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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:
- "million 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)
- "await your urgent response" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Rev. Fr. Christopher Field" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <mrchristopherfield@yahoo.de>
Date: Sat, 31 Jan 2015 12:20:27 +0100
Subject: My Dear How Are You? Can I Trus You? Kindly Reply
Hello,
My name is Rev. Fr. Christopher Field, a priest with Catholic church in England. I'm looking for a sincere and trustworthy person that will assist me in investing the sum of $35 Million Dollars in your country .
Please do get back to me if you have an idea in any sector to invest,kingly let me know so that we can write and sign Memorandum of Understanding.
Once I hear from you, We will discuss how my bank in Europe will transfer the investment fund to your account.
Await your urgent response. Let me have your full name and phone number.
Thanks.
Rev Fr Christopher Field
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This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software.
http://www.avast.com
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Anti-fraud resources:
