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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 friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- ",000,000" (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)
- "00,000.00" (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)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: Hussein Harmush <hharmush3@gmail.com>
Reply-To: husseinharmush113@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 25 Mar 2022 22:18:05 +0100
Subject: Reply me as soon as possible
Dear Friend,
I sincerely apologize if my message does not suit your current status,
Inshallah I got your contact from a Business Directory during my search for
a trustworthy and reliable partner for project investments in your country.
My name is Col. Hussein Harmush, an army officer from Syria Arab Republic
but I am presently staying in a Kutupalong refugee camp in the state of
Chittagong Bangladesh with my wife and my children after our lucky escape
from Syria some years ago.
This is as a result of the ongoing bloody civil war in my country Syria
which has killed thousands of innocent civilians including women and
children over the last few years. Please I would like to discuss a very
important and urgent business proposal with you involving a total sum of
US$ 21,000,000.00. (Twenty-One Million U.S Dollars Only) with a Bank in the
United Arab Emirate (UAE) only if you can permit me by responding back to
this message as soon as possible.
Inshallah I need your honest assistance in transferring this total funds to
your Bank account so that I will travel to your country with my family in
order to meet you for onward investment of this total funds through your
help. I will be giving you more details about this transaction and thank
you very much for your understanding as I look forward to receiving your
message soon. May Allah bless you with his grace.
Col. Hussein Harmush.
Kutupalong refugee camp.
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Anti-fraud resources:
