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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: "De Ernesto" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <ahbib2009@gmail.com>
Date: Sun, 22 May 2022 05:18:03 -0700
Subject: Greetings From Lisbon.

My Dear beloved, I am so sorry for contacting in this manner! My name is Sr. Frederick De Ernesto, I am from Portugal and I have been diagnosed with cancer. It has defiled all forms of medical treatment, and right now I have only about a few months to live, according to medical experts. I have not particularly lived my life so well, as I never really cared for anyone (not even myself) but my business. I would want to have a Personal and Trustworthy Relationship with you, as I intend and willing to empower the change of ownership for the transfer of my Deposits to your personal possession for further Investment and Charity Disbursement to the Less Privilege and Homeless. Thank you for your due consideration. Yours Brother. Sr. Frederick De Ernesto

Anti-fraud resources: