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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "microsoft corporation word lottery" (no such lottery exists)
  • "ms-word lotto" (no such lottery exists)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "from: the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "clearance certificate" (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. )
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "claim agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "claims office" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • ",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)
• 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.
  • +447024094888 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)
  • +448704717572 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: MICROSOFT AWARD <micro71prize@hotmail.com>
Date: Mon, 17 Sep 2007 16:39:32 +0900
Subject: YOU HAVE WON THE MICROSOFT LOTTERY AWARD















FROM: THE DESK OF THE E-MAIL PROMOTIONS MANAGER INTERNATIONAL PROMOTIONS/PRIZEAWARD DEPARTMENT, MICROSOFT CORPORATION WORD LOTTERYUNITED KINGDOM.61-70 Southampton Row,Bloomsbury London United Kingdom WC1B 4AR.REFERENCE NO: MSW-L/200-26937BATCH NO: 2005SEPTL#22YOU ARE THE WINNER NO: 3ELECTRONIC MAIL AWARD WINNING NOTIFICATIONAWARD PRESENTATION CENTER: UNITED KINGDOMMICROSOFT COOPERATION MANAGEMENT WORLDWIDE ARE PLEASEDTO INFORM YOU THAT YOU ARE A WINNER OF OUR ANNUAL MS-WORD LOTTO LOTTERY CONDUCTED IN EUROPE BEING THE HOST OF THE EVENT FOR THIS PRESENT YEAR MEGA JACKPOT LOTTO WINNING PROGRAMS YOUR PERSONAL E-MAIL ADDRESS OR COMPANY EMAIL WAS ATTACHED TO FEB MSWLL. WITH SERIAL NUMBER S/N-00168 DREW THE LUCKY NUMBERS 887-13-865-37-10-83, AND CONSEQUENTLY WON IN THE FIRST LOTTERY CATEGORY. YOU HAVE THEREFORE BEEN APPROVED FOR LUMP SUMS OF £ 1,000,000.00(ONE MILLION GREAT BRITAIN POUNDS) PAYABLE IN CASH CREDITED TO FILE REF NO: MSW-L/200-26937 INTERNATIONAL WINNERS IN FIRST AND SECOND CATEGORY.ALL PARTICIPANTS WERE SELECTED FROM WORLDWIDE WEBSITES ESPECIALLY YAHOO AND HOTMAIL THROUGH OUR MICROSOFT COMPUTER BALLOT SYSTEM DRAWN FROM 21,000 NAMES, 3,000 NAMES FROM EACH CONTINENT (CANADA, ASIA, AUSTRALIA, UNITED STATE, EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA AND OCEANIA, AS PART OF INTERNATIONAL "E-MAIL" PROMOTIONS PROGRAM, WHICH IS CONDUCTED ANNUALLY FOR OUR PROMINENT MS -WORD USERS ALL OVER THE WORLD, AND TO ENCOURAGE THE USE OF INTERNET AND COMPUTERS WORLDWIDE. YOUR FUND (CERTIFIED CHEQUE) HAS BEEN INSURED WITH YOUR REF NO: MSW-L/200-26937 AND WILL BE READY FOR DELIVERY. IT WILL BE DELIVERED TO YOU BY ONE OF OUR CLAIM AGENT IN CHARGE OF YOUR ZONE Mr RICHARD BOLTA YOUR E-MAIL ADDRESS SHOULD BE USED IN ALL CORRESPONDENCE WITH YOUR CLAIMS OFFICER, PLEASE NOTE THAT, YOU ARE TO CONTACT YOUR CLAIMS OFFICER VIA EMAIL AND PHONE AS WE ARE PROMOTING THE USE OF E-MAIL. ALSO YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO CALL HIM TO CONFIRM YOUR WINNINGS , AS HE WILL PROVIDE YOU WITH THE NECESSARY DETAILS ON HOW TO CLAIM YOUR PRIZE.AS PART OF OUR SECURITY PROTOCOL YOU ARE TO QUOTE THIS SECURITY CODE MSW/FEB/XX06 TO YOUR CLAIMING AGENT. THIS IS TO PREVENT SCAM .CLAIMS AGENT OFFICER CONTACT MR RICHARD BOLTAE-MAIL:richardbolta@katamail.comTELE:+44-7024094888 OR +44-7024051112FAX:+44-8704717572OFFICE ADDRESS:VALIANT HOUSE,40-10 HENEAGE LANE LONDON,EC3A 5DQYou are advised to contact your fiduciary agent with the following details to avoid unnecessary delays and complications:(as indicated in this winning Notification)1). Beneficiary's Names in Full:2). Residential Address:3). City/State:4). Business/Company's Name:5). Occupation/Profession: 6). Tel/Moblie Phone/Fax Number:7). Gender: 8). Age:9). Nationality:10).Security code:11).Ref. File No: 12).Batch Number: 13).Serial No: 14).Lucky Numbers:15).Winning Prize Amount: 16).Notification Date:17). Bank Name: 18). Bank Address: 19). Account Holder's Name: 20). Account Number: 21). Branch Name or Code: 22). Swift Code: 23).Any copy of your International Passport or Driver's License or I.D Card.REMEMBER, ALL PRIZE MONEY MUST BE CLAIMED AS SOON AS POSSIBLE. ALL FUNDS NOT CLAIMED ON OR BEFORE THE FIXED DATE WILL BE RETURNED AS UNCLAIMED AND DONATED TO CHARITY ORGANIZATION IN AFRICA .NOTE: IN ORDER TO AVOID MISTAKES, PLEASE REMEMBER TO QUOTE YOUR REFERENCE AND BATCH NUMBERS AND YOUR SECURITY CODE OF MSW/FEB/XX06 . AT ONCE YOU WILL BE ASKED TO PROVIDE SOME DETAILS TO ENABLE THE OFFICE PROCEED WITH YOUR WINNING CERTIFICATE AND FILE KEEPING.CONGRATULATIONS, ONCE MORE FROM THE ENTIRE MANAGEMENT AND STAFF OF BILL GATE MICROSOFT COOPERATION TO ALL OUR LUCKY WINNERS(£ 1,000,000.00)(ONE MILLION GREAT BRITAIN POUNDS) THIS YEAR. THANK YOU FOR BEING PART OF THIS PROMOTIONAL LOTTERY PROGRAM. OUR SPECIAL THANKS AND GRATITUDE TO BILL GATE OF MICROSOFT AND ALL HIS ASSOCIATES FOR ALLEVIATING POVERTY ROUND THE WORLD. AS WE AWAIT A FAST RESPONDS TO ENABLE A FAST PROCEDURE TOWARDS THE PROCESSING OF YOUR ORIGINAL CLEARANCE CERTIFICATE AND YOUR FUND.SINCERELY,Mrs. JEAN. JERSSY (Secretary)
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam