419 scam: "Mr.john macadams " <inof@usa.com> HELLO ....

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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:

An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
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:
- "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. )
- "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. )
- ",500,000" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
- "you are advice to " (this email uses bad English)
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.
This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
- johnmacadams29@gmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr.john macadams " <inof@usa.com>
Reply-To: johnmacadams29@gmail.com
Date: Wed, 08 Jul 2020 11:56:09 +0200
Subject: HELLO ....

>From Desk Of Willia126.m Gray Honorable office of USA Secretary of State an=
d Chairman Refund Payment Committee Federal Executive Council Baton Rouge U=
SA Email address: johnmacadams29@gmail.com This letter is written in order =
to change your Life from today. Please note that this letter came to you as=
a result of information received from our monitoring network regarding so =
much payments which you sent through Western Union and Money Gram to Europe=
, Asia and Africa and some other part of the World without receiving any pa=
yment to your name, further investigation reveals that you have lost hope t=
owards receiving your payment after being deceived so many times. Following=
the on going re-branding of USA policies, the Federal Government of USA ha=
ve directed our committee to compensate/refund the sum of $10,500,000 to yo=
u through one of this medium by ATM CARD being one of the most convenient m=
eans of receiving payment World Wide, Bank to Bank Transfer. We wish to inf=
orm you that the members of Refund Payment Committee are honorable men of G=
reat Repute and integrity who have served the Government of USA in differen=
t capacities, we also wish to inform you that the Committee members were ap=
pointed by our respected President Donald Trump to pay 10 million five hund=
red thousand Dollars to the listed beneficiaries that have lost their money=
to the scammer and have not yet receive their total sum. In order for you =
to receive your payment this week, you are advice to reply this email with =
ANSWERS to the Questions below. Your Full Name Your Contact Address Your Di=
rect telephone. Fax Number ( if any) Your AGE and what you do for a living =
How Many Months Or Years in which You Have Been Expecting your Payment The =
Place you sent Money Last whether Nigeria or Benin etc The Last Amount of M=
oney You sent indicating What Month and Year Amount From William Gray Honor=
able office of USA Secretary of State Chairman Refund Payment Committee Fed=
eral Executive Council Baton Rouge USA Email address: johnmacadams29@gmail.=
com=20

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam