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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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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:

• 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 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.
  • mr.richmondhart@yahoo.com.hk

Fraud email example:

From: "Uk Lottery Organization" <ukloto005@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 5 Jan 2008 20:40:32 +0400
Subject: Notifying you that your email address won US$4,600,000


Notifying you that your email address won US$4,600,000
UK LOTTERY ORGANIZATION
TICKET FREE/ONLINE E-MAIL ADDRESS WINNINGS DEPARTMENT.

If you are the correct owner of this email address then be glad this day as
the result of the UK lotto online e-mail address free-ticket winning draws
of 29th December 2007 has just been released and we are glad to announce to
you that your email address won you the sweeptakes in the first category and
you are entitled to claim the sum of US$4.6Million.

Your email addresses was entered for the aonline draw on this Ticket Number:
APP236566301307 and won on this Lucky Number: MX014926583. You are to
contact Mr. Richmond Hart on the below email address for options on how to
receive your winnings money.

To enable Mr Richmond Hart ascertain you as the rightful winner and receiver
of the $4.6Million MAKE SURE you include the below listed information in
your contact mail to him.

Your country of origin and country of residence/work, complete official
names, address, contact telephone and mobile numbers, amount won, free
ticket and lucky numbers, date of draw. OPTIONAL :- [Sex, age, occupation
and job title].

Mr. Richmond Hart.
Email-Address: mr.richmondhart@yahoo.com.hk

Just incase you are thinking of how you won without entering then know again
that this very draw of the UK Lottery Organization in which you have emerged
as a winner was a free ticket online email address draws where thousands of
email addresses was collected from almost all world wide websites and used
for the online draws/sweeptakes and during winners selection your email
address came out among the first ten which won you the lottery in the first
winnings category and entitles you to claim the sum of $4,600,000.

From: Online Winning Notification Department,
UK LOTTERY ORGANIZATION

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam