|
|
joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
|
|
"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:
- "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "mtcn" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
Fraud email example:
From: "FEDEX COURIER COMPANY" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <mfred6065@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 17 Jun 2014 05:13:36 +0100
Subject: YOUR ATM CARD IS READY FOR DELIVERY
ATTENTION:
THIS IS JUST TO INFORM YOU THAT YOUR ATM CARD LOADED WITH THE TOTAL SUM OF $10.8MILLION HAS BEEN CONFIRMED FOR THE IMMEDIATE DELIVERY TO YOU BY THE DIRECTOR OF THE FEDEX COURIER COMPANY AND IT WILL BE DELIVER TO YOUR DOOR STEP WITH IMMEDIATE EFFECT AS SOON AS YOU ARE ABLE TO COMPLY WITH THE DELIVERY CHARGES OF $105.
MORE I WILL URGE YOU TO KINDLY PROCEED IMMEDIATELY TO THE WESTERN UNION OFFICE IMMEDIATELY YOU RECEIVE THIS E-MAIL AND EFFECT THE PAYMENT TO OUR CASHIER INFORMATION AS STATED BELOW TO FURTHER HASTEN UP IN THE DELIVERY OF YOUR ATM CARD TO YOU WITHOUT ANY FURTHER DELAY.
BELOW IS THE RECEIVERS DETAILS.
RECEIVERS:...AMINAT SANUSI
ADDRESS:.....LAGOS NIGERIA
TEXT QUESTION:...FOR WHAT
TEXT ANSWER:....GOD
AMOUNT:..$105
AS SOON AS YOU ARE ABLE TO MAKE THE PAYMENT YOU ARE TO GET BACK TO ME IMMEDIATELY WITH THE MTCN CONTROL NUMBERS FOR CONFIRMATION AND RECORD PURPOSE AS AS TO ENABLE US COMMENCE WITH THE IMMEDIATE DELIVERY OF YOUR ATM CARD TO YOUR DOOR STEP WITHOUT ANY FURTHER DELAY.
DIRECTOR FEDEX COURIER COMPANY
|
Anti-fraud resources:
