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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:
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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:
  • "british lottery international" (no such lottery exists)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • ",000,000" (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)
  • ",500,000" (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.
  • +447024058505 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
  • +448704765389 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: britishlottery@eze.co.za
Reply-To: brunei.long@brunei.me.uk
Date: Fri, 27 Mar 2009 12:16:54 +0800
Subject: Attn:Winner{Ref. Number: BTL/491OXI/04}

Attn:Winner{Ref. Number: BTL/491OXI/04}
BRITISH LOTTERY INTERNATIONAL
PROMOTIONS/ PRIZE AWARD DEPARTMENT
BRITISH LOTTERY INTERNATIONAL
CUSTOMER SERVICE
British Lottery International
Headquarters: 1411-I South Laurel Road
London, KY 40744
England.
Ref. Number: BTL/491OXI/04
Batch Number: 12/25/0304
Ticket Number: 564 75600545-188
Serial Number: 5388/02
Dear Sir/Madam,
We are pleased to inform you of the result of the Winners in our British International Lottery Program and pat of our New Year Promo held on the March 24, 2009. Your e-mail address attached to ticket number 564 75600545-188 with serial number 5388/02 drew lucky numbers 7-14-18-31-45, which consequently won in the 2ND category, you have therefore been approved for a lump sum pay out of USD2,500,000 (Two Million, five hundred thousand dollars). CONGRATULATIONS!
Due to mix up of some numbers and names, we ask that you keep your winning information confidential until your claims have been fully processed and your money remitted to you. This is part of our security protocol to avoid multiple claims and unwarranted abuse of this program by some participants. All participants were selected through a computer ballot system drawn from over 20,000 company and 30,000,000 individual email addresses and names from all over the world. This promotional program takes place every five years.
This lottery was promoted and sponsored by a conglomerate of some multinational companies in Europe as part of their social responsibility to the citizens. This year Lottery Program Jackpot is the largest ever for British Lottery. The estimated $125 million jackpot would be the sixth biggest in U.K. history. The biggest was the $363 million jackpot that went to two winners in a May 2000 drawing of The Big Game, Mega Millions' predecessor. To file for your claim, please contact our director of finance.
........................................................................
Mr. Brunei Long
Tel:+44-702-405-8505
+44-702-405-8506
Fax :+44-870-476-5389
Email: brunei.long@brunei.me.uk
...........................................................................
Furthermore, should there be any change in your address, do inform your Claims agent as soon as possible.you are to fill the form below and send it to the claims agent via email:
First name:...............................................
Middle name:..............................................
Last name:................................................
Date of birth:............................................
Gender:..................................................
Marital status:..........................................
Lotto Batch Number:......................................
Lotto Reference Numbers:.................................
Home address and phone:.................................
Address:.................................................
City:....................................................
State/province:..........................................
Zip/postal code:.........................................
Country:.................................................
Congratulations once again from all members of our staff and thanks for being part of our promotions program.
Yours Sincerely,
Mr. Jack Larry .
Executive (International Sweepstakes).
Program Warning!!! Fraudulent emails are circulating that appears to be impersonator using our names and addresses, but are not from the LOTTERY ONLINE PROGRAM PLEASE REPORT IMMEDIATELY TO CUSTOMER CARE/COMPLAINTS DEPT.
Note: Participants below 15 years are automatically disqualified. All e-mail transmission/correspondence are 100% protected by our Secured Socket Layer (SSL) server.
The NLS is an institution under public law. Therefore, the lottery contract is concluded between the lottery participant and the public law institution LOTTERY ONLINE PROGRAM which is represented through its
© Copyright 2001-2009 The British Lottery International Inc.
All rights reserved. Terms of Service - Guidelines.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam