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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:
- "dear beloved," (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Sussane Keith <mrs_ksussane1@yahoo.fr>
Reply-To: mrs_ksussane@live.com
Date: Mon, 10 May 2010 18:02:54 +0300
Subject: CAN YOU HANDLE THE PROJECT?
My dear beloved,
After going through my research through the internet I was really
touched by the kind of work you people are doing and that is why I
decided to write you .My reason of contacting you is because I want to
donate to you and your organisation the total sum of US$ 4.8 million
so that you can use it to help the less privilege, orphans and for
charity work. I took this decision because I am about to die and have
no child with my late husband to inherit it ,therefore I choose you
after having much conviction in my heart that you can use this fund
well to the glory of the lord.
I am Mrs Susanne Keith a dying woman suffering from a long cancer of
the breast. From every indication my condition is really
deteriorating, and my doctors have courageously told me that I may not
live beyond the next two months because the cancer stage has reached a
critical one. This is not a joke as I am very serious about this issue.
I will explain to you better and give you more details when I receive
your reply and wiliness to receive this fund for the purpose which I
contacted you for. Please get back to me immediately as you receive
this email so that I will tell you what to do and also I will want you
to assure me that you can handle the project on my behalf.
Yours sincerely
Mrs Susanne Keith.
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Anti-fraud resources:
