybe the police in China to try to get it back.

We can take over the above for you but we will charge American attorney rates for this and I would suggest you start out doing it by yourself. But move QUICKLY.

Good luck.

For more on this particular scam, check out the following:

• China Scam Alert: The Different Company Bank Account. Again.

• China Fraud. You Are NOT Immune To This One.

• Seven Tips For Preventing The China “Different Bank Account” Scam