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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:
- "search for a reliable person" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- "liberia" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- This email message is a orphan scam.
- Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
Fraud email example:
From: "Sandy wayne" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <waynesandy25@yahoo.com.ph>
Date: Sat, 17 Dec 2011 05:18:07 -0800
Subject: Merry Xmas From Sandy Wayne
Good evening ,
With sincere heart and genuine intention for God keeping us into the last month of the year 2011, am contacting you due to the favor i and my kid sister need from you which I believe will be of mutual benefit for the future of your family and my late family in life to come. We have not met. I got your contact from directory in search for a reliable personality that could understand our present situation as refugee's to help me and my kid sister get our inheritance from the firm and so we can get a better education when we come to your country while you help us invest the money from the gold into your country .
Please pardon me if my request does not fit your schedule this period But consider my mail as very important and do let me know if you can help me in the shortest time possible obviously so we can be with you before the end of the year. I am Sandy Wayne 27yrs and my kid sister is princess 10yrs we are from Liberia and I am contacting you because I need your help in management of some 150 kilo gram of Gold and some amount of money that my late father left for me and princess before he died. My father was a very rich that deal in Gold but was poisoned by his business colleagues and they are now after us because am the next of kin to his inheritance which i had to escape my way with my sister into a church here in Republic of Ghana which am presently in the refugee camp.
Kindly stand as our guardian and appointed beneficiary to enable you receive the money in your country and as well assist us secure papers that will enable the release of the fund and we come over to your country once the money has been released immediately for continuation of our education and investing of the money according to your advise since am only 27 years and princess 10yrs without mother or father. Please indicate if you are interested in taking us along because our present condition here is critically frustrating here. Kindly send me your number so that the barrister can contact you with the details of security company where the gold and the funds was deposited by my late father.
God bless you,
Am waiting.
Sandy Wayne and princess
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