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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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• 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 fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "yahoo/msn lottery inc" (no such lottery exists)
  • "yahoo/msn lottery" (no such lottery exists)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "claim agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "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)
• 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.
  • +27866131004 (South Africa, prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: GROUP A Results up-dated <yaresult028@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <abdulakhtar@aol.co.uk>
Date: Tue, 6 Nov 2007 16:53:53 +0000
Subject: Attention




























YAHOO/MSN INTERNET LOTTERY


CONGRATULATIONS YOU!YOU WON $3,000.000.00!
Attention : Winner,This is to notify you that your email address has won in the just concluded Draw award held on Saturday 3rd November 2007.promotion which is organized by YAHOO/MSN LOTTERY INC & WINDOWS LIVE.Match: 5 plus bonus.
Batch number.....................Lwh 09445Lotto number.......................Lwh09446Winning number...................Lwh09447 Category: 2nd
Amount: Three Million United States Dollars Only.Draw: 1152You may wish to establish contact with your claim agent in South Africa via e-mail withthe particulars presented below:Contact Person: Mr. Abdul Akhtar : abdulakhtar@aol.co.ukFax: +27-866131004
In line with the governing rules of claim, you are requested to furnishYour Claim Agent With the following information: You are required to forward him with the following details:Full Name:............................................................................................ Address:................................................................................................Occupation:...........................................................................................Country::................................................................................................Phone:...................................................................................................Sex:.......................................................................................................Age:.......................................................................................................

For security reasons, we advice all winners to keep this information confidential from the public' until your claim is processed and your prize released to you. This is part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming and unwarranted taking advantage of this programme by non-participant or unofficial personnel.Yours Sincerely,Dr.John Bent
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam