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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
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• 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.

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:
  • "please endeavor to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "claims 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.
  • +447024034565 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
  • +448704781977 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: "rheinlandpfalz1" <rheinlandpfalz1@terra.com.mx>
Date: Tue, 25 Jul 2006 09:53:18 -0600
Subject: LOTTERY WIN NOTIFICATION-Contact Your Claims Agent.


LOTTO Rheinland-Pfalz
Ferdinand-Sauerbruch-Strasse 2
DE-56073 Koblenz,
Rheinland-Pfalz,
Germany.

Reference Number: LRP/19-DE/9317
Batch: LRP/06/41

Dear Winner,

LOTTO RHEINLAND-PFLAZ WIN NOTIFICATION

We are pleased to inform you of the result of the just concluded annual
final draws of the LOTTO Rheinland-Pfalz Program. LOTTO Rheinland-Pfalz
draws was conducted from an exclusive list of 25,000,000 e-mail
addresses of individual and corporate bodies picked by an advanced
automated random computer ballot search from the internet as part of
our international promotions program which we conduct every year.
No tickets were sold.

After this automated computer ballot, your e-mail address attached to
serial number 76-2006 drew the lucky numbers 3-24-1-10-49-17 which
consequently emerged you as one of first fifty (50) lucky winners
in this category.

You have therefore been approved for a lump sum payout of €1,000,000.00
(One Million EURO) in cash credited to file LRP/19-DE/9317. This is
from a total cash prize of €50,000,000 (Fifty Million) Euro shared
amongst the first fifty (50) lucky winners in this category.

This year Lottery Program Jackpot is the largest ever for LOTTO
Rheinland-Pfalz.The estimated €50 million jackpot would be
the sixth-biggest in Europe history.The biggest was the €363
million jackpot that went to two winners in a Febuary
2000 drawing of The Big Game Mega Millions' predecessor.

Your fund is now deposited in an offshore bank with a hardcover
insurance.Due to the mix up of some numbers and names, we
advice that you keep this award from public notice until
your claim has been processed and your money remitted to you as
this is part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming or unwarranted taking advantage of this program by the general
public.

Please note that your lucky winning number falls within our European booklet representative office in London. In view of this,
your €1,000,000.00(One Million Euro) would be released to
you by our affiliate bank in Europe.Our agent will immediately
commence the process to facilitate the release of your funds
to you as soon as you make contact with him.

To begin your claim please contact your claims agent:

Mr.Wilson Gart
Foreign Services Manager,
Information and Payment Bureau.
London Representative Office.
Phone: +44-702-403-4565
Fax: +44-870-478-1977
Email: wgart03@uk2.net

Your claims agent will assist you in the processing and remittance of
your prize funds into your designated bank account.

Note that all prize funds must be claimed not later than One month.
After this date all funds will be returned to the LOTTERY TREASURY
as unclaimed. In order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications,
please endeavor to quote your Reference (LRP/19-DE/9317) and Batch
numbers (LRP/06/41) in every correspondence with your agent.
Furthermore,should there be any change in your address, do inform
your claims agent as soon as possible.

Congratulations once again from all members of staff of LOTTO Rheinland-pflaz.

Yours faithfully,
Hans-Peter Schössler
Managing Director
LOTTO Rheinland-Pfalz.

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam