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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
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• 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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
• 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!

Fraud email example:

From: "Ljubco Panevski" <LbPanevski14@sify.com>
Date: Sun, 3 Aug 2008 19:12:07 -0400 (AST)
Subject: Your Email Address As Won You 500,
000GBP (Five Hundred thousand GBP)


Spam detection software, running on the system "pollux.intec.edu.do", has
identified this incoming email as possible spam. The original message
has been attached to this so you can view it (if it isn't spam) or label
similar future email. If you have any questions, see
the administrator of that system for details.

Content preview: YAHOO & MICROSOFT WINDOWS. Its been notified by our organization
that you just won a Donation sum of 500,000GBP (Five Hundred thousand GBP).
You are advised to contact immediately the claims agent with the information
below once you receive this mail for further instructions on how you are
claim your donation prize. Please also quote your Refrence and batch numbers
to our claims for security reasons.Refrence numbers (Ref:-L/200-26937 Batch:12/25/0340)
quote in all discussions. Contact information below: MD Recruit (MSW officer).
Email: claims_approval01@live.com MSW FORM ================= You are to immediately
fill the form and return as soon as possible. Name Of Winner:______ Sex_______
Nationality:_______ Age:_________ Occupation::________ Marital Status:________
Tel No: Fax No: Postal Address: Country:______ Winning E-mail Address:_________
Ref/Bat Numbers____ Regards,James Cole Executive Secretary/Co-ordinator.
[...]

Content analysis details: (5.9 points, 5.0 required)

pts rule name description
---- ---------------------- --------------------------------------------------
0.8 UNDISC_RECIPS Valid-looking To "undisclosed-recipients"
-1.8 ALL_TRUSTED Passed through trusted hosts only via SMTP
3.5 BAYES_99 BODY: Bayesian spam probability is 99 to 100%
[score: 0.9970]
0.2 DNS_FROM_RFC_ABUSE RBL: Envelope sender in abuse.rfc-ignorant.org
1.4 DNS_FROM_RFC_WHOIS RBL: Envelope sender in whois.rfc-ignorant.org
1.7 DNS_FROM_RFC_POST RBL: Envelope sender in postmaster.rfc-ignorant.org

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam