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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:
- "dear friend" (a common phrase found 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: Dr Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan <udughan67@fdgfteuyr.sg.tn>
Reply-To: <dremuduaghan@hotmail.com>
Date: Tue, 31 May 2016 23:07:27 +0100
Subject: RE: PROFITABLE INVESTMENT..
My Dear Friend,
I sincerely solicit your assistance to secure and invest my fund in your country without the government of my country knowing about it.
This fund is presently saved outside my Country Nigeria with a financial institution name withheld. I want these funds re-profiled and secured under a new identity. You will be entitled to 20% of the amount as your reward for this service.
Meanwhile am also under close observation by the security agent (DSS and EFCC), so my movement and telephone calls are closely being watched, but i can communicate with you freely through e-mails for now.
This business offer is LEGAL, but you are required to keep it secret and highly confidential too.
Dr Emmanuel Eweta Uduaghan
(Ex-Governor of Delta State and a politician)
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Anti-fraud resources:
