"is this a scam?"

I received an email from the supposed head of a major corporation in Tawain. I suspected it to be a scam, but having researched his name, position, I found that at least on a physical level, this entity does exist. He was even featured in a prominent Chinese Publication, dated very recently.He claims a relative of mine had recently passed away, and could possibly be worth millions. The last name of said individual is the same as mine,but I have no way to prove my actual connection.So, not to waste time on here, but it would be very beneficial if someone could direct me in what to do about these matters. I am a disabled mom, on very limited income, and simply don't have time for this type of activity.Thank you very much.

It's virtually certain to be a scam and it's a very common one.

It's very easy to pretend to be someone else on the internet and though Gomer Pyle is an old comedy character, I'm not him, nor am I one of the 'Blues Brothers' (which is the photo) so the fact that the person he claims to be exists, it means nothing.

There are companies in the UK that are called 'heir hunters' but the difference between them and scammers is that they ask you to prove your relationship with the deceased person, as it's pointless them even trying to make a claim on your behalf without documentary evidence.

A scammer misses out that step and immediately starts telling you about complex legal processes you must begin for which they need payment, which is utter rubbish. Real 'heir hunters' get their fees from the estate of the deceased person and don't need any up front fees.

Personally I would recommend that you ignore them, but if you want to take it further, make it clear that you won't pay a cent/penny up front and expect them to take their fees from the estate, which is how the system works. If the estate is worth having and you have a valid claim, then that is enough for a genuine company. If they want 'up front' fees, it's a scam and paying them any money would be the same as flushing it.

Why would this supposed head of a major corporation in Taiwan be using a free email address, not one you would to be used by a large business? Which I'm sure is the case here.

Hi and welcome to ScamWarners.

This is definitely a scam. It is a version of advance fee fraud. In this version, the scammer is supposedly looking for Next Of Kin. Please see this topic for further explanation of how this type of scam works: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=3242

The short version is as GomerPyle explained, the scammer will ask you to pay fees in advance of collecting your supposed inheritance.
I will contradict Gomer's advice to you, to some degree, and urge you to completely ignore the email. There's no point in following up, even cautiously. If you stood to inherit millions of dollars, you would be contacted other than through a random email.

Yes, a real person with the name of the sender likely exists but that is NOT the individual who is emailing you. The scammer is simply impersonating him to try to lend credence to his scam.
There is no inheritance. Even with the last name matching yours, all that means is that the scammer has personalized the scam email to you, which is not entirely uncommon.

Please let us know if you have more questions.