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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:
  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.

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 phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "million british pounds" (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)
  • ",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)
• This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
  
• 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.
  • +447045784271 (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.
  • thobson03@rocketmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Anthony Hobson" <thobson8@gala.net>
Reply-To: thobson1947@rocketmail.com
Date: Tue, 8 Jul 2008 17:27:14 +0200
Subject: Business Offer/Call Me


Dear Sir/Madam,

I wish to contact you personally for a business transaction of GBP
£30,000,000 (Thirty Million British Pounds Sterling) hopefully that you will
respond positively to this offer.

I need a reliable, honest and capable person who will be able to handle this
transaction hence I am contacting you, and I believe that you will never
turn down my request. I am the Auditor General and Chairman of the Audit
Committee, Halifax Bank of Scotland, United Kingdom.

With your sincere assistant and co-operation, we can finalise this
transaction, and be rest assured that this deal is worth taking and highly
profitable.

At this moment, I will not issue the details of this transaction until your
positive response is granted.


For further correspondence regarding this business proposal, send your
response to thobson03@rocketmail.com for more details or ring me on +447 04
578 4271 for further discussion on this.

Thanks for your attention.

Kind regards.

Anthony Hobson
Chairman
Audit Committee
Bank of Scotland Plc
HBOS Plc
Cell: +447 04 578 4271
Email: thobson03@rocketmail.com

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam