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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:
- "my names are " (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: info martha <kevinbuxton81@yahoo.co.uk>
Reply-To: marthahuges@gmail.com
Date: Mon, 13 Jan 2020 14:26:55 +0000 (UTC)
Subject: Re:
Hello, How are you doing today? my names are Martha Hughes (KSM) Am from states my intention of sending this mail to you is to know, where are you from? Are you a dedicated Christian? or a Muslim, i need someone that i can trust with a charity work. i have been Diagnosed with Euphorically Cancer of the Lungs according to Doctor i will die any moment. i have been badly treated by close associates. i am a repented Christian now and God has put it on my mind to give out the rest of my Money to Charity, i don't trust all the Monks in Canada and Texas after the Gay scandal. i want you to Distribute these Funds to people that need it. am 65yrs old and God has really Blessed me with fortunes. I will wait for your Response before I go ahead and inform my Bank about your intentions.
yours faithful
Martha Hughes
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Anti-fraud resources:
