のんびり自由人
英語雑感へ戻る
E33 おれおれ詐欺 (2004/02/05）
2004/01/29の夕刊に、「孫や子供を装って電話をかけ、金銭をだまし取るいわゆる「おれおれ詐欺」の認知件数が、昨年１年間で６５０４件に上り、被害総額は４３億１８００万円に達した(略）」との記事が掲載された。
おれおれ詐欺をネットの英辞郎で調べたがヒットしなかった。それでちょっと時事英語関係のサイトを当たったら、それ専門の「時事英語辞典」があった。結構最新語が載っている。そこで「詐欺」で検索したら、おれおれ詐欺は、"it's
me" fraudと出てきた。
日本でできた言葉なのでそれを誰かが翻訳しているはず。ネットでoreoreとOre-Oreで検索したが、でてこない。でも沢山のドイツのサイトがひっかかった。ドイツ語で何かの意味があるのだろう。Japan Timesでfraudで検索したら過去の記事が出てきた。その記事の該当部分は以下。
The female teller who handled the request sensed that it might be an "ore-ore fraud," which have been rife of late. In such scams, callers, mainly young men, will say something like "ore ore" ("It's me"), pretending to be a relative who has run into trouble and needs cash.
"ore-ore fraud"
scam (偽装メールのときもscamっていう）
japantodayという英語サイトに今日のニュースの英語があった。
Thursday, January 29, 2004 at 10:00 JST
TOKYO - Swindlers who made phone calls to people and pretended to be relatives in need of money by saying "It's me" cheated their victims out of some 4.3 billion yen last year, with a success rate of roughly two out of three calls, the National Police Agency (NPA) said Thursday. The swindlers were successful in 4,319 of 6,504 cases reported, the NPA said.
The police arrested 58 people suspected of being involved in 179 of the cases. The swindlers would make a call, begin the conversation by saying "It's me" and ask for money to be sent to a bank account because they were in trouble of some kind. People believing it was a son or grandson would send the money. (Kyodo News)
これも文中で説明しており、一つの単語になっていない。
Yahoo.comのNewsでore, fraud, Japanをキーにして検索したらJapan Timesの記事がひっかかった。その記事の該当部分は以下。
The scam has been dubbed the "Ore, ore" ("It's me, me") swindle by the media and involves perpetrators making random phone calls, starting the conversation by saying "It's me!" and pretending to be a young relative before asking for a favor or money to pay off a bill or fine. This and other forms of fraud have been increasing throughout Japan in recent months.
ロイター共同となっていたので、英語のKyodo Newsで記事検索をしたら見出しだけ出てきた。記事そのものはメンバーじゃないといけないようだ。
Jan. 29 (10 :08) Elderly women main victims of 4.3 bil. yen 'It's me' phone frauds - TOKYO
今の所、おれおれ詐欺の英語は"it's me" phone fraudかswindleになるようだ。でも日本特有のようなので説明が結局必要。
追記(2004/03/12) - the "Hi, it's me" swindle/scam
今日「おれおれ詐欺」を検索してみたら、"Hi, it's me" swindleらしい、という記事があるブログを見つけた。出典はReuters/Oddly Enoughとのこと。行ってみたが検索しても見つからなかった。ReutersのHelp & Info.を読んだら記事は過去３０日分しか見ることができず、それより前はwww.factiva.comで保存してあり、有料とのこと。
仕方がないので、Hi, it''s me swindleを検索キーとして検索したら、Reutersの記事を引用したThe
Boston Globeの2003/11/27の記事が出てきた。 該当部分は下記。
That's when Reuters ran a story about a personal finance fraud sweeping Japan, one known by the media there as the "Hi, it's me" swindle.
While I have yet to hear of this occurring in America, the idea that anyone in a modern world would be taken in by this has me flabbergasted. Scam artists call their victims on the phone, and identify themselves only as "me." They say they're in desperate need of money to cover some emergency. Think uninsured traffic accident all the way to unexpected pregnancy.
The victims assume the person on the phone must be a close relative and, without questioning why their niece or nephew suddenly sounds different, agree to transfer the money to a bank account specified by the swindler.
According to reports by Reuters and in the Japanese media, around 3,800 cases of this scam have been reported, with more than $21 million involved. That means the average swindle is worth more than $5,500. Worse still, authorities figure that if 3,000-plus cases have been reported, there are at least that many more where the victims have been too embarrassed to come forward.
この場合は、まず特別な意味合いがるということでthe "Hi, it's me swindle"とまず書いて、その後に簡単な説明をつけている。同じ記事の別の場所では違う言い方をしている。
So here's some advice that fits everyone, from the person getting that "emergency" phone call to the person faced with a cold call, selecting a financial adviser or virtually any other financial task: Never commit money without doing a background check.
For the victims of the "Hi, it's me" scam, that would mean saying, "I'm sorry, I don't recognize your voice. . . . Who is this?"
「もしもし、おれだけど詐欺」という感じの英語だな。 これで一応すっきりした。