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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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• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• 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:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "will come to you as a surprise" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "your urgent reply" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "urgent assistance" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "top secret" (scammers urge victims to keep the transaction secret because they don't want anyone to point out to them that it is a scam)
  • "foreign remittance department" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• 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.
  • aki_oha1@walla.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr aki oha" <aki01@gazeta.pl>
Reply-To: aki_oha1@walla.com
Date: Wed, 11 Jun 2008 12:01:11 +0000
Subject: I NEED YOUR URGENT REPLY


*I NEED YOUR URGENT REPLY*

*FROM MR AKI OHA.
AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (A.D.B)
OUAGADOUGOU BURKINA-FASO, WEST AFRICA .*


*DEAR FRIEND,*

*I KNOW THAT THIS MESSAGE WILL COME TO YOU AS A SURPRISE. I AM MR, AKI
OHATHE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOREIGN REMITTANCE DEPARTMENT AFRICAN
DEVELOMENT BANK
(A.D.B) HERE IN OUAGADOUGOU BURKINA FASO. I HOPE THAT YOU WILL NOT EXPOSE OR
BETRAY THIS TRUST AND CONFIDENT THAT I AM ABOUT TO REPOSE ON YOU FOR THE
MUTUAL BENEFIT OF OUR BOTH FAMILIES.*

**

*I NEED YOUR URGENT ASSISTANCE IN TRANSFERRING THE SUM OF ($15MILLION) TO
YOUR ACCOUNT WITHIN 14 BANKING DAYS. THIS MONEY HAS BEEN DORMANT FOR YEARS
IN OUR BANK WITHOUT CLAIM. I WANT THE BANK TO RELEASE THE MONEY TO YOU AS
THE NEAREST PERSON TO OUR DECEASED CUSTOMER, THE OWNER OF THE ACCOUNT DIED
ALONG WITH HIS SUPPOSED NEXT OF KIN IN AN AIR CRASH SINCE JULY 31ST 2000.*

**

*I DON'T WANT THE MONEY TO GO INTO OUR BANK TREASURER AS AN ABANDONED FUND.
SO THIS IS THE REASON WHY I CONTACTED YOU SO THAT THE BANK CAN RELEASE THE
MONEY TO YOU AS THE NEXT OF KIN TO THE DECEASED CUSTOMER. PLEASE I WOULD
LIKE YOU TO KEEP THIS PROPOSAL AS A TOP SECRET AND DELETE IT IF YOU ARE NOT
INTERESTED. IF YOU ARE INTERESTED PLEASE REPLY ME*



*UPON RECEIPT OF YOUR REPLY,I WILL GIVE YOU FULL DETAILS ON HOW THE BUSINESS
WILL BE EXECUTED AND ALSO NOTE THAT YOU WILL HAVE 30% OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED
SUM IF YOU AGREE TO HANDLE THIS BUSINESS WITH ME. ; I WANT YOU TO REPLY
ME IN MY E-MAIL ID aki_oha1@walla.com **OR PLIES CALL ME FOR MORE
EXPLANATION (+226-78780835) *


*BEST REGARDS.
MR. AKI OHA*

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam