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 by the Scam-O-Matic 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:
  • "million pounds" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
• 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 mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
  • +447045750945 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
• 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.
  • licia-claims@hotmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: (sent from abused email account)
Reply-To: licia-claims@hotmail.com
Date: Sat, 18 Oct 2008 00:23:47 -0500
Subject: RE: winning Reg No: MCIMJ: 36925/0751.




MASTERCARD® INTERNATIONAL AWARD MEGA JACKPOT
LOTTERY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR: MR. CHRIS MONTEIRO.

Dear MasterCard Beneficiary,

This document is important and should be read carefully. This mail and the
contents which it offers have been cleared and endorsed by the Executives of
the Provisional Ruling Council of MasterCard UK. It is a civil wrong and a
criminal offense under the ordinances of the European Gaming Board in
collaboration with MASTERCARD® INTERNATIONAL and under the law of Lottery
ACT CODE OF CONDUCT section 124 subsections 13b of the British government
from the House of Commons 1994 to abuse this program. Your e-mail address
was selected and confirmed by our co-sponsor Microsoft International,
through their latest internet software. You have therefore been approved by
MasterCard® Int'l/Microsoft® Corporation UK the sum of £3.6 Million
Pounds (THREE MILLION, SIX HUNDRED POUNDS). These funds are in cash,
Credited to a valid cashier's cheque, with a winning Reg No: MCIMJ:
36925/0751. Be informed that your prize has been insured and ready for pay
out to you. You are to contact the MasterCard Liaison Officer with your
required processing information below:

CONTACT YOUR ALLOTTED MASTERCARD CORRESPONDENCE BELOW VIA E-MAIL OR PHONE
CALL FOR CONFIRMATION
Name: Licia J White
E-mail: licia-claims@hotmail.com
Tel: +44 70457 50945
MasterCard® Liaison Office

Do email the above office, at once with this Claims Requirements; 1. Full
Name: 2. Address: 3. Nationality: 4. Age: 5. Occupation: Nature of Work: 6.
Phone: Fax: 7. State of Origin: Country: 8. Sex: 9. Winning Email Address:

Sincerely,
Dr. Carlos Mejia
Head of Customer Service
MasterCard® Inc, UK.

WARNING!!!
If you are not the intended recipient of this Doc, you may not disclose,
use, disseminate, distribute, copy or reply upon this message or attachment
in any way. If you received this e-mail message in error, please return by
forwarding the message and its attachments to the sender. THE OFFICE OF THE
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY OF MASTERCARD® INCORPORATED UK. We do not accept
liability for any errors, omissions, corruption or virus in the contents of
this mail.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam