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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
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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:

• 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:
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "claims office" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • ",000,000" (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)
• 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.
  • +447024037837 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
• 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.
  • transferdept001@web2mail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)
  • richard.lloyd@freenet.de (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: Richard Lloyd<richard.lloyd@freenet.de>
Date: Wed, 17 Oct 2007 16:30:27 +0200
Subject: NOTICE OF YOUR FUNDS APPROVAL


NatWest Bank
20 Dean Street
London
W1D 3R7
United Kingdom.
Our Ref: FRBN/NY/PA/INV/2007
Attention: Fund Beneficiary,
NOTICE OF YOUR FUNDS APPROVAL
This is to inform you about your Lottery Winning Prize won from the International online Lottery Promotion
played under Computer Ballot System (CBS) which your email ID won you the prize sum of $1,000,000.00 USD,
which has been made available for payment to you as the beneficiary of the lottery winning funds.
The remittance department of NatWest Bank has received directives to transfer into your Bank designated
account with the sum of $1,000,000.00 USD, Mr. Michael Woodgate the Lottery Fiduciary Agent filed an
application form of claims on your behalf, for the claims and transfer of the winning sum to you.
Note that the reason for not contacting you before now was that firstly, the bank is responsible for the
payments of various winners from different organise Lottery companies here in the UK and as such proper work
has to be done to avoid winners loosing their prize and secondly we have experienced occasion where different
persons have applied other persons prize. To avoid this we need to take the best of our time and carry out
findings and confirmation from the Lottery company, Court from where claims where filed and your personal
information submitted by your attorney.
Payment File Number:
FRBN/000-555-90101
To effect and carry out the directives given, you are advised to contact the Payment Systems of NatWest Bank PLC:-
Mr. Charles Ferguson
International Claims Officer
Phone: (44) 7024 037 837
Email: transferdept001@web2mail.com
Note all above information is expected within 24 - 72 Hours that from when you receive this mail, should you
not respond means your approval will be turned down and returned to the Lottery company treasury account as an
unclaimed Prize. Send via scan attachment or via fax line 44 7005 807 163. Modalities of transfer will be
avail to you upon the receipt of this mail.
Call to speak with any our customer relation officers on (44) 7024 037 963 OR (44) 7024 052 404 we are open
7:30am - 5:30pm, Mon - Friday (London Time)
Finally, the entire board members of NatWest Bank congratulates you and wish you happy celebration in
advance.
Treat as urgent,
Mr. Richard Lloyd
NatWest Customer Relations
Phone: (44) 7024 037 837
Email: richard.lloyd@freenet.de

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam