An ongoing financial scam is being conducted that utilizes CodeStringers company name, brand and website design to lure people.
The scam is initiated by the bad actor(s) via WhatsApp. A person – often a woman claiming to be named “Miriam” – sends unsolicited messages to people offering a job opportunity. Although the bad actor(s) may use multiple WhatsApp phone numbers, one number known to have been used is (573) 423-0077. To build credibility, the bad actor communicates via text about job requirements and the target’s qualifications for the job. In some/many cases, the bad actor also conducts a video call with the target.
Once the bad actor has someone convinced that the job opportunity is genuine, the target is sent to a website at https://www.codestringers-system.cc. That website has a similar design to the real CodeStringers website. The target is told to create an account, which requires a unique code that the bad actor provides in a text message. Once logged in, the target is instructed to complete training, but that doing so requires a balance in their account. Once money is deposited electronically, the scam is complete.
CodeStringers is in NO WAY involved in this scam. Our company is a legitimate software development firm located in Santa Cruz, California. The “certificate” located on the www.codestringers-system.cc website illustrating a business registration with the United States Department of State is fake. The U.S. DOS has no such registry because businesses in the United States are registered at a state level. Additionally, the fake certificate shows a registration number with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). You can complete a search for “CodeStringers” or the number you see on the certificate at the FDA’s registration listing site. The name of CodeStringers Chief Executive Officer, Michael Manzo, and his signature are forgeries. The address listed on the certificate in Wyoming is for another firm, Aetsoft, that was involved in a similar scam in the past.
CodeStringers ONLY conducts business from the codestringers.com domain and website and our personnel only use email addresses ending in @codestringers.com. Any communications you receive from or involving any other domain name are FAKE.
CodeStringers has reported this scam to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Cyber Crimes Department. If you have fallen victim to this scam, you should report it to the FBI at the link above and your the State Police in the state in which your reside. If you’d like to make the CodeStringers team aware of your situation, please email [email protected].