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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:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "uk national lottery" (can only win this lottery if you bought a ticket)
  • "uk national lottery inc." (no such lottery exists)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "cheque " (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
• 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.
  • +447031865672 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
  • +448709749345 (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.
  • patrickowens_03@yahoo.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "UK NATIONAL LOTTERY" <uknlotmob26@mobimail.mn>
Date: Mon, 7 Jul 2008 03:50:29 +0200
Subject: Congrats you have won a big lottery.


The National Lottery
P O Box 1010
Liverpool, L70 1NL
UNITED KINGDOM
(Customer Services)
Ref: UK/9420X2/68
Batch: 074/05/ZY369

WINNING NOTIFICATION:

We happily announce to you the draw (#771) of the THUNDERBALL WINNING under
the UK NATIONAL LOTTERY, online Sweepstakes International program held
on Wednesday 2nd of July 2008.



Your e-mail address attached to ticket number: 56475600545 188 with Serial
number 5368/02 drew the lucky numbers 01, 03, 04, 20, 27, 09 which
subsequently won you the lottery of the Jackpot Prize. You have therefore
been approved to claim a total sum of £250,000.00 (Two hundred and fifty
thousand pounds sterling) in cash credited to file KTU/9023118308/03.

All participants for the online version were selected randomly from World
Wide Web sites through computer draw system and extracted from over100, 000
unions, associations, and corporate bodies that are listed online. This
promotion takes place weekly.

Please note that your lucky winning number falls within our European booklet
representative office in Europe as indicated in your play coupon. In view of
this, your £250,000.00 would be released to you by any of our payment
offices in Europe.

Our European agent will immediately commence the process to facilitate the
release of your funds as soon as you contact him.

To file for your claim, please contact our fiduciary agent:

Name: Mr. Patrick Owens
Email address: patrickowens_03@yahoo.com
Tel: +44-703-186-5672
Fax: +44-870-974-9345

Provide him with the information below:

1. Name:
2. Address:
3. Marital Status:
4. Occupation:
5. Age:
6. Sex:
7. Nationality:
8. Country Of Residence:
9. Telephone Number:
10. Fax Number:
11. Email Address:
12. Draw Number above: 771
13. Quote your winning numbers

That way your Winnings Certificate and all other relevant
documents/paperwork can be prepared for you. You would be required to show
an instrument of identification when cashing your cheque i.e. Drivers
license or International passport.

For security reasons, you are advised to keep your winning information
confidential till your claims is processed and your money remitted to you in
whatever manner you deem fit to claim your prize. This is part of our
precautionary measure to avoid double claiming and unwarranted abuse of this
program. Please be warned.

Goodluck from me and members of staff of the UK NATIONAL LOTTERY.


Yours faithfully,
Mrs. Mary Blessings
Online coordinator for UK NATIONAL LOTTERY
Sweepstakes International Program.

Â(c) Copyright 1994-2008 The UK National Lottery Inc.
All rights reserved. Terms of Service - Guideline

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam