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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.

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Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

Fraud email example:

From: "Mrs. Maria Pfebve" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <mpfebve019@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 28 Jan 2016 12:31:08 -0800
Subject: Please Help

My greetings to you,
My name is Mrs. Maria Pfebve, a Zimbabwean living in Johannesburg South Africa.  Having sourced your contact, I felt compelled to seek your assistance in investment of the fund left to us by my late husband out of the few contacts I got. Although we have not met before but fate has a way of uniting people,My choosing you is borne out of sheer conviction that our relationship will eventually transcend business/personal in which you and your family will benefit immensely.  I will give you further details of how the money came about and my familys investment plans trusting that you will be in a better position to assist us in this noble venture that will be beneficial to both parties. Get back to me on my email: mpfebve019@gmail.com or that of my son James on jpfebve01@aol.com
Have a blessed day and Happy New Year.
 
Regards,
Mrs. Maria Pfebve
For the Family

Anti-fraud resources: