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joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
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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:
- This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "clearance certificate" (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. )
- "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. )
- "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. )
- "clearance certificate" (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. )
- "consignment " (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)
- "million dollars" (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)
- "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- 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.
Fraud email example:
From: "MR.JAMES T. MADDEN" <dagent12014@gmail.com>
Reply-To: comeyjames06@gmail.com
Date: Thu, 17 Dec 2015 18:17:11 +0100
Subject: ATTN: DO YOU AUTHORIZE..MR. LEWIS MORRISON.
ATTN: DO YOU AUTHORIZE..MR. LEWIS MORRISON.
I WRITE TO INFORM YOU THAT WE ARE GOING TO RELEASE YOUR PACKAGE TO
THIS MR. LEWIS MORRISON WHO MADE IT CLEAR TO US THAT YOU ARE DEAD AND
BEFORE YOU DIED YOU SIGN A DEED AGREEMENT WITH HIM TO CLAIM YOUR CASH
CONSIGNMENT BOX VALUE $7.5 MILLION DOLLARS. AS YOUR NEXT OF KIN, WHICH
YOUR SILENT
FROM NOT SENDING THIS NEEDED FEE TO US FOR A LONG TIME NOW HAS PROVE TO US
THAT YOU ARE TRULY DEAD.
SO IF YOU KNOW YOU ARE STILL ALIVE KINDLY SEND THIS $55 TODAY FOR URGENT
OBTAIN THE CLEARANCE CERTIFICATE TO RELEASE OF THIS PACKAGE TO YOU .
Send it through Western Union Money Transfer with the below details.
RECEIVER'S NAME....OSCAR AFAM
COUNTRY...BENIN REPUBLIC
CITY...COTONOU
TEXT QUESTION...IN GOD
ANSWER...WE TRUST
AMOUNT...$55
Sender's Full Name...
Sender Full Address...
MTCN...
NOTE: YOU HAVE ONLY TODAY TO COMPLY AND IF YOU FAIL TO COMPLY WITH US
TODAY BY TOMORROW MORNING WE ARE GOING TO RELEASE YOUR PACKAGE TO MR.
LEWIS MORRISON AS YOUR NEXT OF KIN.
THANKS
MR.JAMES T. MADDEN
EXECUTIVE OFFICES
U.S CUSTOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION JFK AIRPORT NEW YORK
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Anti-fraud resources:
