joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days
  jwSpamSpy

Home
About Us
Spam
419/Nigeria
Fraud
Contact

"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:

Fraud email example:

From: jshy3@myfairpoint.net
Reply-To: josephyam42@yahoo.com
Date: Fri, 30 Jan 2015 05:22:33 +0400
Subject: Very Urgent


Mr.Joseph Yam. Postfach 8098 Zurich Switzerland. +41435081395 I feel quite =
safe dealing with you in this important business. Though this medium Intern=
et has been greatly abused, I choose to reach you through it because it sti=
ll remains the fastest medium of communication. However, this correspondenc=
e is private, and it should be treated in strict confidence. I work with Ba=
nk UBS AG Zurich at their offshore department, I will be happy to work this=
deal out with you if you have a corporate or personal Bank Account and if =
you will keep TOP SECRET. During our last periodic auditing I discovered so=
me dormant accounts with holding balances of Three Hundred and Twenty milli=
on US Dollars, Sometimes a person will open a bank account, deposit money, =
and then disappear into the tin air. Banks are not always able to find out =
what has become of these silent customers, or to know whether they should f=
ollow up on requests from people who claim to be heirs to the accounts. The=
main problem is that the customer resides abroad and, due to bank secrecy,=
the bank cannot publish notices in the international press to locate the d=
epositories. This has led the majority of Swiss banks to refrain from openi=
ng small-deposit accounts for foreign customers; for fear that they will fo=
rget that the account exists. It has happened in the past, however, that cu=
stomers pass away and their heirs can neither prove the death, nor their he=
ir ship. This was a frequent occurrence during the wartime periods, and the=
banks have now set up a simple, rapid resolution procedure operating to th=
eir customers=92 advantage. Dormant assets are defined as any assets deposi=
ted with a bank (an account, a custody account or a safety-deposit box) for=
which there has been no contact with the customer in the bank=92s files fo=
r the last ten years or more. If you believe you have claim to a Swiss bank=
account for which the holder (e.g. an ancestor) has not been in contact wi=
th the bank for over ten years, there is a fairly simple procedure to follo=
w, depending on the date the account was opened. This account has not been =
operated for the past years, As at this moment I am constrained to issue mo=
re details about this business until your response is received. If you are =
not familiar with Swiss Dormant Accounts and profile, please take a moment =
of your very busy schedules to read about Swiss dormant accounts with the l=
ink below: http://www.crt-ii.org/2001_list/publication_list1_A.phtm If you =
know that you are capable to handle large or small amount on trust and can =
keep secret and ready to take 40% of any amount I transfer to your account =
from the dormant accounts and I will take 60%, send your account informatio=
n=92s by return mail. Tell me more about yourself, while I look forward to =
receive the above information. Please reply to my most private email addres=
s (josephyam42@yahoo.com).Send your private mobile phone number where I can=
reach you now. Thank you for your time and attention. Warmest regards, Jos=
eph Yam. D/L +41435081395.

Anti-fraud resources: