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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:
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• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
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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.

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:
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "barrister" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
• 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!
• Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.
• This email lists mobile phone numbers. Use of such numbers is typical for scams because they allow criminals to conceal their true location. They can receive calls in an Internet cafe from where they send you emails, while pretending to be in some office.
  • +447005978460 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mrs Lucy Webb" <lucy_webb01@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 29 May 2006 11:26:01 +0000
Subject: DEAR OMAR

FROM THE DESK OF LUCY WEBB
RESULTS DEPARTMENT
TEL: +44 700 597 8460
FAX: +44 700 597 8463
REFERENCE NUMBER: 2006234522
PIN: 6520

Good day Omar,

Following the results of our annual Lottery draws concluded on May, 2006, we
are pleased to inform you, that your e-mail address attached to ticket
number 27522465889-532 with serial number 658-668 drew lucky numbers
7-24-18-32-31-50 which consequently won in the final category.
You are one of the winners and therefore have been approved for a lump sum
pay out of $845,000.00 US (Eight Hundred and Forty Five Thousand Dollars).

All participants in this lottery program have been selected randomly through
a computer ballot system drawn from over 20,000 companies and 30,000,000
individual email addresses from all search engines and web sites. This
promotional program takes place every year, and is promoted and sponsored by
many corporate organizations.

For security purpose and clarity, we advise that you keep your winning
information confidential until your claims have been processed and your
money remitted to you. This is part of our security protocol to avoid double
claims and unwarranted abuse of this program as we shall not be held
responsible for any false claim.

You are requested to contact our clearance officer, Barrister Robert
Williams on barr_robwilliams@walla.com immediately to assist you with your
winnings and subsequent payments. All winnings must be claimed not later
than 14 days from the date of this notice.

NOTE: In order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications, remember to
quote your reference number and PIN in all correspondence. Furthermore,
should there be any change of address do not fail to inform our agent.

Congratulations once more!

Yours Faithfully,
Mrs Lucy Webb.
(Results Department)

_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam