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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

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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.

Read more about such scams here or in our 419 FAQ. Use the Scam-O-Matic to verify suspect emails.

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Fraud email example:

From: "mark smith" <mark_2001smith@hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 26 Mar 2005 10:48:09 +0200
Subject: Urgent and Confidential

ATTN:DIRECTOR/CEO

STRICLY CONFIDENTIAL

I am Mr. Mark Smith, a senior staff and chairman "Tender Board Committee"
on the award of contracts in Department of Works and Housing here in South
Africa. I got your contact E-mail address from a secured server online in
my quest to find a trustworthy person on whom I can repose confidence for a
transaction of this nature.

My aim of sending this "business proposal" to you is to solicit for your
assistance and co-operation to transfer some huge amount of money into your
account overseas. Therefore, this communication should be held in high
confidence.

My colleagues and I in the Department of Works and Land Affairs wish to
transfer into a safe and secured account overseas the sum of US$47M
(FORTY-SEVEN MILLION UNITED STATES DOLLARS) which is over-invoiced amount
from contracts we awarded to foreign contractors who have been duly paid on
completion of their various contracts. This money right now is in a
coded account in the National Treasury of South Africa. However, by virtue
of our position as civil servants, we cannot acquire these funds in our
names or in the names of companies here in South Africa.

I was therefore asked by my colleagues on trust and sincerity to look for a
reliable internatioal partner abroad into whose account the sum of US$47
Million will be transferred. We have agreed on the sharing ratio of 70% for
us and 30% for you as the account owner.

My choice of you for this transaction is basically hanged on trust and I
hope you will not let me down. Please, be informed that arrangemenents will
be made for the processing of claims of payment once I am in receipt of the
information required from you.Go through this letter carefully and if you
are interested in assisting us, kindly notify me urgently via my
confidential telephone number and email address: marksmith_002@hotmail.com

Note as well that this transaction is 100% risk free.

I wait for your very urgent response.

Best Regards,

Mark Smith.

_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam