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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
• "Is that email a scam?" - Check it online here!
  
• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
• 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:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "fudiciary" (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.
  • optimalms@uku.co.uk

Fraud email example:

From: "Mary Smith" <irishlottery2006@katamail.com>
Date: Mon, 30 Jan 2006 11:55:41 +0000
Subject: MORE DETAILS




Dear Sir/Madam,
As reflected in our first mail to you, this lottery program has been on-line for so many years till date.Alot of people have also benefited from it, with winnings ranging from $5,000, $100,000 and more. This years program has been designed to give out lump sums to fewer individuals and corporate winners. Emails listed on the internet were picked at random from different websites, discussion groups and search engines for the final selection and winning. Your email address was picked by our automated computer ballot system, which has been programmed for this random selection. this has eventually qualified you for the lump sum jackpot of 4,000,000 euros.
To file for your claim, please contact our fudiciary agent:
DR. MARK CHRISTOPHER
OPTIMAL MANAGEMENT SERVICES
UNITED KINGDOM
FAX:44 8707623557
EMAIL:optimalms@uku.co.uk

You are to provide the below details to this commission via fax or email, to enable the speedy evaluation and processing of your winnings. we advice that you adhere strictly to their procedures to avoid any disqualifications and subsequent cancelation
1. Your full names
2. Your full home / office address
3. Direct telephone/fax numbers and email The above detailed information will be absolutely neccessary for the processing of your payment cheques, drafts or wire transfers.
Please note that this winning is valid for one month and failure to issue claims after this period will automatically void your payment. Remember to quote your ticket number in your future correspondence.
Congratulations and we look forward to hearing from you soon.
MRS MARY SMITH
(Cordinator)

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam