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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:
- "the consignment" (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)
- "consignment " (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)
- "can i trust you?" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "diplomatic courier" ("diplomats" who perform deliveries of cash or other valuables to you only exist in 419 scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Kellie McCoy" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <capkelliemccoyx@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 13 Nov 2014 01:51:03 -0800
Subject: Greetings to you my Dear friend
ATTN,
It is my pleasure to honorably introduce myself to you, I am Capt.Kellie McCoy I hail from United States special Squad in IRAQ,I am among 157 officers /marines unit left behind in IRAQ to train Iraqi military on how to defend their nation against insurgents and protect America diplomats in the country. My proposal to you Doing the Training and Due to the ongoing Bomb blast I moved a total sum of Five million Two hundred thousand dollar (10.5$M) out of IRAQ through a highly profile diplomatic courier. I need an HONEST/TRUTHFUL partner to claim the consignment which I personally registered as personal property/diplomatic cargo. We must keep a very low profile during the transfer the whole process is simple and reliable. The questions is CAN I TRUST YOU? If you totally accept to be my helper and partner I will then furnish you with the whole details.
Best Regards.
Capt.Kellie McCoy .
US Diplomatic Residence
Baghdad IRAQ
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Anti-fraud resources:
