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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:
- "chief auditor" (the name of a person or institution often appearing 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: Wilson Morris <wilsonmorris@w.cn>
Reply-To: wilsonmorris26@live.com
Date: Mon, 28 Feb 2011 20:07:16 +0000 (GMT)
Subject: URGENT
I AM MR WILSON MORRIS THE CHIEF AUDITOR INCHARGE OF FOREIGN REMITTANCE UNIT OF CENTRAL BANK AND I HAVE HAD THE INTENT TO CONTACT YOU OVER THIS FINANCIAL TRANSACTION WORTH THE SUM ($8.5Million USD) FOR OUR SUCCESS.
THIS IS AN ABANDONED SUM THAT BELONGS TO ONE OF OUR BANK FOREIGN CUSTOMERS WHO DIED WITH HEART RELATED DISEASE ALONG AGO.
YOU HAVE THE ABSOLUTE AUTHORITY TO CLAIM THE FUND HENCE YOU ARE A FOREIGNER AS SOON AS YOU REPLY, STEP TO FOLLOW IN ORDER TO FINALIZE THIS TRANSACTION IMMEDIATELY WOULD BE DECLARED TO YOU.
I EXPECT YOU'RE URGENT COMMUNICATION.
YOURS SINCERELY
MR. WILSON MORRIS
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Anti-fraud resources:
