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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:
- "dear beloved," (a common phrase found 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: Sarah Brown <mrssarahbrown1@gmail.com>
Reply-To: mrs.sarahbrown@hotmail.com
Date: Mon, 17 Nov 2014 13:25:49 +0000
Subject: Thanks as you help me..
Dear Beloved,
My name is Sarah Brown from South Africa i am presently hospitalize as
result of Breast cancer which my Doctor is saying i must go through
surgical operation which will cost me 12000.00 US Dollars and have
tried my best but i not get all the needed money. Please i contacted
you for a help because I do not have all the money for the surgical
operation. This is reason i ask for your financial help with the
little that you have. My God will bless you if you help me.
Thanks as you help me..
Sarah Brown.
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Anti-fraud resources:
