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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.
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Shalab Al-Khatib <pedroboladoscasarino@gmail.com>
Reply-To: shafqatmalik99@hotmail.com
Date: Sun, 11 Jan 2015 08:22:38 -0800
Subject: Hello Dear,
Hello Dear,
I bring you greeting in the name of Allah. I am Shalab Al-Khatib from
Damascus Syria. My family is under the threat of President Bashar al-Assad
for our resolute support for a true democratic Government in Syria. Due to
the current President Bashar al-Assad protest in the country.
We in Syria are going though fell, Many families are running for their dear
lives as soldiers are killing civilians, women and children and We all wish
to flee from here to a better place until things get better.
I am an industrialist and has been terribly affected by the war and all I
have now is my wife, a daughter and a son. They deserve a decent life since
I want them to grow up in a peaceful environment. I am seeking your
assistance to help me relocate to your country with my family and and my
entire savings which I have secured.Also I will like to have more business
relationship with you sequel if you can help me. I will provide more
details on your response.
Sincerely
Shalabi Al-Khatib.
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Anti-fraud resources:
