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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:
- "consignment " (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)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS <uoffice077@gmail.com>
Reply-To: alejandromayorkasdirector@gmail.com
Date: Thu, 28 Oct 2021 18:44:42 +0100
Subject: Dear Email Owner/Beneficiar
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U.S DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
3801 Nebraska Ave NW, Washington, DC 20016, United States
THIS IS MR ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS THE DIRECTOR OF THE HOMELAND SECURITY USA
WEâVE BEEN TRYING TO REACH YOU BUT YOUâVE NOT BEEN PICKING OR CALLS OR
REPLYING OUR TEXT MESSAGES
WE ARE TEXTING YOU CONSIGNING YOUR CONSIGNMENT BOX WORTH THE SUM OF
$15.8 MILLION USD
YOUR CONSIGNMENT BOX HAVE BEEN HERE IN OUR OFFICE SINCE THE 3RD OF
JULY 2020 AND WAS DROPPED IN OUR OFFICE BY A AGENT NAME PAUL MICHAEL
HE ALSO DROPPED YOU OWNERSHIP CERTIFICATE IN OUR OFFICE SO TELL US IF
YOU WANT YOUR CONSIGNMENT BOX DELIVERED TO YOUR HOME ADDRESS OR SHOULD
WE SHIFT IT TO THE TREASURY DEPARTMENT
IF YOU WANT IT DELIVERED YOUR FULL INFORMATION IS NEEDED TO AVOID
WRONG DELIVERY SEND US YOUR
HOME ADDRESS ..................
ID CARD ...................
CLOSET AIRPORT ...............
COUNTRY ...............................
EMAIL ADDRESS ..................
PHONE NUMBER ..........................
NEXT OF KIN ...............
NEXT OF KIN PHONE NUMBER ...........
AND ALSO TO DELIVER IT YOU WILL ALSO HAVE TO PAY THE DELIVERY FEE
WHICH IS THE SUM OF $50 ONLY
THANKS WE WILL BE WAITING FOR YOUR REPLY
DIRECTOR ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS
Please contact office numbler +1(434) 281-2379
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Anti-fraud resources: