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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

• About the 419 (Advance Fee) scam
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• Frequently asked Questions (419 FAQ)
• Phone numbers used by 419 scammers
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• 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 friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "a security company " (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. Never ever send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally. )
  • "the consignment" (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)
  • "trunk box" (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)
  • "million 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)
  • "% will be for you" (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)
  • "keep this confidential" (scammers urge victims to keep the transaction secret because they don't want anyone to point out to them that it is a scam)
• This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
  
• 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.
  • johnsmorg@yahoo.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "johnsmorg6 Gazeta.pl" <johnsmorg6@gazeta.pl>
Date: Thu, 3 Jul 2008 14:39:38 -0700
Subject: PLEASE HELP ME


Dear Friend,
I hope this email is reaching you in good faith but before i
proceed any further let me properly introduce myself , i am John Smorg a
nationally of Sierra Leone but currently living at the refugee camp in
Ghana.
When war broke out in Sierra Leone my dad's company was destroy
and my parents were killed by rebel militants who invaded my dad's company
but my dad was able to reveal to me that he deposited a funds of an amount
of 10.5 million United States Dollars in a safe trunk box with a security
company in Ghana and he warned me that i should look for an elderly person
who i will trust and will take me like his own son to protect and invest the
funds for me until when i am of age and now i have been able to locate the
security company here in my country Ghana and the security company director
also confirmed the genuity of the trunk box to me .So now i am seeking for
your assistant to help me to clear the treasured trunk box from the
security company and have it delivered to you in your country for the fund
inside it be invested into any lucrative business venture that will yield
us a better profit and for your acceptance to assist me 20% will be for
your assistant, 1% have been laid down for re reimbursement of any money
that will be invested in the clearing of the consignment box from the
company and the rest 79% will be for me which you will invest in your
country and you are also liable to 5% of any profit gained at the end of
each business year but if the terms are not suitable for you we can always
negotiate on this .
I also want you to know that my dad warned me never to reveal the content
of the box to the company because he told me that he deposited it as a
family valuables and i also want you to keep this confidential to your self,
do not reveal it to any body and not even to the representative from the
security company that will deliver the treasured trunk box to you in your
country.

If you are willing to help me get back to me with on my email
address:*johnsmorg@yahoo.com* with your phone number so that we can discuss
more and i will reply back to you with the documents backing the boxes to
prove my ownership to the boxes in the security company for your view and
these documents will also give you the legal permission to contact the
company on my behalf as my legal beneficiary for further information on how
to receive the box in your country.

I will be waiting to receive your quick response to my email and
God bless .
Respectfully,
John Smorg

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam