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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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• Spam archive, Daily index
  

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:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "i will like you to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "a security company " (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. Never ever send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally. )
  • "will come to you as a surprise" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "huge amount of money" (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)
  • "trunk box" (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)
  • "united state of america" (this email uses bad English)
• This email message is a orphan scam.
• 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.
  • miss.susan5@gmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "susan martins" <susanmartins022@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 17 Jul 2008 15:45:56 +0000
Subject: Miss Susan


Dear Friend,

i got your mail address from the Foreign Department in our Ministry of
Foreign Affairs Office so I decided to contact you. I know that this mail
will come to you as a surprise but I will like you to take this as one of
the things people over come on this earth. And I know that it is God that
led me to get your contact so that you will be of help to me. Before I will
go on let me introduce my self to you so that you will be able to know me
well.

My name is Miss Susan Martins my mother is from united state of America why
my father is from Ghana-Accra in West Africa. My father and my mother where
living in America and I was born in America. My mother died when I was only
7 yrs and I am the only daughter to my parents so when I was 9yrs my father
took me to his own town in Africa where he Establish a company since then I
am with my father till on the 1st of January 2007 my father died in a car
accident why coming back from a club meeting. So after the burial of my
father his brothers send me away I mean my uncles and they said that I am
not the daughter of there brother so they took all my father had houses and
his company and they said that in Africa here that woman did not have any
right over her father property so they drove me away from my father's house
and I can not do anything to them because I am only 18yrs now.

Then the only thing I have now is the documents that my father used to
deposit a huge amount of money in a trunk box with a security company here
in this country and know one knows about this .My father disclosed this to
me because I am his only child and he told me that he wants to use this
money to Establish another company in overseas and he hand over the
documents to me and tell me that encase anything happens to him in any way
that I have to take this document and look for a foreigner from oversea who
will help me to claim this trunk box from the security company and send it
out from this country to his or her country. And he told me that I should
not let the security company to know about the content in the trunk box
because the security company did not know any thing that is in the trunk box
because he told them that it is family valuables.

Since my father's family have drove me away and I have no where to go or
stay so I went to the security company to claim the trunk box and the
director have agreed to release the trunk box to me as the next of kings and
the trunk box was deposited with my name as the next of kings but I see that
I can not claim this on my own because I am only 18yrs I can not handle the
money that is inside so that is why I contact you to help me claim this
trunk box and ship it to your country so that I can be able to come to your
country for you to help me Establish an investment then I will continue my
Education in your country .Please I will reward you if you can assist me on
this please.
I will give you the documents if you agreed to help me with trust and
honesty without any disappointment. I will stop until I hear from you.
Please reply me on my private email. miss.susan5@gmail.com

from Miss
Susan Martins,

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam