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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)
- "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)
- This email message is a next of kin scam.
Fraud email example:
From: Tonymashala <tonymashala3@gmail.com>
Reply-To: tonymashala1@hotmail.com
Date: Wed, 22 Jun 2011 10:09:18 +0200
Subject: FROM MR TONY MASHALA
FROM MR TONY MASHALA
The Office Of The Foreign Remittance And
Auditing Department,Bank Of Africa.
South Africa
REMITTANCE OF US$6.5;MILLION
CONFIDENTIAL IS THE CASE. VERY URGENT ATTENTION
Please i want you to read this letter very carefully and i must apologize
for bringing this message into your mail box without any formal introduction
due to the urgency and confidential of this issue and i know that this
message will come to you as a surprise, Pls this is not a joke and i will
not like you to jeopardise with it.
My Urgent need for a foreign partner that made me to contact you for this
legal transaction. I am a banker by profession from South Africa in Southern
Africa and currently holding the post of director Auditing and accounting
unit of the bank.
I have the opportunity of transferring the left over Funds ($6.5 million) of
one of my bank clients who died Along with his entire family in a plane
crash on December 6 2003. please go through the website.
http://newswww.bbc.net.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/oxfordshire/4537663.stm
And I don't want the money to go into our Bank treasury account as an
unclaim fund. So this is the reason why i contacted you so that our bank
will release this money to you as the next of kin to the deceased customer.
Please I would like you to keep this proposal as top secret. And the sharing
of this fund we be 50% for you then 50% for me.
>From banking experience it will take up to seven ( 7) working days to
conclude this transfer. I sincerely need your help because this might be my
first and last opportunity of hitting big money. I also would want you to
treat this affair as both urgent, top secret and confidential. I want you to
also know that this transaction will involve some expenses which will be
shared among both of us.
This payment will be effected through Swift Telegraphic Transfer.
Your Urgent response is needed for immediate transfer of this fund in to
your receiving bank account.
(FILL THIS FORM BELLOW PLEASE AND RESEND IT TO ME).
Your name in full..................................
Your country.........................................
Your age...............................................
Your cell phone....................................
Your occupation...................................
Your sex...............................................
Your marital status................................
Your bank name....................................
Best Regards,
Mr Tony Mashala
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