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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:
- "money order " (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. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Nestor Quality Management <ghf00000@financier.com>
Reply-To: nqmgt@aim.com
Date: Fri, 01 Apr 2011 04:46:01 -0400
Subject: Survey Job Available.
Hello,
Nestor Quality Management is a Human resource/quality management agency.
We specialize in recruiting workers for our numerous clients.We currently
have some clients who are looking for Mystery shoppers who would help them
access the quality of the services rendered by their workers in your region.
JOB DESCRIPTION
You would be asked to visit our client's company/Store/business in your area,
as a secret shopper/customer you would carry out a transaction with them to
know more about the quality of their service, response time,customer relations
and more details as provided by the company, then report back to us with details
of whatever transpired. Information you need for each survey/assignment will be
provided to you weekly.
PAYMENT TERMS
You would be paid $200 per survey/assignment.And you may carry on 2 or more
surveys/assignments per week depending on your schedule.A certified check or a
verified money order will be sent to you which will cover your pay per
survey/assignment and any extra expenses you would incur during the course of your
survey/assignment. The balance will be used for the stated survey/assignment.
If you are interested and require more information contact us
for details
Viktor Armstrong.
Director.
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Anti-fraud resources:
