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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: "Mr. Steve Collins" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <umarahinvestor@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, 23 Feb 2019 22:36:38 -0800
Subject: RE: GOLD AVAILABLE / MY PREVIOUS EMAIL?

Dear Marketer
 
A large quantities of gold is available.
 
The potential buyer is needed in Kampala Uganda to meet the owner and visit the bank security vault where the gold is currently deposited and also visit the owner's lawyer office to sign the agreements with the owner. Then he will be taken to the refinery to text the gold, after that the gold will be shipped to his country immediately.
 
The purity of the gold is 96plus, the quality is 22karat, the price is 28,000 USD and the quantity available is 1000kg (1 tonnes).
 
Regards,
Steve Collins
umaracorporate@gmail.com

Anti-fraud resources: