419 scam: "Rev. Fr,TONY JOHNSON SHEDRACH" <officialfile135@gmail.com> Attention Dear Email Owner,

joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet

Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days

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:

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:
- "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
- +22966762213 (Benin, probably a prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: "Rev. Fr,TONY JOHNSON SHEDRACH" <officialfile135@gmail.com>
Reply-To: customercareservice@xnmsn.cn
Date: Sun, 7 Aug 2011 02:21:23 +0900 (KST)
Subject: Attention Dear Email Owner,

Attention Dear Email Owner,

We at MC (Microsoft Corporation) management, had earlier on contacted you
regarding a completely endorsed "ATM Master Card Worth Two Million USD"
that was prepared in your name. As we informed earlier, that this came up
as a result that your particulars alongside your email address was amongst
those favored by in house promotion INITIATED BY MICROSOFT CORPORATION",
to appreciate and encourage the end users of our products and services on
capital market and cybernetic.

However, it was from a random selection ranging from all users of internet
including prospective licensed Microsoft Office product/Software
Clientele.

We have concluded to effect your payment via Western Union by $5000 daily
until the entire total fund is completely sent to you.

The director administrator of fund release has signed the approval of your
payment; therefore, contact the above Western Union payment office for
immediate processing of your payment immediately,

You are therefore advised to contact the western union company today for
the transfer of usd $2MILLION. Remember to reconfirm the under listed
personal information.

Full Names:
Age, Sex and occupation:
Tel Number:
Nationality:
Address:

Depositor: Mrs. Eugenia Estbach (Microsoft Official )

FIND BELOW THE PERSONNEL CONTACT TO WESTERN UNION OFFICE:

Tel: +229 66762213
Western union Manager: Pastor .Chris Chinedu
Email: customercareservice@xnmsn.cn

Congratulation!!!
Sincerely,
Rev. Fr,Tony Johnson Shedrach
For: MICROSOFT CORPORATION PROMOTIONS
.............................................................................
.....................................................................................
This email is intended for the owner of this E-mail Address only and
contains privileged and confidential information. If you received this
email by error,
please delete it from your mail box and notify us immediately for
correction. The disclosure of this email to a thirdparty is highly
prohibited. Thanks for your understanding

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam