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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:
- "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "executive governor" (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
- "central bank of nigeria" (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
- "lagos" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
Fraud email example:
From: "Mr. Godwin Emefele" <fundreleaseoffice1@gmail.com>
Reply-To: paymentrelease12@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 31 Mar 2023 20:56:31 +0530
Subject: Attn
CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA
270 OZUMBA MBADIWE AVENUE,
VICTORIA ISLAND, LAGOS.
Office Tel: +234 913-480-7572
From the Desk of Mr.Godwin Emefiele.
Executive Governor(CBN).
Central Bank Of Nigeria.
PAYMENT ORDER VIA CASH DELIVERY
Hello this is to inform you that the president of Nigeria Mr.
Muhammadu Buhari give an instruction to (CBN) director Mr. Godwin
Emefele to compensate all of our foreign beneficiaries with the sum of
($3.5 million) to those that lost there money true the hands of those
criminals called scammers so that you will be able to receive your
fund.
You are to furnish this office with information as below
(1)Name:
(2)Receiving Address:
(3)Cell Phone No:
(4) A copy of your ID
Await your response for successful conclusion of your long overdue
fund without any other hitch.
THANKS.
BEST REGARDS,
MR.GODWIN EMEFIELE,
EXECUTIVE GOVERNOR,
CENTRAL BANK OF NIGERIA
+234 913-480-7572
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Anti-fraud resources:
