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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.
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Walter Smith <mrsnancy.david@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <waltersmith2@e-mail.ua>
Date: Fri, 21 Dec 2012 17:40:59 -0800
Subject: Personal Assistant and Administrative officer needed.
Hello,
I'm looking for someone who can handle my business & personal errands at his/her spare time as I keep traveling a lot. Someone who can offer me these
services mentioned below:
* Mail services (Receive my mails and drop them off at UPS or USPS)* Shop for Gifts* Bill payment (pay my bills on my behalf, access to the funds would be provided by me)* Sit for delivery (at your home) or pick items up at nearby post office at your convenience.
Let me know if you will be able to offer me any or all of these services and $500 would be your weekly payment. If you are ready to go,
P.S- You are not required to spend even a single dime from your pocket.
Sincerely,
Walter Smith
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Anti-fraud resources:
