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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:

Fraud email example:

From: "Salawu Ismail" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <salawu.ismail@secsuremailer.com>
Date: Wed, 21 Mar 2018 17:54:21 -0000
Subject: Kindly read and get back

Hello, I hope you get this message in good spirits. I got your contact from the online business directory and wish to discuss a business that will be of mutual benefit to all involved. firstly, let me introduce myself to you. My name is Salawu Ismail. I represent the interest of my brother in-law who is a minister in the Syrian Government. As you probably know, there is a lot of crisis going on currently in Syria and my brother in-law has fallen out with the ruling Junta especially the president because of the senseless war and killings that has been going on in the country for a while. Everybody in Syria is fed up and want a change but the president is too powerful and he simply kills anyone that tries to oppose him.

My brother in-law has moved to support the opposition to empower them to be able to fight and repel the ruling party but unfortunately, his efforts has been unsuccessful and he is now currently being arrested for plotting to unseat the ruling leader. They have seized all his assets and he is now very scared for his life and the safety of his family. Before he was arrested, he has asked me to help him find a foreign investor who can help him accommodate and invest $24.6 Million USD privately that he has lodged in a finance house abroad. He wants these funds safely invested so that the future and safety of his family can be secured.

I am contacting you with the hope that you will be interested in helping us. We need your help to accommodate and lodge the funds in the banking system in your country and also invest it in a very productive projects. We will handle the logistics involved in the movement of the funds to you. Please note that the entire business will be executed in a legal way and absolute integrity. Should you agree to help us, my brother in-law has promised to compensate you handsomely as well.

He wants this to be done discretely so I will be acting as his eyes and ears during the course of this transaction. If this proposal interests you, please kindly respond so that I can give you more details. Please MAKE SURE YOU COPY your response to my secure email address: salawu.ismail@secsuremailer.com because that is the mailbox I check regularly.

Regards,

Salawu.
salawu.ismail@secsuremailer.com

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