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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
• Support our efforts to stop scams!
  
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• What can you do when you receive 419 spam
  
  
• Spam archive, Daily index
  

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:
  • "national lottery promotion" (no such lottery exists)
• 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)
  • ",500,000" (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)
  • "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 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.
  • +447024091143 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: "PRIMELOTTER INNTERNATION2008" <primelotter.innternation@googlemail.com>
Date: Mon, 14 Apr 2008 20:26:56 -0700
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS!


PRIME LOTTERY INTERNATIONAL
LOTTERY PROMOTION
Customer Service
17-19 cole Street,Baines,
Middlesex TW18 4TP,
United Kingdom.






WINNING ANNOUNCEMENT:
We are pleased to inform you that one of the best things that can
happen to any Internet user is to be rewarded for spending money
and time on the Internet. After we conducted a research on the
issue, we concluded that Internet users should be compensated.
As a result, we embarked on a worldwide lottery promotion with
a sophisticated automated database to randomly select E-mail
accounts that frequently surf the Internet.

Your E-mail address emerged as a winner in the category "B"
with the following numbers attached Ref Number: HL-9318, Batch
Number: HL-9501, Ticket number: HL-01135 and Serial number:
HL-122692. You and other category "B" winners are therefore
to receive a cash prize of Two million, Five Hundred Thousand
United States Dollars (US$2,500,000.000) respectively.
***********************************************************
You are advised to contact our endorsed agent with the information
below:
DR Michael Moore
Direct Line: +447024091143
Contact Email: priz_primeintlaward@y7mail.com
***********************************************************
You will provide him with the following information:

1. Your Full Name:
2. Country of Residence:
3. Age:
4. Sex:
5. Occupation:
6. Telephone/Fax Number:
7. and your Reference Number:

CONGRATULATIONS !!!
At your disposal, we remain.

Yours faithfully,
SIR H.J.LEEDS
Lottery Co-ordinator.

Copyright 1994-2008 The Prime Lottery Inc.
All rights reserved. Terms of Service - Guideline
77635 476378 2556674417

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam