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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.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
  • "barr." (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
  • "lagos" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
• 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.
  • wakka2000@strompost.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: wakka2001@comcast.net
Date: Sun, 09 Sep 2007 15:53:45 +0000
Subject: Hello.

Hello.

I want to firstly apologize for contacting you without knowing you but what I propose needs little or no intimacy, just sincere cooperation and all will be concluded with easy.

I am Barrister John Wakka. My client ( Mr. Peter Haigh) died in the 27TH January 2002 bomb blast in Lagos,see a report of the incident : http://www.uneptie.org/pc/apell/disasters/lagos/home.html but unknown to me he left USD2.7M in a commercial bank in Lagos, I have just been informed of the development by the bank and was asked to provide the next of kin for the funds. It’s too late to get to his documents as they were all destroyed in the incident and I have not been able to locate his family. It’s imperative that I provide someone as the beneficiary of the funds else the bank will keep the funds to themselves.

I therefore want to present you as his next of kin so the bank can pay the funds to you. I have the necessary official and legal documents that will be used to back up the claim. All I require is your honest cooperation to enable me as the legal attorney to the deceased in seeing that you receive the inheritance fund. Be informed that it does not matter whether my late client is related to you or not. I guarantee you that this will be executed legitimately to protect us from any breach of the law.

Upon the payment of the funds to you, you and I will then split the funds in equal parts so as to avoid problems within us and thereafter the partnership can be dissolved. Please reply me soonest so you’ll know the details I need from you to facilitate the payment. If you have any questions or doubts then let me know. I will only contact another person if I don’t hear from you in due time.If you feel you can work on this with me then please write me at: wakka2000@strompost.com

Thank you,

Barr. John Wakka.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam