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:

• 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:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "million united states 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)
  • "is 100% risk free" (almost true for the criminal - arrests of online criminals are rare)
• This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
  
• 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.
  • sir_mjoseph@safe-mail.net (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: Joseph Moore <moore_jo2@hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 6 Oct 2007 11:02:43 +0200
Subject: Very Urgent ( Please Do Not Neglect This Mail).



AFRICAN BANK LTD, SOUTH AFRICA.

RE: URGENT BUSINESS PROPOSAL FOR OUR BENEFIT.

Dear Sir/Madam,
Compliments of the day, I am pleased to get across you for this urgent profitable business proposal. Before I proceed further, I will like to inform you that I got your contact through your country Trade/Business Directory. My name is MR.JOSEPH MOORE, the Assistant Auditor of AFRICAN BANK LTD, SOUTH AFRICA, SANTON BRANCH.
This business proposal is thus: We had a client by the name MR. MAARTEN BASTIAAN VAN STRIJ, a foreigner but resident in SOUTH AFRICA, who was a formal contractor with one of the government parastatals.
This client had in his account in my branch an outstanding balance of US$19 Million {Nineteen Million United States Dollars). But very unfortunately he travelled to Iraq for a newly awarded contract negotiation and was killed as a result of suicide bomb blast that happened few months ago. Since then till date none of his next of kin has come forward to claim his outstanding balance at our branch and all our efforts to trace any of his relative proofed negative.
Considering this fact, I have used my position in the office to cover the account all this while but now I want you (being a foreigner) to come forward and stand as the next of kin, so that I can make necessary changes on the formal record of the money (US$19 Million) to your name, then you will forward your personal bank account details to me for the money to be transferred into your personal bank account immediately for our benefit.
Please we have to do these immediately because if my government find out about this money now they will divert the money into government account as unclaimed money since the owner have passed away, secondly the account has been dominant for more than six months.
For all your efforts and assistance, we will share the money on a non-refundable 50/50 basis after the successful onward transfer of the money into your account. Finally, I have to inform you that this transaction is 100% risk free and a golden opportunity for both of us, the entire transaction will take us only 8 banking days to be completed.
It’s very important you response to me with your private contact Phone and Fax. Contact me as soon as you read this letter on my Alter native Email: (sir_mjoseph@Safe-mail.net) so that we can proceed without further delay.
I await your earliest response. Have a great day.
Yours Sincerely,
MR. JOSEPH. MOORE.
_________________________________________________________________
Download 30 FREE Emoticons for your Windows Live Messenger!
http://www.livemessenger-emoticons.com/en-za/

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam