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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
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
• How to report 419 spam to us
• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• Spam archive, Daily index
  

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:
  • "money transfer control number" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. )
  • "vat (5%)" (VAT rate in the UK is 17.5%, check the math)
  • "courier service" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
  • "courier company" (Courier companies mentioned in 419 scams are always fake. They will have you send money to them, but won't deliver anything. )
  • "cheque " (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
• 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!
• Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.

Fraud email example:

From: ALLIED COURIER SERVICES <allied_courierservices@yahoo.com>
Date: Thu, 2 Aug 2007 20:27:16 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: CHOOSE OPTION OF DELIVERY


ALLIED COURIER SERVICES LIMITED






WE DELIVER FROM UK TO ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

OUR SERVICE GUARANTEE
IMMEDIATE DISPATCH OF A DRIVER TO PICK UP YOUR PACKAGE.
DIRECT DELIVERY TO YOUR CLIENTS WITH NO INTERMEDIATE STOPS.
WE CALL YOU BACK WITH PROOF OF DELIVERY AND TIME OF DELIVERY
COURTEOUS PERSONNEL
LOW RATES AND ON-TIME DELIVERY--GUARANTEED



ALLIED COURIER SERVICE DELIVERY COMPANY
Our Ref: GMCES/UK/REG/23/34/2
Dear Winner,

You can now begin the final step of the claims process, which is the delivery of winning cheque to you. With regards to this, there are options open to you; you are required to select the more convenient . The options, together with their associated conditions are presented below:

OPTIONS
Courier of your winning parcel to your location via any of this channel listed below:

NEXT DAY
Duration Of Delivery ......... 56hrs
An original certificate of weight.....0.9Gramms
Total weight of parcel................1.26 Gramms
Colour of parcel......................Brown
Mailing...............................$150.00
Insurance.............................$200.00
Vat (5%)..............................$400.95

TOTAL.................................$750.95 Dollars.


INTERNATIONAL
Duration Of Delivery ......... 49hrs
An original certificate of weight.....0.9Gramms
Total weight of parcel................1.26 Gramms
Colour of parcel......................Brown
Flight; ..............................$250.00
Insurance.............................$300.00
Vat (5%)..............................$400.00

TOTAL.................................$950.00 Dollars.


Make payment to our aaccount officer via Western Union Money Transfered or Money Gram details below. The address/country and name of the account officer is below:
Name: Mr Andy Rudolph Country:United Kingdom.

Delivery duration: 2-3 Days.
This payment should be made under 48hrs of receiving this email.
You are to forward payment details to our office via email which must include the
following:

NAME OF SENDER:
ADDRESS OF SENDER:
AMOUNT SENT:
COUNTRY OF SENDER:
MONEY TRANSFER CONTROL NUMBER.(M.T.C.N):
This Courier company will deliver latest two days after the requirements/payment has been made to our head office in the United Kingdom.

Regards,
Mrs.Susan Wood.


































































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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam