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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 sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "celia.nguila" <celia.nguila@clubnet.co.mz>
Reply-To: mattnubia@yahoo.com
Date: Sun, 3 Feb 2019 15:46:27 +0200
Subject: can i cinfide in you?
Dear sir/madam,
I am the director in charge of debt management at the Nigerian National
Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). There was a contract executed in 2013 which was
over-invoiced to the tune of US$57M. After the real contract value had been
paid, we have the balance of US$57M left unpaid.
The ministry of finance has mandated me to present the name of the foreign
sub-contractor that finished the contract who is to receive this balance of
US$57M. If you can be trusted, i will present your name as the sub-contractor,
as they are waiting for any contractor’s name i present for approval and
transfer.
After the payment you will take 40% and i will take 60% of the total sum.
As soon as i get your immediate response i will give you more details.
Thanks.
Matt. nubia
Debt Management Board
NNPC FGN
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Anti-fraud resources:
