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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:
- "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "urgent assistance" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
- "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: Barr Tony Mensah <barrtmensah72@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2014 10:26:46 +0200
Subject: YOUR QUICK REPLY.
Dear Friend,
This is important information which requires your attention. I am
Barrister Tony Mensah. a lawyer by profession based in Lome-Togo. I
need your urgent assistance for the claiming of the sum of
(US$8.5million) belonging to my to late client which he deposited in
bank here.He was my client and a major contract supplier to big oil
firms here in Lome Togo that died with his entire family. I hope that
you will not betray this trust.
Get back to me for more details.
Barrister Tony Mensah Esq.
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Anti-fraud resources:
