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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
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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:
  • "from: the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "money laundering" ("anti-terrorist", "anti-money laundering" or "drug-free" certificates are a common way for criminals in fake lottery scams and other Advance Fee scams to get you to send money to them. There are no such certificates in the real banking world. )
  • "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
• 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.
  • +447011130769 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: MICROSOFT AWARD TEAM CENTER <dr_marktom@hotmail.com>
Date: Thu, 6 Sep 2007 18:56:54 -0700
Subject: RE: YOU ARE TO CONTACT THE COURIER DEPARTMENT FOR CLAIMS







FROM: THE DESK OF THE E-MAIL PROMOTIONS MANAGER INTERNATIONAL PROMOTIONS/PRIZE AWARD DEPARTMENT, MICROWEB CORPORATION WORLD LOTTERY BOARD UNITED KINGDOM.61-70 Southampton Row, Bloomsbury London United Kingdom WC1B 4AR.
Tel: +44-7011130769

REFERENCE NO: BTD/968/07
BATCH NO: 409978





ATTENTION: Ms Hochmacher,


Top of the day and Goodday to you.

This is to acknowledge the receipt of your filled claims verification form that was received by us. I must say that you should count your self extremely lucky to have emerged as one of our winners in this years lucky dip sweepstakes

I want to thank you for the urgent response concerning your lottery winning as this shows how deligent you are in ensuring that thing work out especially helping us with the Information needed to get your winning funds released to you. I want you to count yourself Lucky as a Winner of this MICROSOFT ONLINE PROMOTION as been sponsored by the Uk Gaming Board here in the United Kingdom.
Thousands of Email addresses all over the world where selected from various email account and five were selected at random, This was how your email address was selected, therefore making you to have won in the first Category of this draw.

Please be informed that you won alongside four other people and we got Information from Our Affliated Courier company that they delivered the Winning Check of one of the winners to him yesterday, We have his email address and contact address for verification and confirmation, We have prefered not to disclose there identity to the Member Of the Public until it is demanded Officially, this is to protect and Uphold the Privacy, Terms and Condition as adopted by this Company.

As a matter Of Urgency, I wish to inform you that you have been cleared for payment by the Claims department of this office. Hence, Your winning check alongside with other winning documents which include the Claim certificate and the Money Laundering certificate have been made available and will be handed over to you by our affliated Courier Company as soon as you are ready to get this from them.

Note that we are aware of the fact that there are alot of Lottery Scandals out there just to get poor citizen reaped off by some evil doers, Well we wish to disclaim ourself from all this UnGodly act and to let you know that this MICROSOFT ONLINE PROMOTION is a Scheme that is been operated under the law as we have been Licenced to do this by the British Government, Our Activities are in accordance with section4, subsection 4(ii) of the Gambling act of the 1999 constitution as it is applicable in the United Kingdom.

Winner, I wish to advice you to contact Our Courier Company and Negotiate an arrangement for delivery with them as we have already handed over your winning Check and other documents to them for delivery. Their Contact Information is as below:

GREY HOUND DELIVERY COURIER COMPANY

CONTACT PERSON:MR RAY COLLINS.

225 Eastcote LaneSouth HarrowMiddlesexHA2 8RR
TEL:+44-704 570 8973
United kingdom

E-MAIL:winners_claimscenter@greyhound-expresscourier.co.uk

Contact them as soon as possible as they will be of Good help.

May You need my help in any other way? please, always be free to get back to me via emailor phone, as our office is also open from Monday to Saturday to attend to Our Winners and their well wishers.
As Our Winner for this year, On behalf Of BILL GATES OF MICROSOFT,the Chairman Of the Uk Gaming Board, Sir Ezekiel Smith and all the Board Of Directors of this Scheme, I Want to Congratulate you as you are a lucky success to be celebrated.Please, accept my congratulations.


NOTE:You would have to contact him with this :
IDENTIFICATION NUMBER:CPEL/OWN/9876,for him to be able to indentify your package that is with him and your phone number.

Once again Congratulation!!!Regards.
Mr Mark Tom.
Fiducary Officer.
United Kingdom.





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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam