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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:
- "million 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)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Maxwell Wilson <maxwell@yahoo.com>
Reply-To: m.maxwellwilson@gmail.com
Date: Wed, 15 Jun 2011 08:38:12 -0700
Subject: URGENT
Hello,
Do not surprise on receiving this email.
My name is Wilson Maxwell, i work with a bank
here in London UK. I have some funds to invest
in your country. The amount is 22 million dollars.
I got this fund from an abandoned customer's account
whom by my investigation had died long ago without
any next of kin. I have carefully moved this fund out
of the bank and keep in a finance home for safe
keeping. Can you help me claim this fund? We shall
discuss the parentage as soon as i hear from you. I
have all the documentations to claim this funds without
any hitch. This transaction is very legal. If you are
interested do send to me your full names, your full
address and your telephone number for easy communication.
Please reply to my private email address as follows for
more detail.
Maxwell Wilson
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Anti-fraud resources:
