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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: "Mr.Michele Cotton" <user@rcit.by>
Reply-To: michele.cotton00@aol.com
Date: Sat, 25 Aug 2018 09:17:54 -0700
Subject: Re: Have you received your payment

Dear Beneficiary,

Have you received your payment which was scheduled to be remitted on 01-31-2018? You have to confirm back to this investigation office if you have been fully paid and compensated.

Kindly specify the following below:

Amount Transferred:
Transfer Date:
Amount Expecting:
Your Full Names:
Your Address:
Direct Mobile Number:

I will be waiting to hear from you immediately. Get back to me on (michele.cotton@aol.com).

Thanks
Michele Cotton
Funds Investigator

Anti-fraud resources: