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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 united states 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)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Mr.Cahill Martins <lily@sumpoeg.com>
Reply-To: <martinscahill@yahoo.fr>
Date: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 13:10:00 -0800
Subject: APPROVED COMPENSATION PAYMENT AWARD OF US$7.3M
Dear friend,
APPROVED COMPENSATION PAYMENT AWARD OF US$7.3M
This is to inform you that a Debit Cash Card Number 4012888888881881 Valued at us$7.3 Million United States Dollars has been accredited in your favor. Please contact us with the following information to facilitate your claims:
FULL NAME:
AGE:
GENDER:
ADDRESS:
COUNTRY:
OCCUPATION:
MOBILE NUMBER:
Best Regards,
Mr.Cahill Martins.
Head Officer
CIV NAVSUBTORPFAC YORK.
UNITED NATIONS / WORLD BANK ORGANIZATION.
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This e-mail message from sumpofood Corporation and any files that accompany it, are for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential and privileged information. Any unauthorized review, use, disclosure or distribution is prohibited. If you are not the intended recipient, please contact the sender by reply e-mail and destroy all copies of the original message.】
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