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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.

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 phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "hundred thousand united states dollars" (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)
  • "00,000.00" (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 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.
  • accessservice_plc@hotmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: fred brown <fredbrownshell2@live.com>
Date: Sat, 10 Nov 2007 14:06:15 +0100
Subject: YOU HAVE WON THE SHELL LOTTERY PRIZE






SHELL LOTTERY INTERNATIONAL

THIS IS TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU ARE ONE OF THE FIFTY[50]LUCKY WINNERS OF THIS YEAR'S ANNUAL SHELL INTERNATIONAL LOTTERY WHICH WAS HELD IN NIGERIA UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF INTERNATIONAL MONITORING GROUPS SUCH AS THE TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL AND CNN.YOUR WINNING NUMBER IS SHELLNG233936.
ALL PARTICIPANTS WERE SELECTED THROUGH AN AUTOMATED COMPUTER MAIL SELECTION SYSTEM CONSISTING OF ALL THE WORLD ACCLAIMED EMAIL PROVIDERS.
YOUR CASH PRIZE IS $400,000.00USD[FOUR HUNDRED THOUSAND UNITED STATES DOLLARS ONLY]WHICH HAS BEEN LODGED INTO AN ACCOUNT WITH THE OFFICIAL BANK OF THE LOTTERY,ACCESS BANK OF NIGERIA PLC.
YOU ARE TO CONTACT THE BANK[accessservice_plc@hotmail.com] WITH THE FOLLOWING INFORMATION :
1:FULL NAMES
2:RESIDENTIAL ADDRESS
3:TELEPHONE NUMBER
4:WINNING NUMBER
5:AGE
6:OCCUPATION
7:SEX
8:MARITAL STATUS
FOR FUTHER STEPS ON HOW TO CLAIM YOUR PRIZE. CONGRATULATIONS!!!
YOURS IN SERVICE
DR FRED BROWN.
P.R.O SHELL LOTTERY INTERNATIONAL.

NOTE:YOU HAVE TO CLAIM YOUR FUND NOT LATER THAN 14 DAYS OF THIS MAIL.
_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam