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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
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• Company names mentioned in 419 spam:
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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• 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.
  • vestelagencybv@netscape.net

Fraud email example:

From: "uk freelottery" <ukfreelottery00@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 17 Oct 2005 08:11:09 +0000
Subject: WINNING NOTIFICATION !!!

Free Lotto Ltd.,
406 Bury New Rd.,
Whitefield,
Manchester M45 7SX U.K.
www.freelotto.com

Lucky Winner,

We are pleased to inform you that you are one of the selected winners of the
FREE LOTTO INTERNATIONAL PROGRAMS held on 10th of October 2005. Your email
address attached to ticket number 025-1146-1992-750, with serial number
2113-22 drew the lucky numbers 13-15-22-37-39-43; the lottery was
categorized into four zonal (Africa, America, Europe and Asia) stages.

Consequently you have won the lottery in the 2nd category. You have
therefore been approved for a lump sum pay out of 800,000.00 Euros[Eight
Hundred Thousand Euros] Credited to Ref No.LDL/2551256003/36 Batch No.
13/FFP/LDL/037. All participants were selected through a computer ballot
system drawn from 25,000 names from the Middle East, Asia, Africa, Canada,
Europe,USA and North America.
All participants in this Lottery Program have been selected randomly through
a computer Ballot System drawn from over 200,000 Companies and 30,000,000
individual email address from all search engines and web sites. This
promotional program will take place every year until the games begin in
Beijing China in 2008.
However, winners are only eligible for claims once. Due to the mix up of
some numbers and names, we ask that you keep this award strictly from public
notice until your claim has been processed and your money remitted to your
account. This is part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming or
unscrupulous acts by participants of this program.
ELIGIBILITY: This promotion is offered only electronically via the Internet
and is open to all persons with a valid email address and who live in any of
the aforementioned countries.This promotion is void in all other countries
and is also Void where prohibited. Principals and employees of the FREELOTTO
and its respective parents,subsidiaries and their immediate families are not
eligible.
CLAIMS PROCEDURES: It is our standard practice to allocate accredited agents
for the processing of claims application. It is even more imperative for
overseas winners.
To begin your claims therefore, you are advised as a matter of urgency, to
contact the underlisted licensed and accredited claims agent for the
processing of your prize awards winning. Please contact the clearing house
(through your claims agent only) the body assigned with the verification of
all emergent winner.
Therefore all protocols laid down by them must be followed to facilitate
your claims;
CONTACT AGENCY:
VESTEL AGENCY B.V,
REIGERSBOS 182, 1107 ES,
AMSTERDAM - NETHERLANDS.
TEL.0031-633-733-363.
CONTACT PERSON: MR. PETER SEEDORF
Email add:vestelagencybv@netscape.net
IMPORTANT NOTICE: (a) Note that there exist a periodic condition on all
claims process,failing which would lead to disqualification and winnings
forfeiture.Winners are therefore advised to expedite their claims process.
(b) Being one of the lucky winners, you constitute entrant's full and
unconditional agreement to and acceptance of our terms and conditions of
claims to avoid any discrepancy in the cause of payment of your prize awards
winning.
(c) To avoid double claims, you are adviced to keep your winning details
very confidential, as any discrepancies resulting from a breach of this
confidentiality on the part of the winners will be bourne solely by such
winner as our staffs are bound by the oath of secrecy taken on employment.
(d) By this lottery prize awards winning, you acknowledge your acceptance to
be added to our lottery master player database.
(e) By this prize winning, you agree to receive periodic mailings which will
include, but are not limited to; Newsletters, Invitations to Play,
Announcements, Adverts and Offers we feel would be of interest to our master
players, from all the sponsoring entities.
(f) By this winning, you understand that you reserve the discretion to be
removed from any such mailing list which automatically disqualifies you from
this and subsequent lottery entries. Removal instructions are on every
mails.
(g) We hereby do solemnly pledge to maintain the privacy of our master
players/lucky winners database and shall not make available for sale, rent,
lease or the illegal use of information about our players/winners.
(h) In order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications, please remember
to quote your reference and batch numbers in every one of your
correspondences with your agent.
(i) Should there be any change of your address, do inform your claims agent
as soon as possible.
Congratulations again from all our staffs and thank you for being part of
our Promotions program.

Sincerely,
Emilia Cunningham.
Co-ordinator.
NB: PLEASE SEE THAT YOU QUOTE YOUR REF AND BATCH NUMBERS IN YOUR
CORRESPONDENCE TO YOUR CLAIMS AGENT.
============================================================= The FREELOTTO
Awards is proudly sponsored by the Microsoft Corporation,the Intel
Group,Toshiba, Dell computers and a conglomeration of other international IT
companies.The FREELOTTO LOTTERY internet draw is held once in a year and is
so organized to encourage the use of the internet and computers worldwide.We
are proud to say that up to One Million Euros are won annually in more than
150 countries worldwide.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam