419 scam: "Herbert Smith" <test@rententips.de> Attn: Beneficiary.

joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet

Try our spam filter!
Free trial for 30 days

Home

About Us

Spam

419/Nigeria

Fraud

Contact

"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:

An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
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:
- ",000,000" (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)
- "00,000.00" (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)
- "barr." (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
- herbertsmith810@gmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Herbert Smith" <test@rententips.de>
Reply-To: herbertsmith04@yahoo.com
Date: Tue, 7 Aug 2018 22:10:17 +0200 (CEST)
Subject: Attn: Beneficiary.

--
Attn:Beneficiary,

Kindly note that, Mrs. Josephine Booth, of 20a Beatrice Road, Leicester
LE3 9FD citizen of United Kingdom UK who contacted you to distribute her
funds to charity organizations Is dead, and her bank Halifax bank plc UK
just contacted me as the representative attorney to late Mrs. Josephine
Booth, to inform me of the deposited fund.

I have contacted Halifax bank upon which they informed me that they waited
for you to show up for the claim of her funds valued at the sum of
US$10,000,000.00 dollars but there was no turn-up from you. Halifax bank
also stated that my late client's business associates have applied for the
release of the funds to them as they informed me that you abandoned the
funds in the UK while my client was sick.

As her attorney i have informed Halifax bank plc that they do not have any
right to claim the funds, because they only want to divert the funds which
my client made you the beneficiary to assist in distrusting the funds to
charity. You can reach me on my alternative email:
herbertsmith810@gmail.com

Get in touch with me ASAP for more details

Barr. Herbert Smith.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam