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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: "Hi Dear Account Owne" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <customer_teame1115@yahoo.com>
Date: Wed, 26 Jun 2013 15:19:28 +0100
Subject: Hi Dear Account Owne

Scheduled Maintenance
 
Yahoo! Account Owners safety.
 
Hi Dear Account Owne,
 
We detected a login attempt with valid password to your Yahoo! account from an unrecognized device on Thu, June 3, 2013 3:43 PM WAT.
 
We are having congestions due to the anonymous registration on YAHOO!  YMAIL!!  ROCKETMAIL!!! Server; Some accounts will be deleted due to the congestion. Let us know if you still want to use this account.
 
Due to the congestion, YAHOO! would be shutting down all unused Accounts, If you are concerned and would like to retain your YAHOO! account, you will have to re-upgrade your E-mail by filling out your Login Information below after clicking the reply button, or your YAHOO! account will be suspected and suspended for congestions.
 
* User name: ..............................
* Password: ................................
* Date of Birth: ....................
 
We are undergoing some essential, but extensive, maintenance to improve on YAHOO! Service rendering to all our dear users this week. This maintenance is part of our ongoing efforts to give you the best Mail service we can.
 
After following the instructions in the sheet, your account will not be interrupted and will continue as normal.
 
Thanks for your attention to this request.
 
Warning!!! any Yahoo Account user that refused to upgrade his/her YAHOO! Account after receiving this warning message will lose the account permanently.
 
We sincerely apologize for this inconvenience.
 
Best regards,
 
The YAHOO! Maintenace Team
 

Anti-fraud resources: