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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
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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:

• An email address listed inside this email has been used in a known fraud before.
• The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "national lottery promotion" (no such lottery exists)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "money laundering" ("anti-terrorist", "anti-money laundering" or "drug-free" certificates are a common way for criminals in fake lottery scams and other Advance Fee scams to get you to send money to them. There are no such certificates in the real banking world. )
  • "affidavit " (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
  • "chambers" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
• 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.
  • +447045718989 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
• 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.
  • hennessylaw01@yahoo.co.uk (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: Mr Fernando Walker <promanagerwalker02@yahoo.co.uk>
Date: Mon, 23 Jul 2007 23:07:19 +0100 (BST)
Subject: Verification Finalised/Proceed For Claim Immediately.


Dear Wilhelm Wirthlich,
Your identification have been received in this office.
Due to Government Policies of the UK,all legal procedures should be observed.
This means that you have been officially cleared for payment by the Verifications Department at the headquarters of the The National Lottery.Your Fund,original copy of your winning certificate, together with a covering document (Money Laundering protection and Letter of Affidavit for Claims) from the UK government stating that the money was obtained legally through their National Lottery promotion.
You are to come down to London for handover of your winning.Alternatively,If you cannot make it down you are to contact the lottery office Attorney, Mr Patrick Hennessy, He will be in position to hand over your winnings to you with all the neccesary documents since you cannot be present here in person. He has been the lottery office Attorney for over twelve years and his integrity have been held as one of the most reliable Attorney in the United Kingdom, therefore feel free to relate things with him. You can contact him in his chambers with the email address and details below :
Name:Pat $ Co. Legal Chamber
Email: hennessylaw01@yahoo.co.uk
Tel :+44 70457 18989
Tel :+44 70457 23980
He will attend to you and get your verification process finalised soonest.
Once again, congratulations. Have a nice day as you contact the lottery Office legal Counsel.
Mr Fernando Walker.


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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam