An Old Scam Made New

There's a scam that's been around for a while that basically follows this pattern:

I'll send you a cashier's check for more money than our transaction requires. You cash the check and send me back the balance.

Then a few days later, your bank informs you that the cashier's check is a fake and they take back the full amount.

A friend of mine is looking for work. He was contacted via email for a job. A guy from Canada said that he and his wife are moving to the area. He needs a driver to drive his wife around for two weeks while she scouts out a house, etc. The job paid $500/week for two weeks. The Canadian sent, via UPS, two $1000 checks to my friend, with instructions to cash them and forward the second $1000 to a travel agent or real estate agent. I'm not sure because I had already interrupted my friend to tell him it's a scam.