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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:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "foreign exchange" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• 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.
  • +447045730970 (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.
  • prince_charlesobi01@yahoo.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: PRINCE CHARLES OBI <prince_charlesobi16@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <prince_charlesobi01@yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, 9 Nov 2007 03:09:02 -0800
Subject: NEXT OF KIN!!!



Dear Friend

I am the Auditor general of one of the prime banks here in the United Kingdom . During the course of our auditing, I discovered floating fund in an account opened in the bank since 1998 and 2000, no body has operated this account again. The owner of this account is a foreigner, a great farmer and he died in 2002 .No other person knows about this account or anything concerning it, the account has no other beneficiary and my investigation proved to me as well that until his death he was the Executive Director of AGRI-GOLD ARK. (PTY) SOUTH AFRICA . We will start the first transfer with Six million GBP [6, 000.000] upon successful transaction without any disappointment from your side; we shall re-apply for the payment of the rest of the amount to your account that you will provide. The total amount involved is (16 Million) Sixteen million GBP only.
I am only contacting you as a foreigner because this money cannot be approved to a local person in London but can only be approved to any foreigner whom the bank will believe was a partner to the deceased and in similar business. I am revealing this to you with believe in God that you will never let me down in this business, you are the first and the only person that I am contacting for this business, so please reply urgently so that I will inform you the next step to take urgent. Send also your private telephone and fax number so that we can discuss other details. Kindly respond if you are interested in this proposal so that I can start normalizing the documents in your favour with my influence and my position in the bank as I am due for retirement soon.
To build confidence you can call me for heart to heart discussion through my security encrypted line:+447045730970or email ( prince_charlesobi01@yahoo.com) which secured for the confidentiality and safety of this business as you know that this business is confidential.I will use my position and influence to obtain all legal approvals for onward transfer of this money to your account with appropriate clearance from the relevant ministries and foreign exchange departments.I look forward to your earliest reply.
Sincerely Yours,
PRINCE CHARLES OBI
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam