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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
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• 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")
• 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!
• 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.
  • +447031921709 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: Online Lottery <claimsdepartment001@mac.com>
Date: Thu, 15 Jun 2006 01:23:01 -0700
Subject: CLAIMS VERIFICATION DETAILS


Dear Winner,

I am Mr. Jeffery Foley, the fiduciary agent assigned to your case.I wish to congratulate you on your victory, you are a lucky person to have won this lottery. Your email address is amongst those
chosen this quarter from our new java-based software that randomly selects email addresses from the web from which winners are selected. You are required to forward the following details to help facilitate the processing of your claims and certificate which will facilitate the release of your
winnings.

1. Full names.
2. Phone number.
3. Fax number.
4. Complete address
5. Occupation.
6. Sex.
7. Age.
8. Nationality.

You are advised to forward this information as soon as possible to enable us attend! to your winnings. Please note that your payment would be handed over to our correspondent bank and your
information will be forwarded to them they would be in charge of paying you your winnings. Our
firm has been contracted to handle payments on your behalf, once we confirm your information, your payments would be processed and forwarded to the correspondent bank who would in turn open
communication with you in regards to how you would receive your winnings payment,if you want
you can be invited to come and sign for your funds.

Everything was done in such a way that our payments mode would meet the standards set by the Lottery boards. We have also gone as far as to invite an accounting firm to over see the payments
process. After you have sent down these information, a certificate will be prepared for you.
This is to be your proof of winning from this office to the payment center before they release your funds. You are advised to keep your winning numbers secret to avoid unscrupulous elements from
taking advantage of the situation.

Once again, congratulations.

Regards,
Mr Jeffery Foley
Online English/Irish Roulette
P O Box 642
London, United Kingdom
(Verification Unit)
Tel:+44-7031921709

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam