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:
  • "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• 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.
• 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.
  • western_unionagent45@yahoo.com.hk (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "UK NATIONAL LOTTERY BOARD" <onlinepromo@hamdard.net.pk>
Reply-To: paydep106@gmail.com
Date: Mon, 9 Jun 2008 11:40:44 +0500
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS CUSTOMER

CONGRATULATIONS CUSTOMER YOU HAVE BEEN AWARDED
HERE IS YOUR WINNING PIN NUMBER XZB120964MW.


Dear Customer,

This is to inform you that you have Awarded the sum of 250,000.00 (Great
Britain Pounds Sterling) on the western union promotion award.To Claim
your award prize, you are to contact our WESTERN UNION CUSTOMERS
RELATION
DEPARTMENT through our agent contact address below.You are also advised
to
provide him with the under listed information's below for prompt
verification through our payroll office. This is your winning pin number
XZB120964MW. You are advised to keep your winning pin number safe from
public notice to avoid double claim of prize as this can lead to
disqualification of paying you your prize money.

CONTACT THE CLAIMS AGENT:DENIS JULIUS
Email: western_unionagent45@yahoo.com.hk

1. Names in full........
2 Address...... ......
3 Occupation..............
4. Age............
5. Country..... ...
6. Telephone Number.........
7. Short comment on our services... .......
8. Fax > [optional]...........
9. Email address..... .......
10. Do you Have Any Question about Our service?

Congratulations again from all our staff and thank you for your
continous
trust in our services and please do tell us how to treat you better.

Sincerely,
MR.DAVID FALATO
Director Western Union Service

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam