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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.

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Fraud email example:

From: "mariam" <gallmariam@yahoo.co.in> (may be fake)
Reply-To: gamariam@voila.fr
Date: Mon, 12 Dec 2005 20:56:04 +0000
Subject: hi

Hello,
My name is Miss Mariam Galal from Syria. I got your mail address from internet. I need your help, i am 24 years last August 2005. I lost my father in plane crash 1999 and my mother in breast canser. Since after the death of my late father my gand mother took me to her village to complite my secondary Education. This year as i finished my secondary school Exams i came to the town to make preparation for the release of my late father's fund.
.My late father's name is Dr. Mohamed Galal he died
in an air crash on the 31st October 1999 in an
Egyptian airline boeing 990 with other passengers on board. You can
confirm this fact from the website which was aired by the BBC WORLD NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/502503.stm
Since his death, nothing is possible for me as the only daughter, my late mother divorce with my late father in 1996 and she late died in breast canser. However my late father Dr. Mohamed Galal deposited a safe box containing amount of (US$17,510,970.00) with security company before his death. He was a director of gold refinery company in my country.
I am begging you to stand as next-of-kin to my late father as
indicated in the security company guide lines for collection of this safe box containing fund. In considering my age you can find out that i can not handle this transaction myself alone and my gandmother is old can not travel out again. I now seek your permission in this regard,
so that the safe box can be released in your
favor as the beneficiary's next of kin, if not the members of the board
of directors will utilise it for their personal aggrandisement. .
Please acknowledge receipt of this my request in good acceptance and
endeavour by furnishing me with your direct contact informations, for our personal contact and mutual trust in each other.
Upon your acceptance I shall send you my photo and contact, for more
confidentiality and trust in each other as i shall trust you not to
elope with this funds when it finally gets to your account. I shall be
compensating you with 20 percent of the total money on final
conclusion of this transaction, while mine portion i shall
use in finishing my study and maybe with your assistance a profitable investment will be place in your country.
I await your response.
Sincerely.
Miss Mariam Galal.


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