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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
  • "money gram" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
  • "mtcn" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
  • "you are advice to " (this email uses bad English)
  • "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
  • "lagos" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
  • "certified bank draft" (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
• This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
  
• Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
• 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.
  • +2348087018307 (Nigeria, prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr. SAM BROWN" <azu.bash@sbcglobal.net>
Reply-To: fedex_service001@post.ro
Date: Tue, 29 Sep 2009 05:11:57 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: From FedEx Express Services.


FedEx Courier Head Office
70 International Airport Road
& tbsp; Mameluke, gun state Nigeria.
Tel: +2348087018307

Attention ,
 
Thank you for your urgent respond to the mail sent to you, But before we can proceed on the Shipping of your International Certified Bank Draft worth One Million Dollas($1,000.000.00USD).
 
The reason why we need reconfirmation of your Dates is to avoid sending your Parcel to a wrong person, and i want you to understand that there is no way we can deliver or ship this Parcel without receiving the Shipping Fee (delivery) which will cost you only $95Usd.
 
More So we the FedEx Courier Company Here in Nigeria are assuring you that we will not hesitate to issue you that Tracking Number of you Parcel as soon as we receive the Shipping Fee $95Usd from you and we are going to call immediately this shipping commence and you are not going to send any upfront fee because it has been taking care of by the sender. You are assured to receive this Parcel  within 48hours and it will deliever to your Door Post as soon as the Shipping  Fee is send to this office with your Reconfirmation of your correct  Address and Telephone Number.
 
You are advice to make the payment via money gram or western union with the dispatch manager information as indicated below:
 
 
PAYMENT INFORMATION OFFICE
SENDERS NAME-------
SENDERS COUNTRY-----
RECEIVERS NAME ------ MR PAUL EGO.
RECEIVERS COUNTRY ----PLOT 223 FedEx HOUSE, SAGO OAT NIGERIA.
TEXT QUESTION ------------GOOD
TEXT ANSWER ---------------. DAY
AMOUNT TO BE PAID---------$95
AND ALSO WITH THE CONTROL NUMBER (MTCN)
 
FedEx is one of the world's great success stories, the start-up that revolutionized the delivery of packages and information. In the past 30 years, we’ve grown up and grown into a diverse family of Companies -a FedEx that's bigger, stronger, better than ever.
 
Reply via below:  (fedex_service001@post.ro)
 
WAITING TO READ YOUR E-MAIL.
Thanks for your Co-operation.
Yours Affectionately.
Mr.  SAM   BROWN
For the Ikeja Branch Manager  FedEx Express  Services Lagos -Nigeria .

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam