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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:
- "insurance fee " (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. )
- "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. )
- "you are required to pay " (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. )
- "abuja" (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.
- 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.
- This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
Fraud email example:
From: Dr Peter Brown <drpeterbrownxx12@yahoo.pt>
Reply-To: Dr Peter Brown <drpeterbrown2001211@yahoo.es>
Date: Wed, 31 Dec 2014 07:35:20 +0000 (UTC)
Subject: ATTN;
ATTN;  WE HAVE CONCLUDED THE PROCESSING OF YOUR ATM CARD BUT YOU ARE REQUIRED TO PAY FOR THE INSURANCE COVERAGE ON THE ATM CARD AS IT IS MANDATORY THAT EVERY BENEFICIARY MUST BEAR THE COST OF THE INSURANCE CHARGES BEFORE IT COULD BE DISPATCHED. THE INSURANCE CHARGES IS THE ONLY FEE TO BE PAID AND IS APPLICABLE TO ALL THE SHORTLISTED BENEFICIARIES OF THE COMPENSATION ARRANGEMENT.  THE INSURANCE FEE IS USD$150 DOLLARS SO I ADVISE YOU TO SEND THE FEE BY WESTERN UNION USING THE NAME OF MY SECRETARY MR DANIEL NWABUEZE, SO THAT YOUR ATM CARD WILL BE INSURED AND DISPATCHED AS MANDATED BY THE STAKE HOLDERS. MR DANIEL NWABUEZEADD: ABUJA NIGERIATEXT QUESTION: WHO IS GREATTEXT ANSWER: GOD IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU SEND THIS FEE AS SOON AS YOU RECEIVE THIS MAIL AS THAT IS THE ONLY THING THAT WILL DELAY YOUR ATM CARD. THE EARLIER YOU COMPLY WITH THE ABOVE DIRECTIVES THE BETTER FOR US TO SERVE YOU WELL.  FINALLY, YOUR ATM CARD WILL BE DESPATCHED IMMEDIATELY WE OBTAIN THE INSURANCE COVER FROM THE INSURANCE NATIONALE ABUJA. I WOULDNOT WANT YOUR ATM CARD DELAYED AS I PROMISED YOU THAT YOUR ATM CARD WILL BE DISPATCHED IMMEDIATELY WE RECEIVED THE PAYMENT, THEREFORE, DO NOT DECLINE SENDING THE FEE SO AS TO CONCLUDE THIS ISSUE AS SCHEDULED.
YOU ARE HEREBY ADVICE TO RECONFIRM YOUR INFORMATION FOR THE DELIVERY OF YOUR ATM CARD TO TAKE PLACE IMMEDIATELY.
YOUR FULL NAME: .....YOUR CONTACT ADDRESS: ..........YOUR DIRECT MOBILE NUMBER: .....Â
ATTACHED IS THE SCAN COPY OF YOUR ATM CARD, HANDLE WITH CARE FOR YOUR OWN GOOD.
I ANTICIPATE YOUR URGENT COMPLIANCE. We look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks for your anticipatedYours in service,MR. MARTIN LORDSFINANCIAL/ANTI-CRIME UNIT.(OFFICER)TELL; +2348117962809
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