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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:
  • "dear sir/madam" (a standard Nigerian greeting phrase)
  • ",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.
  • +447053801106 (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.
  • unlotteryagent_2007@yahoo.com.hk (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: UNITED NATIONS <magretwoods_01@hotmail.com>
Reply-To: <unlotteryagent_2007@yahoo.com.hk>
Date: Mon, 15 Oct 2007 21:02:10 -0700
Subject: UNITED NATIONS NOTIFICATION !!!!!!!!!!!!!



The United Nations Lottery Headquarters270 John Downey Drive New BritainEC1Y 8SY LONDON UNITED KINGDOM(Customer Services) Ref: UN/9420X2/68Batch: 074/05/ZY369
DATE: 15-10-07 WINNING NOTIFICATION:Dear Sir/Madam,
We happily announce to you the draw (#921) of the, online Sweepstakes International program held on Monday 1st of October, 2007. Your E-mail address attached to TICKET NUMBER: 1322-4712-640 with SERIAL NUMBER: 2177-16 drew the LUCKY DREW NUMBERS: 21-18-8-28-05 (bonus no.20), which subsequently won you the lottery in the 2nd category i.e. match 5 plus bonus. You have therefore been approved to claim total sum of £1,000,000.00 (One Million Great British Pounds Sterling) in cash credited to file. All participants for the online version were selected randomly from World Wide Web sites through computer draw system and extracted From over 100,000 unions, associations, and corporate bodies that are listed online. For security reasons, you are advised to keep your winning information confidential till your claim is processed and your money remitted to you in whatever manner you deem fit to claim your prize. This is part of our precautionary measure to avoid double claiming and unwarranted abuse of this program. Please be warned. To file for Your claim, Please contacts our cash agent with the below info:********************************************************************MR. Castro KenTel: +44 705 380 1106Official Email:unlotteryagent_2007@yahoo.com.hk ********************************************************************Endeavour to contact him with the following information’s:
1, Full Names.....................2, Contact Address................3, Telephone Number...............4, Age..........5, Sex........6, Nationality....................7, Occupation.....................8, How would you like to receive your winnings via Courier/Bank Transfer?9, Winning information i.e. ticket number, batch number, reference number, serial number e.t.c.
Congratulations from me and members of staff of THE UNITED NATIONS LOTTERY.
Yours faithfully,MAGRET WOODS (MRS)
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam