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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:

Fraud email example:

From: "DR JOHN ADAMS" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <ecobnk1970@live.com>
Date: Wed, 29 Sep 2010 20:22:51 -0700
Subject: RE: APPROVAL AND PAYMENT AUTHORISATION FOR US$10.7 ON 'PAYMENT APPROVAL NO.

Eco-bank, the Pan African Bank.
Diplomatic Delievery
Plot 454, Kontagura Close,
Area 3 Abuja Main.   
Tel:.(23407-637-846-18
Code:(Code: C.J.02)                            
Our Ref: CBN/ECB/TMR/3020/2010
Sir/Madam,  (ecobnk1970@live.com) 
 
RE: APPROVAL AND PAYMENT AUTHORISATION FOR US$10.7 ON 'PAYMENT APPROVAL NO.
ECO/0371/216/2010'
 
As a result of the high-powered investigation ordered by the presidency on the
activities of the Central Bank of Nigeria and other Government Institutions as
it concerns foreign contract payments.
Sir, be advised that you are been contacted based on one of the inheritance
cases that has long been overdue for payment. In one of the files that was
investigated, all available evidence shows that the beneficiary have not
received any part of the payment which is held up at the Eco-Bank of Nigeria by
the Corrupt CBN officials. This office has completed investigations and
established reasons for non-transfer of the approved payment. Some officers of
the Central Bank of Nigeria have made it practically impossible for the
contractors to get paid by distorting original information's in the
contractor's records and request such contractors to provide frivolous
documents with intention of defrauding the contractor.
However we are able to trace the fund at the Eco-Bank of Nigeria where the CBN
Corrupt officials diverted the fund since the 1999 as an unclaimed payment.
Note that the fund was discovered in 2 trunk boxes at the Eco-Bank of Nigeria
safe-keeping department under the names of the 4 CBN corrupt officials.
Your inheritance file was marked NOT ACCREDITED PAYMENT AS BENEFICIARY HAVE
BEEN CONFIRMED DEAD. And this simply means that the owner of this payment is
dead as the letter from the beneficiary's attorney and death certificate
contained in the file states that the beneficiary died of heart failure.
Based on our investigations preliminary report to the office of the presidency,
exposing the fact that the death certificate that was found in your file is
forgery and an attempts which diverted your funds to the Eco-Bank of Nigeria ,
The president have ordered the immediate remittance of your contract payment to
your bank account from the Eco-Bank of Nigeria were the fund was discovered.
You are hereby informed that approval has been given for the payment of the
outstanding sum totaling US$9, 7 {Nine Million, Seven Hundred Thousand United
States Dollars} by a diplomatic means of payment from the Eco-Bank of Nigeria.
With effect of this notice, you are further advice to re-confirm the below
personal information to this office for the payment verification by the Eco-
Bank of Nigeria.
Beneficiary Name?........
Company Name?................
Address??...................
Direct Telephone Number.........
Fax number.....................
Mode Of Payment
Telegraphic Wire Transfer......
Cash on Delivery...............
Bank Information...............
Bank Name......................
Address........................
Account Number.................
Swift Code.....................
Contract Amount................
Yours Faithfully.
Dr. John Adams,
Director, foreign remittance dept.
Eco-bank of Nigeria plc. (Ecobnk1970@live.com)
 

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