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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:
- 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:
- "claim agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
- "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
- "cheque " (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 fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
- They don't notify winners by email.
- You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
- They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
- They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
- They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
- They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
- 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.
- +447045732747 (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.
- bbclotteryagent2007@yahoo.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)
Fraud email example:
From: pj2377@mchsi.com (bbclotteryagent2007@yahoo.com)
Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2007 00:06:04 +0000
Subject: CONGRATULATION YOUR EMAIL WON
B.B.C LOTTERY
National Lottery Results.
P.O. Box 200
Harrogate England,UK
http://www.bbc.co.uk/lottery/
Phone No: +(44) 704 573 2747
Fax No: 870 974 2091
Saturday August 18th
Dear Winner,
We received your e-Mail address through electronic search system ( ESS
) and attached to a ticket number ( 23009 ). This made you a winner of
£710,000, meaning you are a lucky winner of £710,000 (SEVEN HUNDRED AND
TEN THOUSAND,POUNDS STERLING ) from the BBC LOTTERY on our 2007
charity bonanza. You can come and collect your winning in a cheque or have
them transferred to your nominated account in your country through our
accredited Bank for getting winnings to winners. So we advice you contact the
claim agent with details below as soon as you receive this
notification Email.
NO TICKETS WERE SOLD.
We hereby urge you to claim your won amount quickly as this is a
monthly lottery. Failure to claim your winning will result to a revert to the
forth coming Mega Jackpot Lottery next month. You are therefore
requested to contact immediately out Claims agent below; quoting winning
number: 02:12:26:32:37:47 ( BONUS 22) Contact: MRS WILLIAMS MARY to
collect your winning with this email address:
bbclotteryagent2007@yahoo.com
Provide the following information needed to process your claim and
winning certificate.
1.Name:
2.Address:
3.Marital Status:
4.Occupation:
5.Age:
6.Sex:
7.Nationality:
8.Country Of Residence:
9.Telephone Number:
10.Fax Number:
11.Draw Number above:
Congratulations once again.
Regards,
Mr. Henry Hale
B.B.C LOTTERY ( Co-ordinator )
National Lottery Results
England.
Anti-fraud resources:
