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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:

Fraud email example:

From: "HSBC Bank plc." (may be fake)
Date: Sun, 6 Feb 2011 07:18:29 +0200
Subject: Dear valued PayPal Customer,


Dear valued PayPal Customer,

Due to a policy update we need to verify your PayPal account.
Please download the attached file , open it using your browser ,fill in the required information and click update .
Should you decide you do not wish to accept the verification process you can notify us before 20/02/2011 to close your account immediately without incurring any additional charges.

We do hope, however, that you continue to use PayPal and enjoy the following benefits:
It's safer
When you pay with PayPal your financial details are never shared with sellers or retailers, so you?e more protected against fraud.
It's faster
You don? have to type in your card details each time you pay, so you can check out faster online. You can also get eBay items delivered more quickly, as you can pay the seller instantly.
It?'s easier
PayPal is the preferred web payment method in the world because it? a smarter, savvier way to pay online in just a few clicks. All you need is your email address and a password.

Copyright © 1999-2011 PayPal. All rights reserved.

Anti-fraud resources: