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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: Maria Dieci <melindawang4@gmail.com>
Reply-To: maria_dieci@yahoo.com
Date: Sun, 18 Oct 2020 23:25:01 +0100
Subject: Charity Donation

Hello,

I hope this message hits you in good health, I know this letter will
come to you as a surprise, but I beg you to take your time and read it
carefully as I write this message from my sickbed. My name is Ms.
Maria Dieci, I am a 69-year-old Swiss-American widow, my ancestors are
from Switzerland, but I was born and grew up in the USA, I am a very
religious Christian. I was struggling with cancer, which is in a very
critical phase now, and the medical experts informed me that I only
had a few months to live, which was the most painful and difficult
time of my life.

I have some money that I inherited from my late husband, the $7,8
million deposited on my behalf. Unfortunately, my only surviving
brother who should have been my next of kin recently dies as a result
of complications arising from being afflicted by the Coronavirus
(COVID 19). That's why I was left with no option but to take my chance
and reach out to you. I need you to use this money to start up an Â
charity organization on my behalf. I don't want to donate this money
to already established charity organizations because most of them have
proven to enrich themselves instead of doing the actual charity for
which they receive donations.

 I want to entrust this money to you, so you can use it for charity
work under the supervision of my lawyer, I am not legally permitted to
appoint my lawyer as a new beneficiary due to the law on the transfer
of inheritance and change of fund ownership. That's why I need your
help in this matter. I found your email address on the internet after
searching and praying to God and asking God to show me the right
person. I want to assure you that this is not stolen money, it's clean
money and free of any kind of illegality, there is no risk or danger
in the process. There will be a proper transfer of ownership that will
be handled by my lawyer. You take 25 percent of this money for your
personal use then you use 75 percent for the charity foundation.

The times are very dire, so I encourage you to observe all the WHO and
your country-specific guidelines regarding social distancing, washing
and sanitizing of hands and avoid indiscriminate touching of the face.
This will ensure that we all stay safe and out of trouble during this
pandemic. On my own part, here in the hospital I am also observing and
taking all necessary precautions to stay safe as I trust God to make a
full recovery from this cancer that has ravaged my body.

Your quick response is much appreciated so that I can give you more
detailed information.

Sincerely yours,

Mrs. Maria Dieci
maria_dieci@yahoo.com

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