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.
  • +447024083788 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: Cherry Rings <cherry000_ringsoffice01@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: Fri, 31 Aug 2007 13:23:19 +0100 (BST)
Subject: DEAR WINNER FILL THE VERIFICATION AND FUNDS RELEASE FORM


Dear Winner,

Your email has been received. We the entire staff of Lottery Board congratulate you once again for being one of our lucky winners in this year lottery promotion stake. Please attached here is the claim verification and funds release form. You are expected to fill and submit it back to the fiduciary agent immediately via email. Once again congratulations.

VERIFICATION AND FUNDS RELEASE FORM
1. FULL NAMES: __________________________________

2. ADDRESS: _____________________________________________

3. SEX: _______________

4. AGE: ________

5. MARITAL STATUS: ___________________

6. OCCUPATION: ________________________

7. E-MAIL ADDRESS: _____________________________

8. TEL AND FAX NUMBERS: _____________________

9. REFERENCE NUMBERS: _____JU/NL/33456877_______________

10. TICKET NUMBER: ____IK/UK/2229220_______________

11. SERIAL NUMBER: _________NL/100078_______

12. AMOUNT WON: ______________________

13. STATE: __________________________________

14. COUNTRY________________________________

Upon receipt of the duly requested data, I will send you the contact information of the paying Bank so you can proceed with affecting the release of your claims.
Note: This Lottery was won via a selection of email addresses, which yours was selected and qualified you as a winner. Any funds unclaimed by 15th of SEPTEMBER shall be returned to this office as unclaimed and used for our up coming mega jackpot games.

Regards,
Mrs. Cherry Rings (Fiduciary Agent)
Phone: +44-702-408-3788.


---------------------------------
For ideas on reducing your carbon footprint visit Yahoo! For Good this month.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam