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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 united states 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)
- "your urgent reply" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Chris warren" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <jchriswerner11111@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 29 Nov 2012 21:22:24 +0100
Subject: Attn:Beneficiary
Attn:Beneficiary
I am Mr.J Chris Warren and i work in remittance department of the Zenith Bank (UK) Limited . I came across a file marked in red with your email address with regards to a wire transfer of USD$ 8.5 Million United States Dollars which was in your favor but was never paid .
I am in a position to facilitate the payment of this funds via ATM CARD payment that you can use in any ATM CARD machine in the world .
Do get back to me immediately for more details as time is of great essence before the funds is returned to the coffers of the government treasury due to it been unclaimed.
Awaiting your urgent reply
Regards ,
Mr.J Chris Warren
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Anti-fraud resources:
