The May ‘State of Spam’ report is now online. This month’s report highlights several interesting spam trends seen by Symantec, including the reduction in image spam, image uploading hosting solutions used in stock spam, company character assassination spam, and a new twist on the 419 spam technique.

419 spam is name d after an article of the Nigerian Criminal Code which deals with fraud, and has primarily been used to defraud individuals with stories about African dictators and the sale of natural African reserves such as oil and gas.

We’ve all seen these scams. Typically they begin with a greeting and then immediately claim to need assistance in the transfer of funds to the U.S. Some try to tug on your heart strings with a story of loss, while others just make a direct play for your purse strings. But the point is, it’s a complete stranger asking for access to your bank account. Does anyone truly trust someone they’ve never met with such confidential information?

Enter the new Nigerian scam. This one poses as an American soldier stationed in Iraq - a timely shift on an old technique. The soldier has stumbled across a wealth of gold and diamonds. You are now being emailed by a soldier, an American soldier who wants to share his new-found wealth with you. Is this person really a stranger? He is an American, so it’s not like you’re sending your money to the great unknown of a stranger or foreigner, right? This one is much easier to fall for. It not only brings the promise of wealth but also the thought of dealing with a fellow American, a trustworthy soldier no less, familiar even if you do not know him personally.

Sometimes the soldier in the scam is injured. He requests the money be shared with charities; you get your portion of course, but how thoughtful of him to also include charities in his monetary giveaway! All of a sudden the game changes - it’s no longer the Nigerian scams written in poor English where you to deal with a stranger for the purpose of purely obtaining cash for personal gains. Instead it’s the injured American soldier who wants to share his fortune with you *and* charity.

Hello spammer - this Nigerian scam twist is very similar to the premise of a movie that starred George Clooney. We still know you’re scamming for our bank accounts, and that you’re probably not an injured American Soldier nor trustworthy!