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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)
- "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)
- ",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)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "Eva Tanigushi" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <claimsattorney@tutanota.com>
Date: Sun, 4 Sep 2022 00:04:04 +0200
Subject: send your details
Dear Friend,
I am happy to inform you that I have succeeded in transferring the funds abroad through the assistance of my new Partner from India and in my appreciation for your earlier assistance, I have drafted a Bank Draft of $4,000,000.( Four Million United States Dollars) in your name as compensation for your Past efforts.
The bank draft was deposited with the parcel diplomatic company to be delivered to your provided address but you didn't contact them on time. Yesterday I was told by the delivery company that your bank draft has been deposited to the nearest bank in Denmark as it's about to expire.
Please once you read this message, send your details (Name...Address...Zipcode...City...Country...Phone...) to this email address (claimsattorney@proton.me ) immediately to the company attorney he will assist you to contact the bank and make sure your four million United States Dollars is transferred to you.
I'm traveling on Holiday to Mongolia in the mountains and will not be able to check my mailbox for a while, please do not forget to inform me once you have gotten your funds. Congratulation and send my regards to your family.
Thanks
Eva
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Anti-fraud resources:
