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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:
- "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "your urgent reply" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
- "i got your email address from " (this SPAM email was probably sent to thousands of people)
- This email message is a "dying widow" scam.
Fraud email example:
From: "Mrs. Anna Blair" <infoatmcardoffice01@gmail.com>
Reply-To: mrsannablair1937@gmail.com
Date: Sun, 9 Oct 2016 18:41:36 +0100
Subject: Dear Friend,I am Mrs. Anna Blair.
*Dear Friend,Let me first of all inform you, I got your email address from
a mail directory and decided to mail you for a permission to go ahead. I am
Mrs. Anna Blair from United Kingdom, married to Dr. Anthony R.Blair who
worked with Texaco Oil Company in Malaysia before he died in a plane crash
on his way to a board meeting.My Husband and I were married but without any
children. Since his death I decided not to re-marry and presently I am 79
Years old. When my late husband was Alive he deposited the sum of
$11.5M.(Eleven Million Five Hundred Thousand U.S. Dollars) with a
Bank.Presently this money is still with the Bank and the management just
Wrote me as the beneficiary to come forward to receive the money or rather
Issue a letter of authority to somebody to receive it on my behalf.I am
presently in a hospital where I have been undergoing treatment Cancer of
the lungs. I have since lost my ability to talk and my doctors have told me
that I have only a few months to live so I think the best thing to do is to
use the money for charity purposes.I want a person who is trustworthy that
I will make the beneficiary of my late Husband's fund deposited with the
bank so that the person can get the money and utilize 70% of this money to
fund churches, orphanages and widows around the world.As soon as I receive
your reply I shall give you the contact details of the Bank. I will also
issue you a letter of authority that will prove you as the new beneficiary
of this fund. Please assure me that you will act accordingly as I stated
here in and keep this contact confidential till such a time this funds get
to your custody. This is to ensure that nothing jeopardizes my last wish on
earth.I await your urgent reply.Regards,Mrs. Anna Blair.*
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Anti-fraud resources:
