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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:
- "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
- ",000,000" (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)
- "your loan " (Beware of fake loan offers. Real lenders would not normally use free webmail addresses such as Yahoo, nor would they lend to individuals or small businesses in a different country from where they are based. Beware of mobile phones or redirector numbers!)
- "citi-account-dept@9.cn" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Zenith Bank Plc" <info@fic.br>
Reply-To: citi-account-dept@9.cn
Date: Thu, 10 Jun 2010 03:03:33 -0500
Subject: N/A
Zenith Bank Plc.
Dear Sir/Madam,
Do you need a loan? contact Zenith Bank Plc for any type of Loan, we are
certified to give out national and International loan. Apply now and get your
Loan into your Bank Account within five working days. Loans are available for
reputable organizations and individauls at a low interest rate of 3%
respectively, loan range is minimum of $20,000USD and maximum of
$100,000,000usd. Interested members of the public should contact us. Send
urgent reply via e-mail: (citi-account-dept@9.cn).
Do you desire to upgrade business?
Do you want to further your education and desire financing?
Do you desire to start a business and need capital?
Are you in debt/blacklisted?
For loan application fill out this form.
****************************
*Full Name:
*Contact Address:
*State/Province:
*Country:
*Mobile/cellular:
*Date of Birth:
*Sex:
*Marital Statue:
*Occupation:
*Amount Needed:
*Loan period:
*Monthly income
*****************************
Mr. Oscar Perry
[Publicity Secretary]
Zenith Bank Plc.
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Anti-fraud resources:
