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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:
- An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
- 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:
- "dearest one," (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "i will like you to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "a security company " (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.
- This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
- mrs.ritaudo@gmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)
Fraud email example:
From: Mrs Rita Udoh <officedask@gmail.com>
Reply-To: mrs.ritaudo@gmail.com
Date: Sun, 7 Sep 2014 15:03:11 -0700
Subject: DEAREST ONE
DEAREST ONE,
I AM GLAD TO KNOW YOU, BUT GOD KNOWS YOU BETTER AND HE KNOWS WHY HE
HAS DIRECTED ME TO YOU AT THIS POINT IN TIME SO DO NOT BE AFRAID.I AM
MRS RITA UDOH, A WIDOW; I AM WRITING THIS MAIL FROM HOSPITAL BED, I
HAVE BEEN HOSPITALIZED FOR OVER 3 YEARS NOW AS CANCER PATIENT AND MY
DOCTOR SAID THAT I WILL NOT SURVIVE THIS SICKNESS AND I HAVE SHORT
TIME TO LEAVE ON EARTH. SO I WILL LIKE TO INVEST SOME FUNDS WHICH WAS
DEPOSITED WITH A SECURITY COMPANY HERE VALUED ($17.5 MILLION) ON
MOTHERLESS BABIES FOUNDATION IN YOUR COUNTRY THROUGH YOUR ASSISTANCE,
IF ONLY YOU WILL BE FAITHFUL. REPLY ME
URGENTLY VIA THIS MY EMAIL (mrs.ritaudo@gmail.com) FOR FULL DETAILS.
I WILL LIKE YOU TO SEND TO ME URGENTLY IN RECEIPT OF THIS MESSAGE THE
INFORMATION'S AS I WRITE BELOW:
THANKS AND GOD BLESS YOU
YOURS FAITHFULLY,
MRS RITA UDOH
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Anti-fraud resources:
