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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
  (+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:
  • "from the desk of" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "chambers" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
• 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.
  • kofiado@latinmail.com (email address has been used in a known fraud before)

Fraud email example:

From: "Kofi Ado" <matett.b@gazeta.pl>
Reply-To: kofiado@latinmail.com
Date: Tue, 8 Jul 2008 20:36:06 +0100
Subject: HELLO


>From the desk of:
Mr. Kofi Ado


Dearest,


I got your contact through discreet inquiry from the chambers of commerce
and industry. My name is Mr. Kofi Ado Branch manager of a financial
institution here in Ghana. I am searching for a reliable,honest and a
trustworthy person to entrust some huge sum of funds upon.I am a Ghanaian
married with two kids. I am writing to solicit for your assistance to
enable me transfer the sum of $9,550,000.00 Nine Million Five Hundred and
fifty Thousand United States dollars only.


This fund is the excess of what my branch in which am the manager made as
profit during the 2006 financial year. I have already submitted annual
report for that year to my head office here in Accra as I have watched with
keen interest as they will never know of this excess.I have since, placed
this amount of $ 9,550,000.00( Nine Million five hundred and fifty thousand
United States dollars) only to an Escrow Coded account without a beneficiary
(anonymous) to avoid trace.


As an officer of the bank, I cannot be directly connected to this money thus
I am impelled to request for your assistance to receive
this money into your bank account on my behalf. I intend to part 30%of this
fund to you while 70% shall be for me. I do need to stress
that there are practically no risk involved in this. It's going to be a
bank-to-bank transfer. All I need from you is to stand as the original
depositor of this fund so that the funds can be transferred to your account.
If you accept this offer, please write to me at my private email address
kofiado@latinmail.com for more details.


I will appreciate your timely response urgently.


Yours faithfully,
Mr. Kofi Ado

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam