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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 phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • "claims office" (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)
• 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: "UK E-mail Lottery" <daltonclaire@live.co.uk>
Date: Sun, 19 Apr 2009 00:34:44 GMT
Subject: YOU WON


The National Online Lottery
P O Box 1010 Liverpool,
L70 1NL UNITED KINGDOM

(Customer Services)=20

YOUR EMAIL ID JUST WON: =24900,000USD

Dear Sir/Madam,=20

We are pleased to announce you as one of the 5 lucky winners of the United =
States E-mail Lottery International Monthly draws held for 16th April =
2009.All five winners Email Address were randomly selected from a batch of =
10,000,000 international emails. Your email address emerged along side 4 =
others as a category 2 winner in this year's weekly United kingdom E-mail =
Lottery Consequently, you have therefore been approved for a total pay out =
of =24900,000(Nine hundred thousand dollars only).

The following particulars are attached to your lotto payment order:=20

(i) winning numbers:47-14-34-85-67-32
(ii) email ticket number:BR 754/22/76
(iii) lotto code number: BR09622US
(iv) Ref number:BR/04/836207147/US=20

Your winning details falls within our UK/EUROPEAN booklet representative =
office as indicated in the draw system and we have forwarded your winning =
details to our UK/EUROPEAN processing agent for the processing of your =
documents.=20

Please contact the under listed claims officer as soon as possible for the =
immediate release of your winnings:=20

Mrs.Claire Dalton
Email: daltonclaire33=40live.co.uk


Winners must send their Data or fill the data's below and send to their =
claims officer:=20

1. Name:
2.Address:
3.Sex:
4.Age:
5.Marital Status:
6.Occupation:
7.Telephone:
8.Country:=20

=21=21=21Once Again Congratulations=21=21=21

Richard K. Lloyd
Online coordinator for
UK NATIONAL ONLINE LOTTERY
Sweepstakes International Program=

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam