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.
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.
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: no-reply@networksolutionsprivateregistration.com Reply-To: xxx@xxxxxxx.xxx Date: Sat, 25 Jun 2022 20:22:17 -0400 Subject: RE: There is an overdue payment under your name. Please, settle
your debts ASAP!
Network Solutions
To reach a domain contact about a privacy protected domain name, please search for the domain name on the WHOIS page
and submit your message through the domain contact request form at the bottom of the
results page. This process protects the privacy of the domain name holders in the WHOIS system.
Best Regards,
Network Solutions Customer Support Team
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