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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.

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:
  • "fiduciary 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 mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
  • +447031848366 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
• 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.
  • sirgeraldjohnson_esq@yahoo.co.uk

Fraud email example:

From: "BRITISH INTERNATIONAL PROMOTION" <britishlotterydt_info@msn.com>
Reply-To: sirgeraldjohnson_esq@yahoo.co.uk
Date: Fri, 23 Dec 2005 08:17:46 +0000
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS.... BRITISH WINNING NOTIFICATION!!

                  BRITISH INTERNATIONAL PROMOTION

28 TANFIELD ROAD
CROYDON.LONDON
Ref: BTL/101OXI/02 
Batch: 16/211/0374

                                                                                                                               23rd December, 2005.

                                 BTL NOTIFICATION DESK

We happily announce to you the draw (#954) of the BRITISH INTERNATIONAL LOTTERY, online Sweepstakes International program held on the 21th of December, 2005.

Your e-mail address attached to ticket number: 56475600545 188 with  Serial number 5368/02 drew the lucky numbers: (13)-(43)-(06)-(15)-(02)-(40)bonus # (09).Which subsequently won you the lottery in the 2nd category.

You have therefore been approved to claim a total sum of £450,000.00 (Four Hundred and Fifty Thousand pounds sterling) in cash credited to file KTU/9023118308/03.

This is from a total cash prize of £4,500,000.00 (Four Million, Five Hundred Thousand pounds sterling) shared amongst the first ten (10) lucky winners in this category. All participants for the online version were selected randomly from World Wide Web sites through computer draw system and extracted from over 100,000 unions, associations, and corporate bodies that are listed online. This promotion takes place bianually.

Please note that your lucky winning number falls within our British booklet representative office in UK. In view of this, your £450,000.00 (Four Hundred and Fifty Thousand pounds sterling) would be released to you by our Finance Department.Your Fiduciary Agent  will immediately commence the process to facilitate the release of your funds as soon as you contact him.

For security reasons, you are advised to keep your winning information confidential till your claim is processed and your money remitted to you in whatever manner you deem fit to claim your prize.This is part of our precautionary measure to avoid double claiming.In a situation whereby you go about disclosing your winning information to dishonest people, they could file for your claim and your winnings could be lost.

Please be warned !!!

To file for your claim, please contact our fiduciary agent:

Sir Gerald Johnson (Fiduciary Agent).

E MAIL: sirgeraldjohnson_esq@yahoo.co.uk

PHONE: +447031848366.

FAX:+447005850272,+448716618814

Goodluck from me and members of staff of the BRITISH INTERNATIONAL LOTTERY.

Yours faithfully,

Sarah Jones.

Director Online International Promotions Unit.

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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam