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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)
- "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. )
- "united state of america" (this email uses bad English)
- "abuja" (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.
Fraud email example:
From: "Ambassador James F. Entwistle" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <jamesentwistle655@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 27 Oct 2016 17:12:32 +0100
Subject: Embassy of the United States of America
Embassy of the United States of America
Plot 1075 Diplomatic Drive
Central District Area, Abuja.
Dear Friend
THIS IS Ambassador James F. Entwistle U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria. UNITED
STATE OF AMERICA
AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA. I SHALL BE COMING TO YOUR COUNTRY FOR AN OFFICIAL
MEETING ON TUESDAY AND I
WILL BE BRINGING YOUR FUNDS THROUGH AN ATM MASTER CARD OF $15M ALONG WITH
ME BUT THIS TIME I WILL
NOT GO THROUGH CUSTOMS BECAUSE AS AN AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA, I AM A US
GOVERNMENT AGENT AND I HAVE
THE VETO POWER TO GO THROUGH CUSTOMS. AS SOON AS I AM THROUGH WITH THE
MEETING I SHALL THEN
PROCEED TO YOUR ADDRESS. (SEND YOUR CELL PHONE NUMBER AND THE ADDRESS
WHERE YOU WANT ME TO BRING
THE PACKAGE).
YOU HAVE REALLY PAID SO MUCH IN THIS DELIVERY THAT MAKES ME WONDER. YOU
ARE A VERY LUCKY PERSON
BECAUSE I SHALL BE BRINGING IT MYSELF AND THERE IS NOTHING ANYONE CAN DO
ABOUT IT. CHECK HERE:
http://nigeria.usembassy.gov/biography.html .PRIVATE E-MAIL:
THERE IS ABSOLUTELY GOING TO BE GREAT DOUBT AND DISTRUST IN YOUR HEART IN
RESPECT TO THIS EMAIL
COUPLED WITH THE FACT THAT SO MANY MISCREANTS AND IMPOSTERS(SCAMMERS) HAVE
TAKEN POSSESSION OF THE
INTERNET TO FACILITATE THEIR NEFARIOUS DEEDS, THEREBY MAKING IT EXTREMELY
DIFFICULT FOR GENUINE
AND LEGITMATE BUSINESS CLASS PERSONS TO GET ATTENTION AND RECONGNITION
YOUR PACKAGE($15M) MUST BE REGISTERED AS AN AMBASSADORIAL PACKAGE FOR ME
TO DEFEAT ALL ODDS AND
THE COST OF REGISTERING IT IS $150.THE FEE MUST BE PAID IN THE NEXT 50
HOURS VIA WESTERN UNION SO
THAT ALL NECESSARY ARRANGEMENT CAN BE MADE BEFORE TIME WILL BE AGAINST
US.
YOU SHOULD SEND THE FEE DIRECTLY TO THE CARGO REGISTRATION OFFICER
WITH THE INFO BELOW-
RECEIVERS NAME: mordi uche
ADDRESS: NIGERIA
TEXT QUESTION: GOD
ANSWER:IS ABLE
AMOUNT $150
SENDERS NAME:
SENDERS ADDRESS:
AS SOON AS YOU SEND THE FEE MAKE SURE YOU SEND ME THE PAYMENT INFORMATION.
MY FLIGHT IS TUESDAY
AND I EXPECT YOU TO COMPLY BEFORE THEN SO THAT THE DELIVERY CAN BE
COMPLETED. IF YOU DO NOT
COMPLY, THEN IT WILL NOT BE MY FAULT IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE YOUR PACKAGE.
SIGN
Ambassador James F. Entwistle
U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria
US AMBASSADOR TO NIGERIA
TELEPHONE NUMBER
CHECK HERE VIEW MY DATA: http://nigeria.usembassy.gov/biography.html
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Anti-fraud resources:
