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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• 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 phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "contact me immediately" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "courier service" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
  • "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
  • "cheque " (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
• 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.
  • +447045705887 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: TOYOTA COMPANY CLAIMS AGENT DEPARTMENT <mr_kellywhite@hotmail.com>
Date: Thu, 26 Mar 2009 09:08:36 +0000
Subject: Dear Toyota Car Winner,






110 Marylebone High Street,
London W1U 4RY.
CVR-nr. 25554493.

Dear Toyota Car Winner,

Thanks for the urgent reply, you are acting right just like every other winner in this year’s promotion, it got to our understanding that most winners will not believe they have won this large amount of money from an internet Toyota car promotion.

As your claims agent you have to believe all information am stating to you right now due to the fact that i have the right to tell you the only truth. We were here planning for a big promotion for this year and came up with this idea of Toyota car promotion where winners are selected though the internet via their e-mail accounts. You don't have to buy any ticket to win our lottery. Your email account was selected by our e-mail spider lottery search engine which picked your email account as one of the lucky winners to have won this wonderful prize.

The process is very simple. Right now your cheque has been insured with our insurance company here in London. They are one of the biggest insurance companies with many departments here in London. An affiliate courier company will be making delivery of your cheque to your custody, they where also selected by the insurance company due to their good service here in London.

The cheque will be delivered immediately once the courier service gets confirmation from you upon delivery service payment for the cheque and car, i guess they will inform you more once you contact them. The cheque is a valid cheque that was drawn with the HSBC BANK world wide and you can claim your funds any where in the world even your local bank. It will take just 3 working days before the bank clarify and pay you the funds due to the large amount involved. If you have any problem with the cheque all you need do is contact me immediately to verify where the problem is coming from, and I know there will be no problem concerning the cheque withdrawal and the courier company are well known for their effective service

I hope the above explanation made some clarification. I understand your point and you have my assurance and company guarantee that your cheque will get your door step in safe hands with the help of PROcourier Services limited.

Please the following information are requested to process your claim.

1. Full names:
2. Residential address:
3. Phone number:
4. Fax number:
5. Occupation:
6. Sex:
7. Age:
8. Nationality:
9. Present Country:
10.Next of kin name/address:
11.Passport Photograph (or any form of legal identification: Driver's License etc.)

DECLARATION:

I ............................................................... HEREBY DECLARE THAT THE ABOVE DATA ARE TRUE. IN CASE OF ANY UNFORSEEN CIRCUSTANCE, MY NEXT OF KIN HAS THE RIGHT TO CLAIM MY TOTAL WINNINGS.( AGENT) SHALL ACT AS MY AGENT IN FACILITATING THE TRANSFER OF THE TOTAL FUND TO . DATE........................
(YOUR FULL NAMES)...........................................

Yours Faithfully,
Mr. Kelly White.
Phone : +447045705887
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam