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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:
- "anti-terrorist certificate" ("anti-terrorist", "anti-money laundering" or "drug-free" certificates are a common way for criminals in fake lottery scams and other Advance Fee scams to get you to send money to them. There are no such certificates in the real banking world. )
- "cost of transfer" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "uba.atmpaymentdepartment@vp.pl" (this email address looks like addresses used in "ATM SWIFT card" scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Mr Uche Ike <nfo@usa.org>
Reply-To: <uba.atmpaymentdepartment@vp.pl>
Date: Mon, 5 Dec 2016 16:42:49 +0100
Subject: Attn: Sir / Madam
Attn: Sir / Madam
We have received your identification card.
Your A.t.m card is VALID, It will expire after the last cent has been withdrawn from it. It is active,the only thing that you need to commence withdrawal is the installation of it's Pin Code.
The Pin Code of your A.t.m card will cost you $750 00 United States Dollars, this will cover the cost of transfer (COT) and the obtainace of Anti-terrorist certificate that you would have incurred during bank to bank transfer.
You are entitled to make this payment installmentally as the case maybe as soon as possible
Thank you.
Yours Faithfully,
Mr Uche Ike
EMAIL-- uba.atmpaymentdepartment@vp.pl
HEAD BANKING OPERATIONS (UBA PLC)
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Anti-fraud resources:
