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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.

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.

Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!

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:

Fraud email example:

From: Marina Tureh <marinatureh001@yahoo.com>
Date: Mon, 22 Jan 2007 04:12:26 -0800 (PST)
Subject: WAITING FOR YOUR EMAIL


MY DEAR,
THIS IS FOR REAL AND I WANT YOU TO BELIEVE ME FIRST BEFORE WE PROCEED, BECAUSE IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME THAT MEANS WE CAN'T DO THIS TRANSACTION WITH UNDERSTANDING AND TRUST.
I WILL NEED YOUR CONTACT DETAILS. YOUR TELEPHONE AND FAX NUMBERS. YOUR HOME AND OFFICE ADDRESS.
AS SOON AS THESE ARE CONFIRMED. I WILL SEND YOU THE PROOF DOCUMENTS AND THE CONTACTS OF THE COMPANY FOR MORE VERIFICATION AND UNDERSTANDING.
I WAIT FOR YOUR URGENT EMAIL.
THANKS
MARINA


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