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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: "Mrs. Maria Pfebve" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <mpfebve019@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, 2 Mar 2016 14:27:28 -0800
Subject: Please Help

My greetings to you,
My name is Mrs. Maria Pfebve, a Zimbabwean living in Johannesburg South Africa, Having sourced your contact, I felt compelled to involve you in this noble project out of the few contacts I got. Although we have not met before but faith has a way of uniting people. My choosing you is borne out of sheer conviction that our relationship will eventually transcends business/personal relationship in which you and your family will benefit immensely. This is a true life situation and it happened to me. I will tell you everything you need to know & how it happened as soon as I receive your response. I am anxiously waiting for your urgent response. Get back to me if you are interested for more details of this financial/Investment opportunity via my email mpfebve019@gmail.com
Have a blessed day.
Regards,
Mrs. Maria Pfebve
 

Anti-fraud resources: