|
|
joewein.de LLC
fighting spam and scams on the Internet
|
|
"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:
- "million us 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)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: ABDULKHALID OMAR <hippolythe1994@gmail.com>
Reply-To: abdulkhalidomar63@gmail.com
Date: Thu, 16 Mar 2023 09:57:46 +0000
Subject: HELLO CAN I TRUST YOU?
Good Day,
I am Mr.Abdulkhalid Omar, account Manager with an investment bank here
in Burkina Faso. There is a draft account opened in my firm by a
long-time client of our bank. I have the opportunity of transferring
the left over fund (15.8 Million Us Dollars) Fifteen Million Eight
Hundred Thousand United States of American Dollars.
I want to invest these funds and introduce you to our bank for this
deal and this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that
will protect us from any breach of the law. We will share the fund 40%
for you,50% for me while 10% is for establishing a foundation for the
poor children in your country. If you are really interested in my
proposal further details of the fund transfer will be forwarded to
you.
Yours Sincerely,
Mr.Abdulkhalid Omar,
|
Anti-fraud resources:
