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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:
- The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
- 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: James Thomas <jhtomas2020@gmail.com>
Date: Fri, 25 Aug 2023 03:00:13 -0700
Subject: My Apologies Please.
I am Mr. James Thomas, a Barrister at Law/Personal Adviser to a
Nigerian For Minister of Petroleum Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke. I will
like to apologize for intruding into your privacy, since we don't know
each other. I wish to have you as a business partner if you wish. I
have a legal business proposal worth of $18.500, 000 million U.S
dollars with mutual interest. If interested get back to me. Reach Me
on my whatsapp number: +447445136276
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Anti-fraud resources:
