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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:
  1 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• Spam archive, Daily index
  

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:
  • "i will like you to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
• 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!

Fraud email example:

From: THE SCOTTISH NATIONAL LOTTERY <emaildept_snl200@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 20 Aug 2007 03:00:31 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS!!!PLEASE FILL AND RETURN VERIFICATION CLAIMS FORM!!!




Dear Berend Bach,

Thanks for you email you send right here in my office,i will lkie to say you are very lucky person, i will like you to fill this form and return it back as soon as possibble.

THE SCOTTISH NATIONAL LOTTERY,
P O Box 2450 South Bridge,
E70 1NL Edinburgh.
UNITED KINGDOM
(Customer Services)
MONDAY 20th August 2007


CLAIMS PROCESSING FORM.
WINNER'S PERSONAL DATA
.......................................................................................................
Last name First and middle names.

........................................................................................................
Mailing address

City:...............................State:............................................

ZipCode:...........................................................

Phone number:............Fax number:....................................

Country:...........................................................................

Email address:...........................................................

Occupation:.................................Job title:..............................................

Annual Income....................................Hours Per Work:................................

Date and Place of Birth:..........................................................................

Ticket number:......................................Ref number:...................................

Batch number:......................................Amount Won:...................................

Marital Status:...................................................................

Description of Yourself:........................................................................


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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam