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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:
- "cost of transfer" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: PETER GARCIA <anyiahner@gmail.com>
Reply-To: peterokere@groupoffice.ch
Date: Tue, 7 Mar 2023 13:45:44 +0000
Subject: APPROVED $11.8M ATM MASTER OK
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Dear SIR
APPROVED $11.8M ATM MASTER OK WILL BE SEND TO YOU
After our meeting few days ago with African Union, European Union,
United Nation, World bank and the Federal Executive councils, It was
Resolved and Agreed upon that our bank { UNION BANK OF PHILIPPINES}
should go ahead and transfer the sum of $11.8M in your name
I want to let you know that the cost of transferring your fund is free
but the only charges required from you is the sum of $105 for {
INTERNATIONAL CLEARANCE SECURITY TRANSFER PERMIT } that will enable
me transfer your fund valued {$11.8m usd} INTO YOUR ACCOUNT WITH OUT
DELAY
RECONFIRM TO ME THE FOLLOWING DETAILS
1, FULL NAME
2. ADDRESS
3. PHONE NUMBER
4. OCCUPATION
----------------------------------------------------------
AS SOON AS I CONFIRM YOUR DETAILS I WILL ADVISE YOU ON HOW YOU SEND THE FEE
WAITING
PETER GARCIA
FOREIGN PAYMENT DIRECTOR
UNION BANK OF PHILIPPINES
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Anti-fraud resources:
