joewein.net   joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
Try our spam filter!
 Free trial for 30 days
   jwSpamSpy
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:

Fraud email example:

From: Paul Sankoh <paulsankoh635@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 21 Sep 2022 09:26:44 +0200
Subject:

GOOD DAY,
I KNOW THIS LETTER MIGHT BEAT YOUR IMAGINATION AS WE HAVE NO PREVIOUS
CORRESPONDENCE. MY NAME IS PAUL SANKOH, THE SON OF KABBA SANKOH, A
SIERRA-LEONEAN BUSINESS MAN AND CO-OWNER OF A DIAMOND MINE. MY FATHER DIED
A FEW YEARS AGO WHEN THE REVOLUTIONARY UNITED FRONT (R.U.F) REBELS ATTACKED
OUR RESIDENCE IN FREE-TOWN, SIERRA-LEONE. I USED THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEAVE
THE COUNTRY WITH A VERY IMPORTANT DOCUMENT RELATING TO A CASH DEPOSIT OF
$10,200,000 (TEN MILLION TWO HUNDRED THOUSAND UNITED STATES DOLLARS ONLY)
DEPOSITED BY MY LATE FATHER HERE IN SOUTH AFRICA. PRESENTLY, MY MOTHER
AND I ARE SEEKING ASYLUM IN SOUTH AFRICA. I CONTACTED YOU BECAUSE OF THE
NEED TO DEAL WITH A PERSON WHOM MY FAMILY HAS NO PREVIOUS PERSONAL
RELATIONSHIP WITH. I GOT YOUR CONTACT FROM THE INTERNET AS TRANSPARENT AND
TRUST-WORTHY TO ENGAGE IN BUSINESS, HENCE MY REASON FOR WRITING TO YOU TO
HELP MY FAMILY TO CLAIM AND TRANSFER THE FUNDS TO YOUR COUNTRY FOR
INVESTMENT.
WE OFFER YOU 30% PERCENT OF THE TOTAL FUND $10,200,000 FOR YOUR INVOLVEMENT
AND ASSISTANCE IN THE CLAIM AND TRANSFER OF THE FUNDS OUT OF SOUTH AFRICA
TO YOUR COUNTRY, MEANWHILE THE REMAINING 70% WILL BE FOR MY FAMILY
INVESTMENTS UNDER YOUR SUPERVISION AS MY FAMILY BUSINESS PARTNER.
I AWAIT YOUR PROMPT RESPONSE
BEST REGARDS,
PAUL SANKOH
(ON BEHALF OF MY FAMILY)

Anti-fraud resources: