|
|
joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
|
|
"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:
- "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
- "cotonou" (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.
Fraud email example:
From: michaelraynor <princeonyeka59@gmail.com>
Reply-To: michaelraynor <michaelraynor2015@outlook.com>
Date: Sat, 13 Jun 2015 20:43:04 +0900 (JST)
Subject: Greeting from U.S Embassy here in Benin Republic
Greeting from U.S Embassy here in Benin Republic
Office of the u.s Embassy Benin Republic
No 8 Midombo Express Way Cotonou
THIS MAIL IS ONLY FOR THE OWNER OF THIS E-MAIL ADDRESS
ATTENTION: DEAR OWNER OF THIS FUND,
Please i want to inform you that your fund was brought to my desk this morning because that the director of the bank here in Benin Republic said that
they will divert your fund to the government treasuries account just because that you refused to pay for the transfer fee of your fund which
is $98 but i told them to wait until i hear from you today so that i will know the reason why you rejected such amount of money $5.9 millions
which will change your life and your family just because of $98.
I want your urgent response as soon as you receive this email and tell me the reason why you have abandoned your fund or if you don't need it
then i can change your information to another person so that their government will not claim this money.Please you should get back
to me with this contact information and i will tell you where you should send the $98 if you are really interested and remember that they
respect me because of my position and you must act very fast since i
have only three days to handle this.
You should tell me how you
will like to receive your fund because you have only three option, Atm
Card/ Bank to Bank transfer or Courier Company delivery as a package.
Your Full name .....................
Your country and city.....................
Your home address ...........................
Your private phone number.........................
Your age ........
sex........ occupation..................
Married or single......................
A past port or ID card......................
I will wait for your urgent response if you really need this fund and you
will receive it through the help and power of this office after the payment of the $98 for the Certificate of ownership.
Michael Raynor.
United States Ambassador to the Republic of Benin
|
Anti-fraud resources:
