419 scam: "Investigation Department"<fransisca@ic3.gov> Scam Alert: You Have Been Scammed !!

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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:

An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
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:
- "western union" (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. )
- "trunk box" (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)
- "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- "lagos" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
- "cashier's check" (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.
This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
- iccc.fbn.compensation.scheme@hotmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Investigation Department" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <iccc.fbn.compensation.scheme@hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 24 Jul 2010 19:26:50 +0100
Subject: Scam Alert: You Have Been Scammed !!

Dear Victim of a cruel hoax,

This email is sent to you because your details were among the details we found on the arrested scam syndicates laptop computers and they have confirmed you as one of the victims of their operations. They usually claims they are Barristers, Bank officials, Lottery Agents, Law enforcement agents (EFCC,FBI,Police officers) e.t.c. They also claim they have money to transfer to you via Western Union, Bank wire transfer, courier delivery of Bank draft/Cashier's check to you, delivery of trunk box by FedEx or want you to be the next of kin of funds that does not exist, and so on.

It was agreed that the sum of fifteen thousand US Dollars (US$15,000) should be transferred to you out of the funds deposited by the Federal Government of Nigeria at First Bank of Nigeria Plc (FBN) in care of The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) to compensate every scam victims. We want the world to know that this government is highly ready to fight corruption and to regain the good image of Nigeria. We are sorry for all they have done to you, please accept our apology.

We have instructed the compensation scheme set up by the Federal Government of Nigeria to transfer the sum of fifteen thousand US Dollars (US$15,000) to you, We have submitted your details found on the scam syndicates computers to them so that your fund can be transferred to you without misappropriation and we have also insured your fund for security reasons. All you need to do now is to contact the compensation scheme through the compensation scheme private email address stated below, inform them about this notification letter and the transfer of your fund; Although we have forwarded your details to them but to assure them that they are dealing with the beneficiary of the fund, send the details below to them to enable them verify it with the details we send to them previously, as soon as these details are received and they are authentic your fund will transferred to you.

Fill out the following form. All fields mark with * are required:
=============================================
Full Name*:
Address*:
Country*:
Sex*:
Age:
Telephone Number*:
=============================================

Compensation scheme email address: iccc.fbn.compensation.scheme@hotmail.com

Important: Do not send your email address and password to anybody. Take note of this because there are lots of fraudsters out there claiming to be your email administrator requesting for email address and password. If you have already done that before it is strongly recommended that you change your password immediately or register a new email address with another password.

Yours sincerely,
Mrs. Fransisca Okocha
Investigation Department
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)
13 Creek Road, Marina, Lagos Nigeria
Phone: 01-262-5100
Website: http://www.ic3.gov

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The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C), and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA).
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Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam