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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)
- "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: "Mrs.Diana Tran" <niensheng3@gmail.com>
Reply-To: dianatran012@gmail.com
Date: Tue, 25 Oct 2016 03:47:46 -0700
Subject: HELP THE POOR PROJECTT
Dear Friend,
I know this letter will come to you as a surprise as we have not met but i
want you to know that i have been on prayers since i saw your contact
details on your profile before deciding to contact you. My name is Diana
Tran a cancer patient, i was diagnosed of cancer two years ago shortly
after the death of my only son and my husband who was an exporter of crude.
I am writing to you with tears in my eyes and pain in my hearth as i just
received a report from my doctor that my lungs has been damaged and as a
result i will not live long, i have lived my life thinking that money can
do all things until recently when i was admitted on this sick bed. I have
decided to touch people's life through you so that i will be remembered
when i am gone. I am donating $5 Million to you for investment and charity
project around the world. I want you to use 40% for investment in your name
and 60% will be used to help the widow and refugees around the world. Get
back to me for details.
Mrs. Diana Tran
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Anti-fraud resources:
