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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• 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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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:
  • "your urgent reply" (they are rushing you so you don't have time to think properly)
  • "contact me immediately" (they are rushing you so you don't have time to think properly)
  • "lagos" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
• This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
  
• 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.
  • +2348026168802 (Nigeria, prepaid mobile phone)
• 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.
  • paulinbank@netscape.net

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr. Paul Ralph" <mr_paul000@msn.com>
Reply-To: ppaulrwork09@yahoo.com.cn
Date: Mon, 03 Jul 2006 16:53:43 +0000
Subject: Re: You are the chosen one, From Mr. Paul Ralph

Mr. Paul Ralph
Manager Internal Audit/-
Foreign Remittance Dept,
Union Bank Nig Plc,
Victoria Island, Lagos.
E-mail:(paulinbank@netscape.net)
 
 Attention Sir/Madam
 
By the grace of God my name is Mr. Paul Ralph; I sourced your profile from a human resource profile database in the Internet. I am an accounts officer to late Mr. Morris Thompson an American who is an oil merchant agent here in Nigeria, a well-known Philanthropist before he died' he made a Will stating that $13.2M(Thirteen million, two hundred thousand U.S. dollars only) should be given to any citizen overseas to invest.
 
I have made a random draw your name and e-mail address was picked as the beneficiary to this Will. I am particularly interested in securing this money from the Bank because they have issued a notice instructing me as the accounts officer to produce a beneficiary to this Will within two weeks or else the money will be credited to the Government treasury as per law here. It is my utmost desire to execute the Will of my late client Morris Thompson since he is no more alive both wife Thelma Thompson, and daughter Sheryl Thompson.
 
Please for more details concerning him and how he died, you can visit this
website:
http://www.cnn.com/2000/US/02/01/alaska.airlines.list/   
 
If you are interested, you are required to contact me immediately to start the process of transferring this fund to any of your designated official account or your off-shore account. I urge you to contact me immediately for further details’ bearing in mind that the Bank has given us a time limit, please act fast.
 
Contact me through my private E-mail:(paulinbank@netscape.net)
 
you can reach me with my cell phone number, which is as follows:
234-80-2616-8802.
 
I await your urgent reply
 
Mr. Paul Ralph
May God bless you.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam