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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:
- "please endeavor to " (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: "Kevin Moore" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <1958kevin1@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2017 09:49:46 -0700
Subject: [GSN Suspected Spam] Hello.
Hello,
My name is Mr Kevin Moore. I work with one of the leading Banks here in London, UK. I would need your consent to present you to the bank as the beneficiary to our late customer who died suddenly of heart attack. He was a wealthy business man who deposited a huge amount in our Bank without any registered next of kin in his bank file.
I was his account officer and i have all the relevant documents required to present you as his beneficiary. I contacted you because you bear the same last name identity with my late client. Therefore you will perfectly fit in to this business as the next of kin. you shall be having 40% at the final conclusion.
On your confirmation to this message, I will provide you more details. Please endeavor to send me your phone number for effective communication.
I urgently hope to get your response as soon as possible.
Yours Sincerely,
Kevin Moore
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Anti-fraud resources:
