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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
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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.

Click here to report a problem with this page.

Some comments by the Scam-O-Matic about the following email:

• The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "dear friend" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "i will like you to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "will come to you as a surprise" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
  • "urgent assistance" (scammers rush victims so they don't have time to think properly)
  • "top secret" (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 next of kin scam.

Fraud email example:

From: "mohamed.adamu" <mohamed_adamu28@telegraf.by>
Reply-To: mohamed.adamu@yahoo.es
Date: Fri, 18 Jul 2008 18:14:23 +0100
Subject: Very Urgent


From Mr Mohamed Adamu
Manager Bill and Exchange Dept
International Bank of Africa ( IBA)
Ouagadougou Burkina Faso.



Dear Friend,

I know that this mail will come to you as a surprise. I am the bill and
Exchange manager in International Bank of Africa .I Hope that you will not
expose or betray this trust and confident that i am about to Repose on you
for the mutual benefit of our both families. I need your urgent
assistance in transferring the sum of $10.8 million Immediately to your
account.



The money has been dormant for years in our Bank here without any body
coming for it. I want to release the money to you as the nearest person
to our deceased customer(the owner Of the account) who died a long with
his supposed next of kin in an air Crash since July 2000. I don't want
the money to go into our Bank treasury as an abandoned fund.


So this is the reason why i contacted you, so that the bank can release
the money to you as the nearest person to the deceased customer.Please i
will like you to keep this proposal as a top secret and delete if you are
not interested.



Upon receipt of your reply, I will send you full details on how the
Business will be executed and also note that you will have 40% of the Above
mentioned sum if you agree to transact the business with me.And you can add
your full informations for an urgent attention were appropriate.





Mr Mohamed Adamu
International Bank of Africa

Ouagadougou Burkina Faso

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam