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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:
- "moneygram" (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. )
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
- MoneyGram money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. Along with Western Union it is a preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
Fraud email example:
From: "MR. WILLIAMS MORGAN" <"FDRS."@earth.ocn.ne.jp>
Reply-To: "MR. WILLIAMS MORGAN" <moneygramoffiec1992@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2017 19:03:13 +0900 (JST)
Subject: URGENT ATTENTION
Here is the information of your first payment payment track it now and see is available to pick up by you the receiver
Payment:(https://secure.moneygram.com/transactions
Money Reference Number (REF):62662217
Text Question: In God
Text Answer: We trust
Sender's First Name: Mark
Sender's Last Name: Peter
But you can't pick up your first payment until you activate your dormant fund account then you start receiving your payments accordingly until is completely transferred to you with a charge fee of $150 please get back to us as soon as possible so we can proceed with your transactions immediately.
Here is the information to use
Recivers name: Bobbie Jean Allen
Country: USA
City: Nebraska
State: Omaha
Question: In God
Answer: We trust
Amount: $199.00
send the Reference Number (REF) immediately after the payment
Thanks
MR. WILLIAMS MORGAN
+1 402-925-4261
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Anti-fraud resources:
