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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.

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.

Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!

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:

Fraud email example:

From: "Ando Satoshi" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <ando_satoshi2@yahoo.co.jp>
Date: Sat, 17 Oct 2009 16:59:51 +0100
Subject: Charity Money ru

Dear Friend!

I am Ando Satoshi, Japanese national; an attorney at Law, and the official
receiver in charge of administering the funds from the sale of the assets
of the bankruptcy estate of Sphere Energy Japan. This is the real deal. By
virtue of my position as the trustee of the bankruptcy estate, I have processed
the claims of all the creditors and also issued out cheques for their claims.
However, a certain surplus amounting to about Four Million Seven Hundred Thousand
and fifty British Pounds Sterling (£4,750,000.00) is yet to be disbursed out.
To this end, I am seeking your assistance to transfer about Four Million Seven
Hundred Thousand and fifty British Pounds Sterling. I want you to help me collect
this deposit and dispatch it to charity organizations. Please kindly note that
upon the receipt of these funds from the financial institution, you shall invest
it in your line of business and dispatch the profit to charitable home. As soon
as i receive your response, I shall communicate with you, and let you know the
details of the transfer. Whatever your actions and your decision are, I thank
you for taking the time to read this email. Please note that this is not a scam
as it does not require upfront payment but escrow payment.

Regards,

Ando Satoshi


Anti-fraud resources: