joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days
  jwSpamSpy

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:

Fraud email example:

From: "mrs tina akira" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <ylottery867@yahoo.co.jp>
Date: Fri, 16 Nov 2012 08:37:25 +0700
Subject: 2012 Yahoo International Lottery Winning Prize Notification

Yahoo! International Lottery Organization
Bangkok Branch Office Address:
10/15 Convent Road, Silom, Bangrak,
Bangkok 10500, Thailand.
Attn: Dear Lucky Winner,
 
YAHOO INTERNATIONAL LOTTERY 2012 WINNING NOTIFICATION!!!
We are Pleased to inform you that your Email Address was selected among the winners of the 2012 Asia Pacific Intl' Award Promo.
 
For more details visit our website: http://y-lottodraw.webs.com for full information and direction on how to redeem your cash prize.
 
Congratulations Once again!!!
Announcer!
Mrs.Tina Akira
Publicity Secretary,
Yahoo Intl' Lottery Organization.

Anti-fraud resources: