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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:
- "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)
- "dear beneficiary," (this SPAM email was probably sent to thousands of people)
- This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Fraud email example:
From: "WORLD BANK GROUP" <info@menelik.org>
Reply-To: mw1192704@aol.com
Date: Thu, 27 Apr 2023 16:26:08 -0700
Subject: RE: APPLICATION FOR CHANGE OF ACCOUNT
DEAR BENEFICIARY,
APPLICATION FOR CHANGE OF ACCOUNT
WE WRITE TO INFORM YOU THAT THE INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND (IMF) AND
WORLD BANK GAVE INSTRUCTION TO OUR BANK TO MAKE SURE THAT YOUR
OUTSTANDING PAYMENT IS PAID TO YOU BEFORE THE END OF THIS MONTH.
YOUR NAME WAS AMONG THE LISTED BENEFICIARY THAT WAS PROGRAMMED TO ME
BE PAID. WE ARE IN RECEIPT OF THE ACCOUNT DETAILS YOU SEND TO US TO
CREDIT YOUR ACCOUNT WITH THE SUM OF (TEN MILLION UNITED STATES DOLLARS).
THEREFORE, WE ARE USING THE BELOW ACCOUNT TO CREDIT YOUR TEN MILLION
UNITED STATES DOLLARS AS YOU HAVE SUBMITTED TO THIS OFFICE.
THE CREDITING BANK WILL BE INFORMED OF THIS DEVELOPMENT.
DO CONFIRM THE ACCOUNT ONCE MORE IF YOU ARE THE OWNER OF THE ACCOUNT
INFORMATION BELOW.
ACCOUNT NAME : KENNETH KRONENBERGER
ACCOUNT NUMBER:3105933640
ROUTING NUMBER: 256074976
BANK NAME AND ADDRESS: NAVY FEDERAL CREDIT UNION TX USA
WE URGENTLY NEED YOUR RESPONSE.
YOU ARE ADVISED TO RESPOND TO THIS MAIL URGENTLY OR WE WILL TRANSFER
THE FUND TO THE ABOVE ACCOUNT AS DIRECTED.
REGARDS,
MICHAEL WILSON
FINANCIAL CONTROLLER
WORLD BANK GROUP WC. USA
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Anti-fraud resources:
