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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

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• 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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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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "transaction is risk free" (almost true for the criminal - arrests of online criminals are rare)
• 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.
  • jameszuma2007@hotmail.com

Fraud email example:

From: "jameszuma zuma" <jameszuma2007@hotmail.com>
Date: Tue, 18 Oct 2005 19:58:59 +0200
Subject: GREETINGS

DR JAMES ZUMA,
TEL-27-73-343-2821
jameszuma2007@hotmail.com
Dear Friend,

I am,DR JAMES ZUMA,the Chief Accountant African Development Bank
South
Africa.I got your address while searching for trustworthy
individuals in various countries.
ln my department,we discovered an abandoned sum of $25,5million US
dollars
in an account that belongs to one of our foreign customers who died in
an
auto accident with his family in South Africa.

Since we got information about his death,we have been expecting his
next of
kin to come to our bank and claim his money because we cannot release
it
unless somebody applies for it as a next of kin or relative to the
deceased
as indicated in our banking guidelines but unfortunately we learnt that
all
his supposed relatives died in a plane crash
leaving no relative behind to claim the fund.It is upon this discovery
that
l and other officials in my department decided to make this business
proposal to you and release the money to you as the next of kin or
relative
to the deceased for safety and subsequent
disbursement since nobody is coming for it and we do not want this
money to
go into our bank treasury as an unclaimed fund.
The banking law and guidelines here stipulate that if such money
remained
unclaimed after four years,the money will be transfered into the bank
treasury as unclaimed funds.
The request for a foreigner as a relative for this claim is occasioned
by
the fact that the customer was a foreigner and a South African cannot
claim
this fund as next of kin.
We agreed that 20% of this money will go to the foreign partner who
will
supply the foreign account,5% will be set aside for expenses incurred
during
the transaction and 75% will be for me and my colleagues.Thereafter,l
and my
colleagues will visit your country for disbursement of the percentages
as
indicated above.
If you are interested to assist in this transaction,kindly contact the
writer on the above mobile number or private e-mail address.Please this
transaction is risk free and you should not entertain any atom of fear
as
all required arrangements have been made for transfer.

Yours Faithfully,

DR JAMES ZUMA, Chief Accountant ADB

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam