419 scam: EUROPEAN LOTTO COMPANY. <info@winnings.co.uk> CONGRATULATIONS!!! YOU HAVE WON.

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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.

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.

Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!

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:

This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "claims office" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
- "million pounds" (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)
- "andrewpeterson.elc@live.co.uk" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
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.
- +447501813682

Fraud email example:

From: EUROPEAN LOTTO COMPANY. <info@winnings.co.uk>
Reply-To: andrewpeterson.elc@live.co.uk
Date: Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:30:31 +0100
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS!!! YOU HAVE WON.

EUROPEAN LOTTO COMPANY.
9th Floor
34 The Aldwych
London
WC2B 4DN,

Dear Winner,

My name is Mrs, Barbara Denison and on the behalf of EUROPEAN LOTTO COMPANY OF UNITED KINGDOM, I wish to announce you as one of the 10 lucky winners in the EUROPEAN LOTTO draw held on the 8th of OCTOBER 2009. Your email address emerged alongside 9 others as a 2nd category winner in this year's Annual EUROPEAN LOTTO Draw.

Consequently, you have therefore been approved for a total payout of £870,000.00 UK Pounds (EIGHT HUNDRED & SEVENTY THOUSAND POUNDS STERLINGS).The following particulars are attached to your lotto payment order:

(i) Winning numbers: 03-07-13-22-39.
(ii) Email ticket number: GHA033/10/30
(iii) Lotto code number: KYU038UK
(iv) The file Ref number: VQIC/01/05-10-11-32/GB-UK Please contact the under listed claims officer as soon as possible for the immediate release of your winnings:

CONTACT PERSON: MR. ANDREW PETERSON.
DEPARTMENT OF CLAIMS
TEL: +44 750 181 3682
FAX: +44 207 681 1783
EMAIL: andrewpeterson.elc@live.co.uk

Please alway put your Email ticket number as the subject when contacting Mr.
Andrew Peterson with the email address above.

This email notification is auto-generated and it is valid for four weeks.
Once again on behalf of all our staff, CONGRATULATIONS!!!

REGARDS,
Mrs, Barbara Denison.
ONLINE CO-ORDINATOR.

The EUROPEAN LOTTO COMPANY is proudly sponsored by the Microsoft Corporation, the Intel Group, Toshiba, Dell computers Mackintosh and a conglomeration of other international IT companies. The European LOTTO internet draw is held once in a year and is so organized to encourage the use of the internet and computers worldwide. We are proud to say that over £257 Million pounds are won annually in more than 150 countries worldwide.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam