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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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• Spam archive, Daily index
  

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:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "claims office" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "million united states dollars" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
  • ",000,000" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
• 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 free webmail addresses. Use of such addresses is typical for scams. Lotteries, banks and any but the smallest of companies do not normally use such addresses. Criminals use them to anonymously send and receive email at Internet cafes.
  • britishtobacco_verification32@yahoo.co.uk (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Jeff McDonald" <midwestiron@meltel.net>
Reply-To: britishtobacco_verification32@yahoo.co.uk
Date: Tue, 14 Aug 2007 21:23:23 -0500
Subject: PERSONAL





OFFICIAL PRIZE NOTIFICATION

This is to inform you that you have been selected for a cash prize
of$5,000,000.00 ( Five Million United States Dollars ) in
the International programs held on the 14th August of 2007 in
London.The
selection process was carried out through random selection in our
computerized E-mail selection system(s) from a database of over
250,000
E.mail addresses drawn from all the continents of the world.
The British Tobacco Lottery is approved by the British Gaming Board
and
also Licensed by The International Association of Gaming Regulators
(IAGR).

To begin the processing of your prize you are to contact our executive
claims officer through the contact stated below with
your personal informations for verification purpose:
Mr. ALBERT GREGORY.
Fiduciary Agent/Payment Officer.
20 Lausanne Road London, SW2 3JB ENGLAND.U.K
E-mail:britishtobacco_verification32@yahoo.co.uk
1.Name in full:
2.Address:
3.Nationality:
4.Age:
5.Occupation:
6.Phone/Fax:
7.Present Country

Winners are advised to keep their winning details/informations

safe from the public to avoid fraudulent claims.

Winners under the age of 18 are automatically disqualified.

Staff of the British Tobacco Company are not allowed to partake in
this Lottery.

KAREN PETERSON.Co-coordinator.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam