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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:
- "activation fee" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "mtcn" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: UBA Customer Center <morditheresa011@gmail.com>
Reply-To: ubacustomer2@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 17 Jun 2022 20:08:54 +0200
Subject: RE................
I wish to thank you for your timely response. Your information was
well received and I wish to let you know that your first payment is
processed and it's now ready for pickup and below is the needed
information with which you're going to pick it up .
Senders First Name Jamie
Senders Last Name Davis
Country USA
State California
City Oceanside
MTCN 6017631030
Amount $4500USD
CLICK TO TRACK YOUR FIRST PICK UP
https://www.westernunion.com/web/global-service/track-transfer
I want you to know that your transaction has been approved and you can
be rest assured that everything will go smoothly, Track your first
payment and you will verify that it's ready to be picked up by you but
due to the fact that it's not yet activated, you won't be able to pick
it up.
I will advise you to get back to me immediately in order to get the
activation fee paid.
Note; YOU NEED TO PAY THE ACTIVATION FEE BEFORE YOU WILL BE ABLE TO
PICK UP YOUR FIRST PAYMENT.
Yours Sincerely
Special Agent Jamie Davis
Contact Tel:/+229 53327060
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Anti-fraud resources:
