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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "huge deposit" (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)
  • "to your nominated bank account" (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)
  • "await your urgent response" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.

Fraud email example:

From: (sent from abused email account)
Reply-To: reply2ericmorsemofatt@live.com
Date: Sun, 26 Oct 2008 21:33:01 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: NEXT OF KIN


¡Tengo nueva dirección de correo!Ahora puedes escribirme a:barrericmorse@yahoo.com.co



- Dear Friend,This is a personal email directed to you and I request that it should be treated as a matter of utmost urgency. I am Barrister Eric Morse Moffatt,a solicitor at law. I am the personal attorney to late Mr. Robert Pedarre ,here after referred to as my client 'who once worked as an independent oil magnate in my country and died in a car crash with his immediate family on the 5th of Nov 2001. Since the death of my late client in Nov, 2001, I have written several letters to the embassy with intention to locate any of his extended relatives whom shall be claimants/beneficiaries of his abandoned personal estate and all such efforts have been to no avail. More so, I have received official letters in the last few weeks suggesting a likely proceeding for confiscation of his abandoned personal assets in line with existing laws by the bank in which my client deposited the sum of £9.8Million GBP.The board of directors of the company now adopted a resolution,which I was mandated to provide his next of kin for the payment of the fund within the next 15 official Bank working days or forfeit the money as an abandoned fund.I decided to search for a credible person and finding that you bear a similar last name, I was urged to contact you, that I may with your consent and directives present you to the Trustee bank as my late client's surviving family member so as to enable you put up a claim to the bank in that capacity as a next of kin of my client, so that the proceeds of this Bank Account valued at £NINE MILLION EIGHT HUNDRED THOUSAND BRITIS POUNDS STERLIN Gonly(£9.8Million) will be paid to you directly to your nominated bank account you will present before the fund will be confiscated or declared unserviceable to the bank where this huge deposit is lodged.Note that this is legal and 100% Risk/Hitch free transaction,since I have all vital documents that would be requested by the said authourity that would confer you the legal/bonafide real owner of the fund that has the right to put this claim.However,you will have to assent to an urgent agreement which I will forward to you in order to bind us in this transaction.Upon the receipt of your reply,I will send you by Fax or E-mail the next step of this transaction.I will not fail to bring to your notice that this proposal is hitch-risk free and that you should not entertain any fears or doubth as the required arrangements have been made for the completion of this transfer. I guarantee that this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law. Please get in touch with me through my alternative email:reply2ericmorsemoffatt@live.com for better confidentiality and send to me your telephone and fax numbers to enable us discuss further about this transaction.Like I said, I require absolute confidentiality during and after this worhtwhile project. Please, let me have your opinion as soon as possible, if this proposal is acceptable by you do not take undue advantage of the trust I have bestowed in you, I await your urgent response.Please get in touch with me via my alternative email:reply2ericmorsemoffatt@live.com Sincerely,Barrister Eric Morse Moffatt

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam