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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:

• The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
  • "microsoft lottery" (no such lottery exists)
• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "fiduciary agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • "million pounds" (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)
  • ",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)
  • "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!
• 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.
  • +447031848195 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: MICROSOFT PROMOTIONS <loto2007@msn.com>
Date: Sat, 22 Dec 2007 13:57:12 -0500
Subject: MICROSOFT AWARD VERIFICATION FORM




MICROSOFT LOTTERY BOARD

PRIZE AWARD DEPARTMENTMicrosoft CampusThames Valley ParkReading Berkshire RG6 1WG(Customer's Service Center)



Dear Winner
I am the fiduciary agent assigned to your payment file. I wish to Congratulate on your victory, you are a lucky person to have won this lottery. In the on going MICROSOFT END OF YEAR PROMOTIONS held in ENGLAND AND WALES,Your e-mail address attached to ticket number P63PROMO with serial number 17-007, batch number 076685, lottery ref number MSN/EOY2007 and drew lucky numbers06 - 13 - 17 - 23 -32 - 43 bonus ball 49 which subsequently won you the lottery in the 2ND category i.e match 5 plus bonus. you have therefore been approved for a lump sum payout of £850,000(Eight hundred and fifty thousand pounds sterling)in cash credited to file KLTT/KTU/2005ETN.This is from a total cash prize of £8.5 Million pounds Sterling's, shared amongst the first TEN (10) lucky winners in this second category.The Lottery Draw facility uses special software to generate over 40,000 companies and 20,000,000 individual email addresses from all over the world at random.To begin your claims process, you are required to fill and forward the following details to help facilitate the processing of your claims.


First name:
Middle name:
Last name:
Date of birth (yyyy-mm-dd):
Gender:
Marital status:

Address:

City:
State/province:
Country:
Occupation:

Home Phone:
Mobile/cellular:
Fax:
Specify mode of delivery of won prize
Courier delivery of Cheque or Swift bank Transfer:
Sincerely,
Mr Patrick Richard MaskeryTel: +44 703 184 8195E-mail: loto2007@msn.com Fiduciary Agent.Verifications/Logistic Department

................................................................................................................................................This email and its attachments are confidential and intended for the exclusive use of the addressee(s). This email and its attachments may also be privileged or protected by legal rules. If you have received this by mistake please let us know by reply immediately and destroy the email and its attachments without reading, copying or forwarding the contents.

You are advised to forward these information as soon as possible to enable us attend to your file. You are advised to keep your winning numbers secret to avoid unscrupulous elements from taking advantage of the situation.
Once again, congratulations.Sincerely,
Mr Patrick Richard Maskery
Tel: +44 703 184 8195
E-mail: loto2007@msn.com
Fiduciary Agent.Verifications/Logistic Department
..............................................................................................................................................This email and its attachments are confidential and intended for the exclusive use of the addressee(s). This email and its attachments may also be privileged or protected by legal rules. If you have received this by mistake please let us know by reply immediately and destroy the email and its attachments without reading, copying or forwarding the contents.

Copyright © 2007 Microsoft Promotions . All rights reserved


_________________________________________________________________
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Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam