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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:
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "million us dollars" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
- "lagos" (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: Dr David Wilson <dr.davidwilson@outlook.com>
Date: Mon, 5 Dec 2016 16:49:13 +0000
Subject: GOOD NEWS FROM ZENITH BANK PLC
ZENITH BANK NIGERIA PLC
PLOT 127 OZUBA MBADIWE STREET
VICTORIA ISLAND,
LAGOS NIGERIA.
Tel: +(23490 95180 648) (SMS or Call)
ATTENTION,
WE WISH TO INFORM YOU THAT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF NIGERIA AND THE INTERNATIONAL MONITORING FUND (IMF) HAVE BEING INSTRUCTED US THE ZENITH BANK NIGERIA PLC TO ACCEPT ONLY $65USD FROM YOU AND RELEASED YOUR FUND THROUGH ANY METHOD OF PAYMENT YOU CHOOSE TO RECEIVE YOUR FUND VALUED FOR $4.5 MILLION UNITED STATED DOLLARS.
YOU ARE THEREFORE TO PAY $65 US DOLLARS ONLY SO THAT YOUR $4.5 MILLION US DOLLARS WILL BE RELEASED TO YOU . DO RESPOND IMMEDIATELY SO THAT WE CAN INSTRUCT YOU ON HOW YOU WILL SEND THE $65 US DOLLARS. AND FOR YOUR INFORMATION, NO OTHER MONEY WILL BE REQUESTED FROM YOU IN ANY WAY AGAIN
Regards,
Dr David Wilson
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Anti-fraud resources:
