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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
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• 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:

• The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "vittorio foundation" (not involved with lotteries)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "00,000.00" (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)
  • "(ecowas)" (the name of a person or institution often appearing in 419 scams)
• 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.
  • +2347055065202

Fraud email example:

From: <info@yahoo.com>
Reply-To: ecowasdonation34@live.com
Date: Thu, 19 Mar 2009 23:09:34 -0600
Subject: Congratulations



ECONOMIC COMMUNITY FOR WEST AFRICAN STATES (ECOWAS)

Congratulations as we bring to your notice, The Foundazion di Vittorio has chosen you by the board of trustees as one of the final recipients
of a cash Grant/Donation for your own personal, educational, and business development.

To celebrate the 30th anniversary program, We are giving out a yearly donation of US$900,000.00 to 40 lucky recipients, as charity donations/aid from the Vittorio Foundation, ECOWAS, EU and the UNO in accordance with the enabling act of Parliament. which is part of our promotion.

To file for your claim contact,
Mr Jackson Billy,
E-mail:ecowasdonation34@live.com
Tell: +234 70 550 65202


Also in order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications, remember to quote your reference number ECO/554/33 and the following details;

DONATION DOCUMENTATION FORM:
Full name
address.
Tel and fax number.
Sex
Age.
Marital Status
Occupation.
Country
City/Zip Codes.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam