joewein.de LLC fighting spam and scams on the Internet

Try our spam filter! Free trial for 30 days

"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
• "Is that email a scam?" - Check it online here!
  
• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
• Company names mentioned in 419 spam:
  1 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• Spam archive, Daily index
  

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.

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:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "your urgent reply" (they are rushing you so you don't have time to think properly)
• This email message is a "dying widow" scam.
• This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
  • estd_1975@myway.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mrs. Serena Jones" <estd197601@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: estd1975@myway.com
Date: Tue, 17 Jan 2006 10:32:21 -0500
Subject: Assistance

Hello,
 
I am Mrs. Serena Jones from Kuwait. I am married to Dr. Harry Jones who worked with Kuwait embassy in Ivory Coast for nine years before he died in the year 2000.We were married for eleven years without a child. He died after a brief illness that lasted for only four days. When my late husband was alive he deposited the sum of $14m (fourteen million U.S. Dollars) with SECURITY FIRM. Presently, this money is still with the security Firm.
 
I'm asking your partnership to transfer the funds to your account. I took this decision because I don't have any child  and my husband relatives are not in good terms with me, I don't need any telephone communication in this regard because of my health and the
Presence of my husband's relatives around me always. I don't want them to know about this development. You may be quite surprised at my sudden contact to you but do not despair. I got your contact from a business site on the internet and following the information I gathered about you, I was convinced that you could be of assistance to me.
 
So I decided to contact you at once due to the urgency required for us to immediately transfer the said funds out of the SECURITY FIRM So long as you keep everything confidential, you would definitely have no problems. For your assistance, I am ready to give you as much as 30% of the total funds after confirmation in your possession and invest a reasonable percentage into any viable business you may suggest. Please, I need your assistance to make this happen and please do not undermine it because it will also be a source of up liftmen to you me. You have absolutely nothing to loose in assisting me as we will both gain a lot at the end of the day. With God all things are possible. As soon as I receive your reply I shall give you the contact of the security firm and will also issue a letter of authority via my lawyer that will prove you as the original-beneficiary of this fund. Hoping to hearing from you.

Waiting for your urgent reply to my personal email address (estd_1975@myway.com) Please do not click reply to respond to this email otherwise, your reply will not get to me.
 
Best Regards,

Mrs. Serena Jones.

--

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam