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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:
- "million dollars" (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: "Maureen SHORELIN" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <maureengreaves4christ@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 21 Mar 2023 20:59:06 -0700
Subject: << RENEWED HOPE>>
Dear Chosen One,
The time has come for Christians to worship God in spirit and in truth
according to the book of John chapter 4:vs23-24.But the hour cometh
and now is when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit
and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him . God is a
spirit,and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in
truth. Based on this scripture, it became obvious that I should do the
right thing if I must enter into the kingdom of God
Can you devote your time and be totally committed and devoted to run
multi-million Dollars humanitarian charity project sponsored totally
by me; with an incentive/compensation accrual to you for your time and
effort and at no cost to you.
If Lead by God, get back to me to enable us to discuss in a more
clarifying manner to the best of your understanding. I must say that
I'm very uncomfortable sending this message to you without knowing
truly if you would misconstrue the importance and decide to go public.
In this regard, I will not hold back to say that the essence of this
message is strictly for Charity. May God bless you as you make up your
mind to work for God.
hoping to hear from you soon. Send Text to +1-850-888-8912
Yours Sincerely,
Mrs. Maureen SHORELIN
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Anti-fraud resources:
