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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:
- "death certificate" (this phrase is often used in inheritance scams such as next of kin or https://www.419scam.org/419-murdered-businessman.htm">orphan scams. )
- "million united states dollars" (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)
- "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- This email message is a next of kin scam.
- Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
Fraud email example:
From: Alex Chung <ffileweb8@gmail.com>
Reply-To: alexx47700@yahoo.com
Date: Tue, 19 Oct 2021 14:54:20 +0100
Subject: Inheritance Payment
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Good day,
My name is Mr. Alex Chung and personal attorney to Mrs. Bertha that
died as a result of corona-virus disease infection on the 19th January
2021 in Chicago
I'm seeking for your approval to present you as the Next of Kin to
claim Eight Million United States Dollars. Death certificate record
and other documents will be forwarded to you as soon as possible.
Please kindly get back to me with your information if you're
interested
1. Your Full Name.
2. Contact Home Address.
3. Your Cell-phone Number.
4. Your International Passport / Driver's License
Best regards,
Barrister Alex Chung Chao-Shu
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Anti-fraud resources:
