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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)
- "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)
- "nigeria national petroleum corporation" (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: "Dr. Sambo Whitehead" <drsambo-----white2@att.net>
Reply-To: dr_sambowhite_sq@yahoo.com
Date: Sat, 19 Mar 2011 04:48:05 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Please Reply ASAP
FROM THE DESK OF DR.SAMBO WHITEHEAD,CHIEF ACCOUNTANT OF THE
NIGERIA NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION (NNPC)
HEAD OFFICE NO:16 NNPC HOUSE VICTORIA ISLAND LAGOS NIGERIA
TELE/FAX: 234-70-59797239, 234-1-8850178
Dear Sir, I apologize if the contents here under are contrary to your moral ethics. But please treat with absolute confidentiality.My name is Dr.Sambo Whitehead.I work with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)as the Director of Finance. There is a potential transaction worth US$23.8 Million Dollars for our actualization, which I would like us to handle together.
Secondly, I hope to relocate and acquire a single family home for my family with a view to establishing in your country and I would need your assistance and co-operation in this endeavor. Let me know if I can trust you with this and more information will be sent to you as quickly as possible.
I will look forward to your prompt response.
Respectfully,
Dr.Sambo Whitehead
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Anti-fraud resources:
