Bill Gates Fortune Hoax

While Bill Gates fortune has been making headlines lately, emails about it have been circulating through in-boxes since about 1997. That's when this chain-letter hoax first began showing up in people's email inboxes encouraging them to claim their own chunk of Bill Gates fortune by forwarding the email to as many friends as possible. According to the message, Microsoft developed an email-tracking program and was looking for users to help beta test it. For providing this helpful service, Bill Gates would send each person who forwarded the message a sum of money.

The earliest versions of this email hoax were written as though they were from Gates himself and promised $1,000 each to the first 1,000 people to receive the email courtesy of Gates' personal funds. As the hoax evolved, it became more complex. The next generation claimed that Microsoft and AOL, then bitter rivals, were teaming up to guarantee that Internet Explorer would remain the most widely used internet browser. This was an interesting development since AOL purchased Netscape, a competing internet browser, in 1998.

In this newer version, a much larger portion of Bill Gates' fortune was up for grabs. The email claimed that for every email address to which the user forwarded the message, he or she would receive $245. In true pyramid-scheme fashion, the offer extended into the second and third generations. For every person in the second generation of forwards, the original user would receive $243 and for every person in the third generation of forwards, the original user would receive $241. These amounts added up quickly and in the “testimonials” included in some of the messages, people claimed that they had received checks for more than $20,000. As this scheme evolved even more, different versions offered free software in addition to money, or requested bank or credit card information in order to deposit the funds directly into a bank account.

A similar email was circulated thanking people for helping Microsoft compile an email database and announcing when the original 1,000 email threshold had been reached. The message further claimed that the software developers who wrote the email-tracking program discovered a virus embedded in the code that would disable and damage the Netscape internet browser. It said Microsoft claimed no liability for damage caused by the program but offered instructions for removal using available antivirus software.

Absolutely none of these emails contained true information. Bill Gates and Microsoft have both addressed the issue and stated that there is no truth to any offers of money or claims of virus infection; however, Microsoft still receives calls and emails requesting instructions on how to remove the virus.

Bill Gates' fortune has been estimated at $54 billion, but even that considerable sum would rapidly disappear if he were to hand it out to random users at the rates suggested. Instead, Gates and wife, Melinda, have donated a considerable portion of the Bill Gates' fortune to research related to global health issues. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation also provides funding to support global development, as well as educational opportunities for underprivileged Americans. The foundation does not offer payments to people who forward chain letters, however.

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