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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• 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.
  • +447045708434 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
  • +448701355784 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: John Smith <johnsmith@k-fnan.org>
Date: Sat, 5 May 2007 21:19:33 +0000
Subject: PRIZE AWARD VERIFICATION FORM



ATTENTION: Frau Jaeg CONGRATULATIONS!!! I am Mr. John Smith, the fiduciary agent assigned to your case to help you in the claims process of your funds. I wish to congratulate you and to say you are a lucky person to have won this lottery. All the winners in the Lottery were selected randomly through a computer ballot system from Email addresses. You are required to fill the form below to facilitate the processing of your claims and certificate which will lead to the payment of your prize to you as required. Duly complete the Prize Award Verification forms to enable this office verify and process your winnings, and have your Won Sum and winning Certificate sent to you.We strongly advice you to adhere and comply to the instructions above in order to avoid disqualification. Find attached a Prize Award Verification & Payment Form Draft below which you are expected to fill out and return by fax or email to this office within 24 hours of receipt.PRIZE AWARD VERIFICATION FORM.(PERSONAL DETAILS): NAME( MR. MRS. MISS.):........................................................................COMPANY NAME: (IF APPLICABLE)..............................................................ADDRESS:.......................................................................................CITY:.......................................................................................STATE:...…...................................................................................ZIP CODE......................................................................................... COUNTRY:..................................................................................... TEL:..........................................................................................FAX:...........................….............................................................HOME...........................................................................................EMAIL ADDRESS:...................…..............................................................OCCUPATION:...............................…...................................................MARITAL STATUS:......................................................................................DATE OF PRIZE WON:.......................................................................DATE OF BIRTH:........................................................................... CLAIMANT SIGNATORY DECLARATION:I ............................................................. Declare as the lotto prize winner that all information I have provided for my winning claims are true and correct. I agreed with the instructions in line with the processing and transfer of my Lottery Award Prize. NOTE: THIS VERIFICATION FORM SHOULD BE COMPLETELY FILLED OUT AND RETURN BY EMAIL WITHIN 24HOURS OF RECEIPT OF THIS FORM. Once again, CONGRATULATIONS!!!! Truly yours, Mr. John Smith,Claims Processing Agent.Tel: +44-704-570-8434Fax: +44-870-135-5784

_________________________________________________________________
Try Live.com - your fast, personalized homepage with all the things you care about in one place.
http://www.live.com/getstarted

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam