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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
• "Is that email a scam?" - Check it online here!
  
• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
  (+225 +229 +234 +27 +31 +32 +34 +44 other)
• Company names mentioned in 419 spam:
  1 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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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.

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:

• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!
• This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
  • +447011137953 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: Brian Doyle <operation_desk2_uk@yahoo.co.uk>
Reply-To: operations_mgr_desk@yahoo.co.uk
Date: Fri, 24 Nov 2006 22:04:03 +0000 (GMT)
Subject: Dear Winner


Dear Winner,

I am Mr. Brian Doyle the operations manager assigned to your case. I wish to congratulate you on your victory; you are a lucky person to have won this lottery. Your email address was amongst those chosen this quarter from our new java-based software that randomly selects email addresses from the web from which winners are selected. You are required to forward the following details to help facilitate the processing of your claims and certificate which will facilitate the release of your winnings.

========================================================
APPLICATION FOR PRIZE CLAIM (Receipt Official Notification Letter)
[WINNING NO 1013AP-4]
--------------------------------------------------------

[FULL NAME OF WINNER]
[FULL MAILING ADDRESS]
[COUNTRY/ REGION]
[STATE/ PROVINCE]
[DATE OF BIRTH]
[SEX]
[MARITAL STATUS]
[OCCUPATION]
[CURRENT E-MAIL]
[TEL HOME]
[CELLPHONE NUMBER]
[FAX]
[REFERENCE NUMBER]
[WINNING INFORMATIONS]
--------------------------------------------------------

You are advised to forward this information back to us as soon as possible to enable us attend to your winnings.
Our firm has been contracted to handle payments on your behalf, once we confirm your information, your payments would be processed.

Everything was done in such a way that our payments mode would meet the standards set by the Lottery boards. After you have sent down this information, a certificate will be prepared for you. This is to be your proof of winning from this office to the payment center before they release your funds. You are advised to keep your winning numbers secret to avoid unscrupulous elements from taking advantage of the situation.

Once again, congratulations.
Sincerely,
Brian Doyle
TEL: +44-7011137953

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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam