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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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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:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "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)
• This email message is a next of kin scam.
• 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.
  • +27732126983 (South Africa, 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.
  • head.operations@mailbox.co.za (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Mr.DC Arnold" <op.head@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <head.operations@mailbox.co.za>
Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2007 17:37:09 +0200
Subject: From: Mr. DC Arnold



MR DC Arnold
Head of Operations,
ABSA Bank of South Africa Limited
3rd Floor, Absa Towers East, 170 Main Street,
Johannesburg, 2001Postal address:
PO Box 7757, Johannesburg, 2000
Email: head.operations@mailbox.co.za
www.absa.co.za

ATTN SIR.CEO,
I am Mr. DC Arnold, The Head of Operations of ABSA Bank of South Africa Limited.I got your contact from a very confidential source and I wish to maintain this confidentiality.
Actually, I decided to send you this proposal directly for your appraisal on business opportunity for you & for our overall mutual interest need your assurance to help conclude a very good transaction wish I feel you will be very much interested, In my department we discovered an abandoned sum of $17M US Dollars ( SEVENTEEN MILLION US DOLLARS) In an account that belongs to one of our foreign customer who died along with his entire family in November 2002 in a plane crash.
Since we got information about his death, we have been expecting his next 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 guidelines but unfortunately we learnt that all his supposed next of kin or relation died along side with him at the plane crash leaving nobody behind for the claim. It is therefore upon this discovery that I decided to make this business proposal to you and release the money to you as the next of kin or relation to the deceased for safety and subsequent disbursement 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 guideline here stipulates that if such money remained unclaimed after SIX years, the money will be transferred into the Bank treasury as unclaimed fund.
The request of foreigner as next of kin in this business is occasioned by the fact that the customer was a foreigner and a South African citizen's cannot stand as next of kin to a foreigner.
We agree that 30 % of this money will be for you as foreign partner, in respect to the provision of a foreign account and 60 % would be for me & my colleagues. There after I will visit your country for disbursement according to the percentages indicated. Therefore to enable the immediate transfer of this fund to you as arranged, we must sign a contract agreement before the transaction take place for security reason.
Upon receipt of your reply, I will send to you by fax or email the text of the application. 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 if you are interested and ready to transact with me. Then I will request for some vital information from you first before we could proceed. In your reply do remember to include your full name and your direct Telephone/Fax number for easy communications between us.
Waiting for your soonest response.
Yours faithfully,
MR. DC Arnold
TELL: +27 732126983
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam