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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: Dekana Ulikani <dekanaulikani11@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 15 Jul 2015 18:22:24 +0200
Subject: Urgent, Very important

Dekana Ulikani

Attn,

I feel quite safe dealing with you in this important business. Though
this medium (Internet) has been greatly abused, I choose to reach you
through it because it still remains the fastest medium of
communication. However, this correspondence is private, and it should
be treated in strict confidence.

Firstly I will like to assure you that this transaction is 100% risk
and trouble free to both parties, In order to transfer out fifteen
million two hundred thousand dollars, (US$15.200 000 00) from our bank
here, secondly the fund for transfers of clean origin. The owner of
the fund is a foreigner, a program leader who was believed to have
acquired the fund through his secret Crude Oil deals. The deceased
died with all the members of his family in an auto accident without a
WILL. Again the amount involved is US$15,200,000.00.

I want to transfer this money into your account as the foreign
beneficiary of the fund. I know that this letter will come to you as a
surprise as we don't know ourselves before, but be sure that it is
real and a genuine business. I contact you believing that you will not
let me down once the fund goes into your account.

Let me hear from you.

Regards

Dekana

Anti-fraud resources: