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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:
- "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "mtcn" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
Fraud email example:
From: <agent1@agencywestern.onmicrosoft.com>
Reply-To: <cfelini@outlook.it>
Date: Tue, 11 Feb 2014 14:19:39 +0100
Subject: WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER,
WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER ITALY PAY-OUT CENTER Dear Western Union Benefi=
ciary, WESTERN UNION PAYOUT NOTIFICATION. WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER has =
received a payout alert in your name.Ensure to send your full name,current =
location and telephone number for your account to be activated which will e=
nable you pickup your money from any of our outlets close to you. Upon the =
receipt of the above mentioned details, your first transaction will be acti=
vated and we shall then Proceed to provide you with the Money Transfer Cont=
rol Number (MTCN) for the First installment and we will continue to email y=
ou others after 12 hours of Receiving each payment. For more information on=
your payment status; Contact Person ANTONACI Michele For BIANCO Fernando E=
nsure to send us an email immediately and Call our 24 hours Helpline @ +39 =
324 742 8097 for any inquiries on the above message.Please continue calling=
until you are attended to because sometimes we could be busy guiding clien=
ts. Yours truly, Angelo Facci For: Western Union Italy. WESTERN UNION... Ov=
er 380,000 Outlets Worldwide
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Anti-fraud resources:
