Competition or Business Partner Company

This message popped through my e-mail yesterday.

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Dear Mr. or Mrs.,
Thank you for spending your limited time on our E-mail.
We are Xiangyang Vonoble Import&Export Co.,Ltd.China. Our company mainly trades in wheelchairs. According to the requirement of Chinese Market, we need to seek a wheelchairs producing company who has better products and reputations and we become the general agent for him in Chinese Market. If the products are in your company’s range, please e-mail us with your detailed technical parameter, packing specifications and price lists about your products for our reference and confirmation.
We have a keen desire to build business relationships with you
Best wishes!
Yours sincerely,
Mr. Liu Mingyi

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At first glance you might think this was a sincere and well meaning attempt to create a partnered business relationship from a distance
Read again, its like someone was trawling through your order catalogue to discover your detail product specification and price point.
I was immediately struck by the question - would a prospective business partner be seeking this information in this way?


ONQ.

I think there is a good chance that Mr. Liu Mingyi may also have an Auntie in Nigeria who needs to transfer some funds to your account

Far be it from me to suggest or infer any impropriety on the part of Mr. Liu Mingy - apart from my initial query, which arose because of the strangeness of the request.

However, on reflection it seems possible that if the e-mail was answered with the requested information and if such an e-mail was intercepted by an unscrupulous third party, they could use this information to -

(i) Pose as the Company.

(ii) Supply to markets using the designs of the Company.

I think this comes back to the protocols - which so many of us seem to have forgotten