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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:

• 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)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "hundred thousand great 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)
• 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.
  • +447031902851 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: BRITISH LOTTERY <player@nationallottery.co.uk> (may be fake)
Reply-To: uknationallottery.manager@verizon.net
Date: Fri, 11 Jul 2008 18:23:36 -0500
Subject: Result Last Notice

BRITISH LOTTERY
The Lottery Company
P.O Box 789
Harrogate HG1 2YR
Ref: UK/9420X2/68
Batch: 074/05/ZY369

Dear Winner,
You have won the sum of (£1,200,000) One Million Two Hundred Thousand
Great British Pounds Sterlings from UK NATIONAL LOTTERY on our 2008
Yearly sweepstakes.

The winning ticket was selected from a Data Base of Internet Email
Users,from which your Address came out as the winning coupon.


We hereby urge you to claim the winning amount quickly as this is a
monthly lottery. Failure to claim your win will result into the reversion
of the fund to our following month. You are therefore requested to
contact immediately the out Claims Department with the informations below
and also quoting winning number: LOTTERY NUMER:02-03-17-22-40-42-{12}.

1.First Name and Last Name :
2.Home Address:
3.Age:
4.Sex:
Occupation:
6.Phone Number:
7.Country Of Residence:
8.Country:
===========================================
Contact Agent
Contact Person:Mr.Ronald Edward.
E-mail: uknationallottery.manager@verizon.net
Tel:+44 703 190 2851
===========================================

Congratulations once again.

please quote your lottery number.

Regards,
Mrs. Docas Patrick Armstrong
Executive (International Sweepstakes Lottery).

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam