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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

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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:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "million us 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)
  • "contact me immediately" (they are rushing you so you don't have time to think properly)
  • "foreign remittance department" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
• This email message is a next of kin scam.

Fraud email example:

From: "funshoclark " <funsho_clark@yahoo.com>
Date: 14 Jan 2007 17:50:19 -0000
Subject: BILL AND EXCHANGE MANAGER


FROM THE DESK OF. MR.FUNSHO CLARKBILL AND EXCHANGE MANAGERFOREIGN REMITTANCE DEPT.BANK OF AFRICA(B.O.A)OUAGADOUGOU, BURKINA FASO
Dear Friend,I am the manager of bill and exchange at the foreign remittance department BANK OF AFRICA .In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of U.S$25M US dollars(Twenty five Million US dollars) in an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer who died along with his entire family in November 2005 in a plane crash on their visting to nigeria on the 22th of october 2005.Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting hisnext of kin to come over and claim his money because we cannot release it unless somebody applies for it as next of kin or relation to the deceased as indicated in our banking guidlines and laws but unfortunately we learnt that all his supposed next of kin or relation died alongside with him at the plane crash leaving nobody behind for the claim.It is therefore upon this discovery that I now decided to make thisbusiness proposal to you, so that the money will be released to youas the next of kin or relation to the deceased f!
or safety and subsequent is bursement since nobody is coming for it and we don\'t want this money to go into the bank treasury as unclaimed bill.The banking law and guidline here stipulates that if such money remained unclaimed after two years, the money will be transfered into the banktreasury as unclaimed bill. The request of foreigner as next of kin in this business is occassioned by the fact that the customer was a foreigner and a Burkina faso cannot be stand as next of kin to a foreigner.I propose that 30% of this money will be for you as my foreignpartner, in respect to the provision of a foreign account, 10% will be set aside&gt;for expenses incured during the business and 60% would be for me. Thereafter I will visit your country for disbursement according to the percentages indicated.Therefore, to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to you asarranged, you must apply first to the bank as relation or next of kin of the deceased indicating your bank name, your b!
ank account number, your private telephone and fax number for easy and
effective communication and location to wirein the money where it will be remitted.Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by e-mail a text of the application which you\'ll fill in and send to the bank\'s email address. I will not fail to bring to your notice that this transaction is hitch-free and that you should not entertain any atom of fear as all required arrangements have been made for the transfer.You should contact me immediately as soon as you receive this letter or further your clearifications,this is my personal email;address funsho_clark@yahoo.com.Yours faithfully,DR.funsho clark

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam