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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.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: Mr Pius Anekwe <luciano.cester@alice.it>
Reply-To: westunion.transfer@outlook.com
Date: Fri, 27 Mar 2015 18:59:11 +0100 (CET)
Subject: Your First Payment is Ready

Attention dear customer,
I am Mr Pius Anekwe, Western Union transfer agent. Your first payment of Five
Thousand USA dollar ($5,000) is ready for transfer. You are therefore required
to Contact this office (WU) with your full information to enable the procession
of your Receiver’s Name, Question and Answer and Money Transfer Control Number
(MTCN) for easy and immediate pick up.
For more information, call our 24 hour hot line: +229-68520171,
Email: westunion.transfer@outlook.com
Sincerely,
Mr Pius Anekwe.


Anti-fraud resources: