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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:
- "activation fee" (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. )
- "money gram" (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. )
- "cotonou" (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.
- This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
Fraud email example:
From: MR IKOMO SAMUEL <www.@almond.ocn.ne.jp>
Reply-To: MR IKOMO SAMUEL <moneygram909@yahoo.com>
Date: Tue, 23 Jan 2018 01:35:14 +0900 (JST)
Subject: HELLO, GOOD MORNING TO YOU
HELLO, GOOD MORNING TO YOU! I AM WRITING THIS TO INFORMING YOU THAT YOUR FIRST PAYMENT OF $4500.00 ARE STILL AVAILABLE, AND AFTER THE FINAL MEETING WAS CONCLUDED THAT THE ONLY THING HOLDING YOU TO START PICKING YOUR TRANSFER IS ACTIVATION FEE OF $150.00 LIKE I TOLD YOU, NOTE THAT EVERY DOCUMENTATION HAVE SIGNED AND I WILL GIVE IT TO YOU BY ATTACHMENT IMMEDIATELY THE FEE HAVE RECEIVED AND YOU CAN GO TO ANY BANK OR ANY MONEY GRAM OFFICE AROUND YOU TO PICK UP YOUR FUND.
HERE IS YOUR FIRST PAYMENT DETAILS BUT AS LIKE I SAID YOU CAN NOT PICK IT UP UNTIL IT HAVE WELL ACTIVATED WHICH WILL BE DONE WITHIN 15MINUTES TIME,
SENDER NAME....MR IKOMO SAMUEL
SENDER COUNTRY....UNITED STATE
TEXT QUESTION....WHEN
TEXT ANSWER.....TODAY
REFERENCE NUMBER....941.655.82
THANK YOU
MR IKOMO SAMUEL INTERNATIONAL COMMERCIAL BANK DIRECTOR.
(1)Beneficiary Name..............................................
(2)Your Bank Name..............................................
(3)Your Bank Address.........................................
(4)Your Account Number.......................................
(5) Your Routing Number.................................................
(6)Your Swift No...........................................
(7)Your Home Address.........................................
(8) Your Pictures or Id Cards.................................
(9) Your Home And Office Telephone......................................
(10)Your roccupations........................................
RECEIVER INFORMATION
RECEIVER NAME..FEDA IKE
COUNTRY.....BENIN REPUBLIC
CITY.......COTONOU
AMOUNT....$150.00 ONLY.0
REGARD
(Phone Number +22962389431
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Anti-fraud resources:
