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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.
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Salamatu Aisha Gadaffi" <wahab_mohammed@w.cn>
Reply-To: salamatu_aishagaddafi@hotmail.com
Date: Sun, 20 Nov 2011 15:08:44 +0800
Subject: Investment Inquiry
Assallamualaikum Habibi
I am Miss.Salamatu Gaddafi, one of the daughters of the embattled Leader of
Libya, I am currently residing in one of the African Countries,
unfortunately as a refugee. At the meantime, my family is the target of
Western nations led by Nato who wants to destroy my father at all costs. Our
investments and bank accounts in several countries are their targets to
freeze.
i will give you all the necessary information you need
Best Regard,
Miss.Salamatu Aisha Gaddafi
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Anti-fraud resources:
