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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
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• 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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "necessary legal documents" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. )
  • "million united states dollars" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
  • "% will be for you" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
  • "await your urgent response" (they are rushing you so you don't have time to think properly)
  • "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
• 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.
  • +66870523595 (Thailand, probably a mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: legal practitioner <bjwer9@hotmail.co.uk>
Reply-To: <jw_377@yahoo.com.hk>
Date: Mon, 8 Oct 2007 11:54:00 +0100
Subject: Good Day Sir/Madam




>From The Desk Of Barrister James Walter,Law Chamber Principal AttorneyJames Walter & Associates37 Sathorn Tai Road,Bangkok ThailandTel:+66870523595. PRIVATE AND HIGHLY CONFIDENTIALDear Sir/Madam, Please kindly accept my apology for sending unsolicited mail to you i believe you are a highly respected personality considering the fact that i sourced your profile from a human resource profile database on your country. Though, I do not know to what extent you are familiar with events.
Well, I am Barrister James Walter, a Solicitor. I am the Personal Attorney to Mr.Steve , who used to work with SIAMRAK Company Limited in Bangkok Thailand. On the 21st of April 2004, his wife and their three children were involved in a car accident along Sukhumvit Express Road. Unfortunately, they all lost their lives in the event of the accident. Since then I have made several enquiries to your Embassy to locate any of my client's relatives, this has also proved unsuccessful.After these several unsuccessful attempts, I decided to trace his relatives over the Internet to locate any member of his family but to no avail, hence, I contacted you to assist in repatriating the money left behind by my client in a Finance Company.Particularly, the Finance House where the deceased deposited the US$35 Million (Thirty Five Million United States Dollars only). Consequently, this Finance House issued me a notice to provide the Next of Kin to claim the US$35 Million United States Dollars only in their custody within the next ten official working days. Since I have been unsuccessful in locating the relatives for over 4 years now, I seek your consent to present you as the next of kin of the deceased to claim the fund as the Next of Kin to him so that the fund will be transferred to your account by the Finance House. Upon receipt of the fund, I will come over to your country to meet with you for the disbursement of the fund and then you and I will share the money in this order: 55% will be for me, 40% will be for you.while 5% should be for expenses or tax as your government may require I have all the necessary legal documents that can back our claim we will make with the Finance House. All I require is your honest co-operation to enable us seeing this deal through. I guarantee that this will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any breach of the law.You are needed as a next of kin to inherit your brother left fund. Once you are interested to work with me,your urgent response is needed pls kindly get back to me as soon possible for more info as we cannot afford delays . Thanks as i await your urgent response. With Best Regards James Walter (Esq)
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam