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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
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• 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:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "million united states dollars" (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)
• This email message is a fake lottery scam. Consider the following facts about real lotteries:
  
  1. They don't notify winners by email.
  2. You can't win without first buying a lottery ticket.
  3. They don't randomly select email addresses to award prizes to.
  4. They don't use free email accounts (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc) to communicate with you.
  5. They don't tell you to call a mobile phone number.
  6. They don't tell you to keep your winnings secret.
  7. They will never ask a winner to pay any fees to receive a prize!

Fraud email example:

From: "Global Mgt" <global_mgt@msn.com>
Reply-To: philipsmatthews@oi.com.br
Date: Sat, 07 Jan 2006 13:43:15 +0000
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS!

CONGRATULATIONS!

Dear Winner,

We are pleased to inform you of the result of the Lottery Winners
International programs held on the 4th of January,2006. Your e-mail address
attached to ticket number275114656388-6410 with serial number 57985110 drew
lucky numbers 8-60-88-23-66-45
which consequently won in the first category.

You have therefore been approved for a lump sum pay out of 1,000,000,00 usd
(One Million United States Dollars)

CONGRATULATIONS!
Due to mix up of some numbers and names, we ask that you keep your winning
information confidential until your claims has been processed and your money
remitted to you via an online banking prosedure that will be established by
you.

This is part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming, unecessary
delay and unwarranted abuse of this program by some participants.

All participants were selected through a computer ballot system drawn from
over 30,000,000 individual email addresses
and 20,000,000 cooperate email address names from all over the world.

This promotional program takes place every three years. This lottery was
promoted and sponsored by eminent personalities like Mr. Bill Gates and the
Sultan of Brunei, we hope with
part of your winnings you will take part in our next 50 million Dollars
international lottery.

To file for your claim, please contact our fiduciary agents:
PHILIPS MATTHEWS OF GLOBA STAKES LOTTO,

Email : philipsmatthews@oi.com.br

Remember, all winnings must be claimed not later than 20th
of March,2006.

After this date all unclaimed funds will be included in the next stake. To
avoid unnecessary delays and complications, remember to quote your
referencenumber and batch numbers in
all correspondence to our fiduciary agents.

Furthermore, should there be any change of your address, please do inform
our agents as soon as possible.

Congratulations once more from our members of staff and thank you for being
part of our promotional program.

Note: Anybody under the age of 18 is automatically disqualified.

Sincerely yours,
Carla Morris
(Co-ordinator)

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam