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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:
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "huge deposit" (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)
- "million us 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)
- "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- "lome togo" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
Fraud email example:
From: Kokou Mally <kokoumally17@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, 9 May 2014 11:43:52 +0200
Subject: Help make this claim in your name
Hello Friend,
Good day, I am Contacting you to assist in retrieving a huge deposit
of six Million two Hundred Thousand Dollars 6.2Million US dollars)
left in a bank by my late client
My client wife and their only daughter were involved in a car accident
on 2nd of August 2008, and lost their lives ,I am contacting you to
assist retrieve his fund deposit left behind in a bank here in Lome
Togo before it gets confiscated by the bank as they about to
confiscate it.
Please if you are honestly interested in making this claim in your
name on our behalf then write me back the soonest for more clarified
details in respect to the claim of his fund
Before its get confiscated by the bank. Thanks
>From his personal lawyer Barrister Kokou Mally
Waiting for your reply the soonest.
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Anti-fraud resources:
