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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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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.

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

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • ",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)
  • "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)
  • "top secret" (scammers urge victims to keep the transaction secret because they don't want anyone to point out to them that it is a scam)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• This email lists free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
  • jamesballard2009@aim.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "JAMES BALLARD"<jamesbalard2009@aim.com>
Reply-To: <jamesballard2@aim.com>
Date: Mon, 6 Jul 2009 23:41:15 -0700
Subject: HELLO DEAR//

Dear,

Firstly, I must solicit your confidence in this transaction; this is by virtue of its nature as
being utterly confidential and top secret. Though I know that a transaction of this magnitude will make any one apprehensive and worried, but I am assuring you that all will be well at the end of the day.

Let me start by first introducing myself properly to you. It may surprise you receiving this letter from me, since there was no previous correspondence between us. My name is James Ballard. Esq. A personal attorney to late Mr. Garry Hills.

My purpose of contacting you is for you to help secure the funds left behind by my late client, to avoid it being confiscated or declared unserviceable by the bank where this fund valued €15,500,000.00(fifteen million five hundred thousand euro) deposited by my client before his death.

The bank has issued me a notice to contact the next of kin or the account will be declared unserviceable and the fund diverted to the bank treasury, so far all my efforts to get a hold of someone related to this man has proved abortive. Hence, I have contacted you. I am actually asking for your consent to present you to the bank as the next of kin/beneficiary of my late client's fund, so that the proceeds of this account can be paid to your account.

All the legal documentation to back up your claim as my client's next of kin I shall provided them. All I require is your honest cooperation to enable us achieve this transaction.

I wish to point out that I want 20% of this money to be shared among the charity organizations, while the remaining 80% is shared equally between us. This proposition is entirely risk free. I will use my position as the client's attorney to guarantee the successful execution of this transaction. If you are interested, please contact me via, email: jamesballard2009@aim.com upon your response, I shall then provide you with more details and relevant documents that will help you understand this transaction well.

The intended transaction will be executed under a legitimate arrangement that will protect you from any infraction of the law. However, if this business proposition offends your moral ethics, do accept my sincere apology.

If on the contrary you wish to achieve this goal with me, kindly get back to me with your interest for further explanation.

Kindest regards
James Ballard

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam