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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• 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.

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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:
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "i will like you to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "hundred thousand us 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)
  • "contact me immediately" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "foreign remittance department" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
  • "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
• 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.
  • +22997917242 (Benin, probably a prepaid mobile phone)
• 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.
  • hasan_compaore@yahoo.fr (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: donben1 <donben1@orange.nl>
Date: Mon, 18 Feb 2008 05:07:26 +0100 (CET)
Subject: FROM THE DESK OF MR HASAN COMPAORE


FROM THE DESK OF MR HASAN COMPAORE
BILL AND EXCHANGE MANAGER,
BANK OF AFRICA (B.O.A)
COTONOU, REPUBLIC OF BENIN. PHONE NUMBER +22997917242.
My Dear
I am Mr Harrison Compaore, the manager of bill and exchange at the
foreign remittance department of BANK OF AFRICA (B.O.A) here in Cotonou Benin Republic. In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of US$39.5m dollars (thirty-nine million five hundred thousand US dollars) in an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer (MR. ANDREAS SCHRANNER from Munich, Germany) who died along with his entire family in July 2000 in a plane crash. for more information about the crash you can visit this site:
( http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/859479.stm)
Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his
next of kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless some body applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in our banking guidelines and laws but unfortunately we learnt that all his supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that I now decided to make this business proposal to you and release the money to you as the next of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement since nobody is coming for it and we don't want this money to go into the bank treasury as unclaimed bill.
The banking law and guideline here stipulates that if such money
remained unclaimed after eight years, the money will be transferred into the bank treasury as unclaimed fund. The request of foreigner as next of kin in this business is occasioned by the fact that the customer was a foreigner and a citizen of benin cannot stand as next of kin to a foreigner.
I agree that 30% of this money will be for you as a respect to the
provision of a foreign account , 10% will be set aside for expenses incurred during the business and 60% would be for me Thereafter, I will visit your country for disbursement according to the percentage indicated Therefore, to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to your arranged, you must apply first to the bank as relation or next of kin of the deceased with a text of application form that I will send to you when I hear from you, so I will like you to send to me your private telephone and fax number for easy and effective communication and location where the money will be remitted.
Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text
of the application. I will not fail to bring to your notice this
transaction is hitch-free and that you should not entertain any atom of fear as all required arrangements have been made for the transfer. You should contact me immediately as soon as you receive this letter.
Trusting to hear from you immediately with my private Email Address
hasan_compaore@yahoo.fr
The manager of bill and exchange at the foreign remittance department of BANK OF AFRICA (B.O.A).
Best Regard
Mr Hasan Compaore.
+22997917242.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam