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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

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

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "claim 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)
  • "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
• 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!

Fraud email example:

From: "Beth Rogers" <mar.kdill@hotmail.com>
Date: Sat, 22 Dec 2007 23:27:35 GMT
Subject: CONGRATS!!! YOUR EMAIL WON


World Soccer Lottery International,
F1/831 Altrincham Road,Baguley,
Manchester,M23 9QQ United Kingdom.
REF NO: SSLUK/2201/8161/06
BATCH NO: RR3/B4423-60

ATTN: Winner,

Finally today, we announce the winners of the WORLD SOCCER LOTTERY =
WINNINGS PROGRAMS held on saturday 22nd December,2007. Your e-mail address =
attached to ticket number: 66475600548 with serial number 6399/08 drew =
with lucky numbers 1-7-13-17-26-12. Subsequently won you the lottery in =
the 3rd category i.e. THUNDER BALL JACKPOT. You have therefore been =
approved for a lump sum payout of ?950,000.00 (Nine hundred and fifty =
thousand POUND STERLING) in cash. Due to mix up of some numbers and names, =
we ask that you keep your winning information CONFIDENTIAL until your =
claim has been processed and your money remitted to you. This is part of =
our security protocol to avoid double claiming and unwarranted abuse of =
this program by some participants. All participants were selected through =
a computer ballot system drawn from only Microsoft users from over =
40,000.00 companies and 6,000,000 individual email addresses and names =
from all over the world. To collect your prize winning, please contact =
your claims officer below that has been assigned for the processing of =
your claims with the email address below:

=7BCLAIMS OFFICER=7D
Mr. Mark Dillaon
World Soccer Lottery International
Head, Winning claim Dept.
Email: wslclaimofficer1=40yahoo.co.uk

Do contact your claim agent with the following details,

1. FULL NAMES:=20
2. NATIONALITY:
3. DATE OF BIRTH:=20
4. SEX:
5. MARITAL STATUS:=20
6. CONTACT ADDRESS:=20
7. TELEPHONE NUMBER:
8. OCCUPATION:
9. WINNING E-MAIL ADDRESS:
10.TOTAL AMOUNT WON:

Once the above information has been received, your prize will be verified =
with the information and make it available for transfer via our =
Correspondence bank Or Courier Company which ever you prefer.

You Can Verify your Winning Numbers From Our Webpage: =
http://lottery.co.uk/results/thunderball.asp

Note that all winning must be claimed not later than 21 days of receiving =
this notification. After this date all unclaimed, funds will be included =
in the next stake. Please note in order to avoid unnecessary delays and =
complications please remember to quote your REF NUMBER and BATCH NUMBER in =
all correspondence to Your claims Officer. Furthermore, should there be =
any change of address do inform Your Claims Officer as soon as possible. =
Anybody under the age of 18 is automatically disqualified.

NB: Do not reply this mail. Contact your claim agent.

Signed,
Bert Rogers
(Co-Ordinator).=

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam