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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:
- "will come to you as a surprise" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "John Korang" <johnkorang@web.co.zw>
Reply-To: k.john@web.co.zw
Date: Tue, 12 May 2015 00:35:45 +0100
Subject: From John
I am fully aware that this letter will come to you as a surprise since we haven't met but pardon my intrusion because my situation necessitated that I make this contact to you.I am a white Zimbabwean Farmer, currently in hiding in Zimbabwe. I have a substantial amount I want to invest in your country under your guidance if we are able to come to an agreement.
I am contacting you considering my present situation and the urgent need for me to have a foreign partner in your country. More so, I have the desire to relocate to that country so that I can purchase some land and start farming all over again including investing in a low risk guarantee business with huge returns under your guidance/supervision. If you are interested and willing to assist me, kindly respond back as soon as possible to enable me give you detailed information concerning this project and the way forward towards achieving this feat. I'll humbly advise you click on the link below to get a better/clearer understanding of my situation and why I need your assistance.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/1068528.stm
I look forward to reading from you.
Regards,
John Korang.
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Anti-fraud resources:
