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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.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: franklyn ekeh <franklynekeh@yahoo.co.uk>
Reply-To: franklyn ekeh <franklyinekeh@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: Tue, 3 Jul 2012 16:04:36 +0100 (BST)
Subject: Re: Very Important.



                               FROM THE DESK OF FRANKLYN EKEH
                                  AUDITOR ECOBANK NIGERIA PLC.

Dear Sir/Madam, 

We want to transfer to overseas ($12,000.000.00 USD) Twelve million united states dollars from a Bank in Africa, I want to ask you to quietly look for a reliable and honest person who will be capable and fit to provide either an existing bank account or to set up a new Bank a/c immediately to receive this money, even an empty a/c can serve to receive this money, as long as you will remain honest to me till the end of this important business trusting in you and believing in God that you will never let me down either now or in future.

I am Mr. Franklyn Ekeh, the Auditor of ECOBANK NIGERIA LIMITED, during the course of our auditing, I discovered a floating fund in an account opened in the bank in 1990 and since 1993 nobody has operated on this account again, after going through some old files and  records I discovered that the owner of the account died without a [heir]. If I do not remit this money out urgently it will be forfeited for nothing.The owner of this account is Mr.Arthur Coleman ,a foreigner, and an Industrialist, who died since 1993 and no other person knows about this account or anything concerning it, the account has no other beneficiary.

Send to me your private telephone numbers including the full details of the account to be used for the deposit for safe keeping pending our arrival in your country for sharing.I also need your strong assurance that you will never,ever let me down. With your assurance that this money will be intact pending our arrival in your country for sharing.

At the conclusion of this business, you will be given 35% of the total amount, 60% will be for me and my colleagues, while 5% will be for expenses both parties might have incurred during the process of transferring.

I look forward to your earliest reply.

Yours,

Franklyn Ekeh.

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