|
|
joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
|
|
"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:
- "sani abacha" (the name of a person or institution often appearing 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. Mohammed Abacha" <kyceefrank239@gmail.com>
Reply-To: mramohammed00@gmail.com
Date: Mon, 25 Oct 2021 20:01:29 +0200
Subject: inquiry
Dear Partner,
Please permit me to formally introduce myself to you as Mohammed Abacha,
the elder son to late Gen. Sani Abacha. I want to make further inquiry
from you if you have the financial capacity to handle an investment
project worth USD $1.5 Billion Dollars in your country.
I contacted you regarding these said funds which were formerly lodged in a
suspense security company account in Turkey. I would respectfully request
that you keep the contents of this mail confidential and respect the
integrity of the information you came by as a result of this mail. I
contacted you independently for this investigation and no one should be
informed of this communication.
I will give you more details as soon as I receive your affirmative
interest to proceed with you. For more inquiry, please call +234-818 933
8080. I await your Response.
Healthy regards,
Mohammed Abacha.
For the Family.
+234-818 933 8080
|
Anti-fraud resources:
