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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:
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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:
  • "any lucrative business in your country" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • ",000,000" (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)
  • "with absolute secrecy" (they don't want anyone to point out to you that this is a scam)
  • "is 100% risk free" (almost true for the criminal - arrests of online criminals are rare)
  • "dormant account" (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.
• 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.
  • pfrank441@hotmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: Peter Frank <peterfk44@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <pfrank441@hotmail.com>
Date: Thu, 16 Aug 2007 15:21:11 +0000
Subject: Inheritance Fund


From: Peter FrankPrivate Email: pfrank441@hotmail.comSubject: Inheritance FundDate: August 16th, 2007.
Hello, I apologize if the contents hereunder are contrary to your moral ethics, but please treat it with absolute secrecy and personal courtesy. I am Peter Frank the Chief Auditor in a commercial Bank here UK, in the process of auditing our bank accounts this quarter, I and one of my colleagues recently discovered that there is a dormant account valued at the sum £10,000,000.00 (Ten Million British Pound Sterling) and after due verification of this account we discovered that the account owner is late and that is why the account has been dormant and as such a £10,000,000.00 has been lying in the bank unclaimed. The idea of presenting a foreigner to act as his next of kin came into our mind, as you know the said deceased is a foreigner as well. Hence, that is how and why we have contacted you to present you as his next of kin, so that the £10,000,000.00 will be paid to you and we can both disburse the fund according to the percentage we will agree upon. In view of this, I am seeking for your co-operation and understanding to stand as the next of kin to our deceased customer, to enable us claim the fund from my bank. Hence, if this proposal is OK by you and you do not wish to take undue advantage of my trust, then I hope to bestow on you. Please kindly get back to me immediately via my private email address {pfrank441@hotmail.com}. On getting your response, we shall agree on the percentage ratio on which we shall disburse the £10,000,000.00 between us, as we intend to invest part of our own share in real estate or any lucrative business in your country, and we would appreciate if you can put us in the right part where we can invest our own share in your country. I will not contact any person or company until I hear from you, so as to enable me decides on what to do next. Be rest assured that this business is 100% risk free. We wait for your prompt response. Best Regards,Peter Frank. NB: PLEASE NOTE THAT IT DOES NOT MATTER IF YOU ARE NOT RELATED TO MY LATE CLIENT OR NOT; THE FUND WILL STILL BE PAID TO YOU, SINCE I AM PRESENTING YOU AS HIS NEXT OF KIN.
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam