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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:
- This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "will come to you as a surprise" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "foreign remittance manager" (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)
- "hundred thousand 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)
- "urgent assistance" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
- "top secret" (scammers urge victims to keep the transaction secret because they don't want anyone to point out to them that it is a scam)
- "foreign remittance department" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
- "hasan_dia01@voila.fr" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
- This email message is a next of kin scam.
Fraud email example:
From: Hasan Dialo <hasan.da04@msn.com>
Reply-To: <hasan_dialo11@yahoo.fr>
Date: Tue, 3 Nov 2009 02:16:04 +0000
Subject: GOOD DAY
GOOD DAY
Mr.HASAN DIALO
FOREIGN REMITTANCE MANAGER
BANK OF AFRICA (BOA)
OUAGADOUGOU , BURKINA FASO .
DEAR GOOD FRIEND
I know that this email will come to you as a surprise and I hope that you will not expose or betray this trust and confident that I’m about to repose on you for mutual benefits of our families. I am the manager of bill and exchange at the foreign remittance department of Bank of Africa Burkina Faso.
I need your urgent assistance in transferring the sum of ($8.2USD) eight million two hundred thousand United States dollars to your account within 14 banking days. In my department I discovered an abandoned sum of ($8.2) million. In an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer who died in an air crash since July 17th 1996, without any nomination of the next of kin to the bank, this money has been dormant for years in our Bank without claim. I want the bank to release the money to you as the nearest person to our deceased customer.
It is because of this discovery that I decided to make this business proposal to you and I want the bank to release the money to you as the next of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement since nobody is coming for it and I don't want this money to go into the Bank treasury as unclaimed Bill. That is why I needed a foreigner as next of kin in this business. Please I would like you to keep this proposal as a top secret and delete it if you are not interested.
Upon receipt of your reply to : hasan_dia01@voila.fr , I will give you full details on how the business will be executed and also note that you will have 30 % and 10 % will be set aside for expenses incurred during the business and 60 % would be for me. If you agree to handle this business with me, please kindly contact me as soon as you receive this proposal.
Yours Faithfully,
Mr. HASAN DIALO
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