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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: FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION <credit@perego.com>
Reply-To: <intelligencemonitoring2@e-mail.ua>
Date: Fri, 21 Apr 2017 22:23:47 -0700
Subject: Re.Official Payment Letter.

FILE QUARANTINED

The original contents of this file have been replaced with
this message because of its characteristics.
File name: 'Body of Message'
Virus name: 'EngineError'

Confidentiality Notice:
The content of this communication, along with any attachments, is the property of the sender, is covered by federal and state law governing electronic communications and may contain confidential and legally privileged information. The information contained in or attached to this email is intended only for the use of the addressee. If you are not the intended recipient, please do not read, distribute or take action in reliance upon this message. It is against the law to copy, retransmit, use or disclose the contents of this communication. If you received this email in error, please contact the sender and delete this message from your system. Thank you.

Anti-fraud resources: