joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days
  jwSpamSpy

Home
About Us
Spam
419/Nigeria
Fraud
Contact

"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:

Fraud email example:

From: (sent from abused email account)
Reply-To: ariwakabiru@hotmail.com
Date: Mon, 3 Nov 2008 15:31:22 -0800 (PST)
Subject: PLEASE,I AM WAITING FOR YOUR URGENT RESPONSE.


I have a new email address!You can now email me at: ariwakabiru@yahoo.co.nz



- Dear friend, I crave your indulgence for the unsolicited nature of this letter, but it was borne out of desperation and current development. Please bear with me. My name is Mr.Ariwa an auditor of BOA Bank (B.O.A) I discovered existing dormant account for 5years. I seek your consent to present yourself as the next of kin of the deceased. As an auditor in the bank I will use my position in the bank to help you stand as the next of kin to the deceased, so that the proceeds of this account valued at $15million dollars can be transferred to you, this is the story in a nutshell. Now I want an account over seas where the bank will transfer this fund. Now my questions are:- 1. Can you handle this project?....... 2. Can I give you this trust?....... If yes, send to me your personal information as below: Your name Your address Your occupation Your age Telephone number I expect you're urgent response if you can handle this project,Thanks Mr.Ariwa


Anti-fraud resources: