419 scam: "Iain Mackay" <i@info.com> (no subject)

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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:
- "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "huge amount of money" (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 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.

Fraud email example:

From: "Iain Mackay" <i@info.com>
Reply-To: mrlainmackay010@gmail.com
Date: Fri, 23 May 2014 05:49:14 -0400 (BOT)
Subject:

Dear Friend,

You have been carefully selected to be favoured with this communication,
due to your superior trustworthiness and the most excellent testimonials
that have been vouchsafed for you. However, I must solicit your most
strictest confidence in the transaction to be detailed, which as you will
comprehend should be preserved a ( top secret ) between us.

First, let me introduce myself I am Mr. Iain Mackay the group finance
director of HSBC Holdings PLC.

I want to invest some huge amount of money in your country and i will send
you more details if you are interested. AS soon as you get this e-mail get
back to me immediately. I will like to brief you more procedure if you are
interested about this proposal. Please let me know if you can assist me so
that I can give you more details on how we shall proceed. Due to the
nature of this transaction, it is necessary for you to be sure of whom you
are
transacting with, you can visit my home page.

HomePage: https://www.hsbc.com/globals/hsbc-people/directors/iain-mackay

Iain Mackay
Group Finance Director HSBC Holdings PLC.
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Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam