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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:
- "western union" (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.
- Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
Fraud email example:
From: Online Transfers <volksbamkkonstanzeg@gmail.com>
Reply-To: christinereinhardtr@gmail.com
Date: Mon, 3 Apr 2023 08:23:40 -0700
Subject: GOOD NEWS FOR YOUR FUNDS
Hello Beneficiary
I am hereby writing to inform you that the Government of Germany has
today Morning deposit your inheritance €2.5 Million Eur with this
bank. The government had a clear mandate to open an account in your
name with the bank and set up an on-line transfer that you will use to
transfer the funds into your personal account.
However, the government deposited your funds to the bank . The bank
has finally opened an account in your name. Be advice that the bank
has already created on-line transfer with the account that opened in
your favor this afternoon. And the €2.5 Million Eur of funds has been
transferred to the Western Union Here is the MTCN095-778-8285 Tracking
https://www.westernunion.com/web/global-service/track-transfer-success
that my bank open in your favor. The online banking account details
are follows
Account Name:............
Account Number:............
Name of your bank:.........
Routing Number:............
Your Phone Number:............
Your Whatsapp Number:............
Your Driver’s license:...........
Make sure you file the form completed because of avoid any wrong transfers
Best Regards
Mrs christine Reinhardt
Online Banking
Directors Agency
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Anti-fraud resources:
