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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 friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "million dollars" (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)
- "my direct telephone number" (a "direct line" in a scam usually means an untraceable mobile phone number used by a scammer in an internet cafe, a redirection service number that forwards to a mobile or a free voicemailbox in a different country.)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- 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.
Fraud email example:
From: "Tony Grey" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <tony1155@blumail.org>
Date: Wed, 29 Jun 2011 07:18:47 -0700
Subject: My Dear
Dear Friend,
My name is Mr Tony Grey, working with one of the big bank here in the country. I have a client (George Anderson) who left a will of $3.8 Million Dollars unclaimed for several years after his death. I want to present you to my bank as the next of kin and the beneficiary of this fund. For more details, please contact me with the following information as stated below:
YOUR FULL NAME AND RESIDENTIAL ADDRESS.
YOUR TELEPHONE/FAX NUMBERS RESPECTIVELY.
When the fund gets into your account, you should have 25% of it and keep 75% for me and two of my colleagues.
I will be delighted to inform you that all the vital documents that will make this deal a success will be secured internally in my Bank by our bank accridated attorney. Your response should be sent to my above email address.
For more information call me on my direct telephone number +234-708-7721327
Best Regards,
Tony Grey.
Accountant
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Anti-fraud resources:
