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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 fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "british lottery commission"
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "processing fee" (this will cost you money - that's what the scam is about)
• 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!
• 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.

Fraud email example:

From: amoo mogan <agent_amosmogan@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 21 Aug 2006 17:18:57 +0100 (BST)
Subject: URGENT




DearDoris

This is to inform you that we have received your email details that contains your personal and bank information’s for the transfer of your lottery sum which has been fully confirmed.

Following the conclusion of our verification, you have been approved for the immediate payment of your Lottery sum of (250,000.00) Pounds

Therefore, you will be required to pay for our Administrative/Processing of your lottery claim, which will amount to Eight Hundred and Fifty Pounds, (850), And copies of your relevant documents such as your prize claim certificate, promotion ticket and a host of others, shall be sent to you.

The above mentioned charges must be paid before we can give a go ahead to our paying bank for the remittance of your lottery sum to your designated account.
Similarly, we shall instruct our correspondent bank to make immediate transfer into your chosen account without further delay and you will have direct contact with our Paying Bank. Your payment as above shall be made within 72 hrs on receipt of the mandatory administrative/processing fee.

Therefore you are urgently requested to send the charges of (850 Pounds) through WESTERN UNION Money Transfer in the name of our account officer as stated below for quicker action,
NAME:MR. GEORGE MALA
ADDRESS:51 BECMEAD AVENUE LONDON
POST CODE:SW16 1UJ
COUNTRY: United Kingdom


We wish to remind you that your lottery claim has been deposited under a fixed bond policy and such fund can not be deducted in accordance with the British Lottery Commission Act of March 1998 .

We await your immediate response.
Yours faithfully,
Mr.Amos


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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam