joewein.de LLC fighting spam and scams on the Internet

Try our spam filter! Free trial for 30 days

"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
• "Is that email a scam?" - Check it online here!
  
• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
• Company names mentioned in 419 spam:
  1 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• Spam archive, Daily index
  

Victims never receive this non-existent fortune but are tricked into sending their money to the criminals, who remain anonymous. They hide their real identity and location by using fake names and fake postal addresses as well as communicating via anonymous free email accounts and mobile phones.

Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

Some comments about the following email:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
  • customercare_tb@tlen.pl (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Ferry Paulson" <ferrypaulson@britishpromo-office.com>
Date: Wed, 01 Mar 2006 07:33:21 +0000
Subject: YOU HAVE WON! CLAIM YOUR WININNGS

British Lottery International
Headquarters: 60 Merriman Road
Blackheath London SE3 8RZ
England.
Ref. Number: BTL/491OXI/04
Batch Number: 12/25/0304
Ticket Number: 564 75600545-188
Serial Number: 5388/02

Dear Sir/Madam,

We are pleased to inform you of the result of the Winners in our
British
International Lottery Program held on the 27th of February, 2006.
Your e-mail address attached to ticket number 564 75600545-188 with
serial number 5388/02 drew lucky numbers 7-14-18-31-45, which
consequently won in the 2ND category, you have therefore been approved
for a lump sum pay out  of USD2,500,000 (Two Million, five hundred
thousand dollars).
CONGRATULATIONS!
Due to mix up of some numbers and names, we ask that you keep your
winning information confidential until your claims have been fully
processed and your money remitted to you. This is part of our security
protocol to avoid multiple claims and unwarranted abuse of this program
by some participants. All participants were selected through a computer
ballot system drawn from over 20,000 company and 30,000,000 individual
email addresses and names from all over the world. This promotional
program takes place every five years.

This lottery was promoted and sponsored by a conglomerate of some
multinational companies in Europe as part of their social
responsibility to the citizens in the communities where they have
operational base. We hope with part of your winnings you will take part
in our next year Ten million Euros international lottery. To file for
your claim, please contact our director of finance.

Dr. Teddy Baker
Email: customercare_tb@tlen.pl

Please note in order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications,
remember to quote your reference number and batch numbers in all
correspondence. Furthermore should there be any change of address do
inform our agent as soon as possible. Congratulations once more from
our members of staff and thank you for being part of our promotional
program.

Note: Anybody under the age of 18 is automatically disqualified.
Yours Sincerely,
Mr. Ferry Paulson
British Lottery International (co-coordinator)
N.B: Any breach of confidentiality on the part of the winners will
result to disqualification. Please do not reply to this mail. Contact
our director of finance.

--

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam