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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)
- "million united state 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)
- ",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)
- "united state dollar" (this email uses bad English)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: PAYMENT ADVICE <fedxexpcourierservices19@gmail.com>
Reply-To: www.polarisbnnklimited@gmail.com
Date: Sun, 3 Apr 2022 11:41:45 +0100
Subject: RE: URGENT NOTIFICATION
Dear Sir/Madam,
Our Ongoing Of The Year 2021 Auditing By Polaris Bank Limited, Our Auditor
Finds Out That Your Name Was Among The Listed Files As Unclaimed Fund Of
$12,000,000.00 (Twelve Million United State Dollars) And There Is No Reason
Related To The Unclaimed Fund.
The Management Of The Polaris Bank Limited Wishes To Inform You That After
A Brief Meeting Held By The Bank Executives Yesterday, The Bank Will Like
To Know The Reason Why You Are Not Be Able To Receive Your Fund Because
Polaris Bank Limited Management Has Decided To Be Taking Necessary And
Urgent Action Against Impostors Whom Their Activities Has Given This
Polaris Bank Limited A Bad Name And Image In The Committee Of Nations.
We Hereby Advise You To Reconfirm The Following Details To Avoid Mistake:
Full Name-----
Full Address----
Occupation-----------
Phone/Mobile Number-----------
As Soon As The Above Information Is Received For Verification Purpose, We
Shall Proceed Immediately To Serve You Better.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Mr. Innocent C. Ike
Managing Director/CEO
Polaris Bank Limited
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Anti-fraud resources:
