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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:
- "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
- "transfer of your funds" (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)
- "cheque " (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. )
- This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
- They don't notify winners by email.
- You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
- They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
- They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
- They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
- They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
- 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.
- +447011129129 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
- +447011152437 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
- +448700687347 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
Fraud email example:
From: CLAIMS UNIT DEPARTMENT <claimsunit_dept_2007@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: Fri, 8 Jun 2007 22:31:23 +0100 (BST)
Subject: CONTACT THE PAYING BANK.
Ref: PBL2348974321
Ottilia Koch,
Your information was received and please be informed that for safe transfer of your funds you are advised to contact the paying bank informing them of opening an online account with them where your funds will be deposited and transferred to your designated account via online.
BANK CONTACT INFORMATION:
Bank Name: South Pacific Bank
Bank Email Address: info.dept@sp-bnet.net
Telephone: +44 701 112 9129
Fax: +44 870 068 7347
Contact Person: Macdonald Peters.
Please contact them and ask them for advise as regards opening an online account with them so your cheque can be sent to them and deposited in your account to enable you make your transfer to your designated bank account via online.
Regards,
Phil Smith.
{Fiduciary Agent}
Telephone:+44-701-115-2437
Claims Unit Department
Copyright © 1994-2007 Powerball Email Lottery Promotions! All Rights Reserved.
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