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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:
- "clearance fee" (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. )
- "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. )
- "you are required to pay " (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. )
- "await your urgent response" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
- "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
- "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- 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.
- This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
Fraud email example:
From: DHL COURIER COMPANY <meyer21robinson001@gmail.com>
Reply-To: DHL COURIER COMPANY <george1williams@outlook.com>
Date: Sat, 11 Jul 2015 10:43:31 +0900 (JST)
Subject: NOTIFICATION FROM DHL COURIER COMPANY (YOUR ATM CARD)
Good Day,
This is DHL Courier Delivery Company West Africa Benin branch, the management of this
company wishes to inform you that we received a parcel containing an ATM Master Card
valued sum amount of ($3.5million) with some vital documents attached on it for safety
delivery to your residential address in your country.
This parcel was brought to us this morning by the ATM Card payment office Republic
of Benin for immediate dispatching to your residential address in your country and be
informed that your Atm master Card has been sealed with our company wrapper' weighed and
cleared for easy and fast delivery to your residential address in your country and note
that you are required to pay the Coverage outlet clearance fee of ($99 usd) to enable us
obtain your package departure permit order from the (IMF) office and ship out your Atm Card
package from our local facility airport shipping center here in Benin Republic to avoid
inspection at any transited airport or arrival in your country today and try to be very fast
in sending the needed fee today to avoid any additional charges by the Depth and also to
enable us activate your airway bills and notify you with the tracking numbers so that you
can be able to be viewing the delivery process through our Website for you to know the time
of arrival in your country today'
Reconfirm the Below information as listed to avoid delivery to wrong address'
Full name............
Parcel Owner Address......
Country/State........
Occupation...........
Passport/
Sex/Age.............
Telephone number...........
Below is the information to send the payment through Western Union Transfer Today'
Receiver Name......Ejike Mike
Country...........Benin Republic
Zip Code...........+229
City............Cotonou
Test Question......Atm
Test Answer.......Card
Amount.............$99
Sender's Name........?
Mtcn................?
Await your urgent response soon with the payment information while we look forward to serve you with the best of our service
Yours in service
Dr.George Williams
Phone Call:(+229 99757638)
Dispatch Manager DHL Courier Company
Cotonou branch DHL Express Service Republic of Benin
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Anti-fraud resources:
