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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:
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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.

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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:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "huge amount of money" (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)
  • "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
  • "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
• This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
  
• 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.
  • apexcourier_sp@yahoo.fr (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: infodept11@freenet.de
Date: Wed, 19 Mar 2008 03:15:46 +0100
Subject: CONTACT APEX COURIER AND SECURITY COMPANY IMMEDIATELY.


(HILL & COUNSELORS AT LAW)
06 BP 1409 AKPAKPA DODOMEY
COTONOU REPUBLIC
OF BENIN.

Dear Friend,

Greetings to you & your Family.I have been
waiting for you since to contact me for your Confirmable Bank Draft of
($1.2m) United States Dollars, but I did not hear from you since then
,Then I went and deposited the Draft with Apex Courier Delivery
Company ,Cotonou,Benin Republic, before I travelled out of the country
for a short Course and i will not come back till end of next Month.What
you have to do now is to contact the Apex Courier Delievery Company as
soon as possible to know when they will deliver your package to you
because of the expiring date.For your information, I have paid for the
delivery Charges.The only money you will send to the Courier & Security
Company to deliver your Draft direct to your home Address in your
country is ($98) only being their Security Keeping Fee of the Courier
Company so far.Again, Do not be deceived by anybody to pay any other
money except $98.00,I would have paid that but they said no because they
don\'t know when you will contact them and in case of demurrage.You have
to contact the Apex Courier Delievery Company now for the delivery of
your Draft with this information bellow. Apex Courier Delievery Company
Benin Republic.

E-mail: ( apexcourier_sp@yahoo.fr)
Registration
Reference No; wwdsc/xxx/100
Code Number:xxxdcsc/6545

Finally, make
sure that you reconfirm your home address and Direct telephone number
to them again to avoid any mistake on the Delivery and Let me repeat
again,try to contact them as soon as you receive this mail to avoid any
further delay and remember to pay them their Security Keeping fee of
$98 for their immediate action.You should also Let me know through email
as soon as you receive your Draft.

Note. Apex courier delivery company
do not know the contents of the parcel.I registered it as my
photograph (pix) being sent to a friend overseas. They do not know that
it contains a bank draft of such a huge amount of money.This is to avoid
them tempering with the parkage. Do not let them know know the
contents.I am waiting to hear the good news from you. Regards, Pastor
John Feu.
Unbegrenzter Speicher, Top-Spamschutz, 120 SMS und eigene
E-MailDomain
inkl.
http://office.freenet.de/dienste/emailoffice/produktuebersicht/power/mail/index.html

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam