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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 phrases in this message should put you on alert:
  • "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
  • ",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)
  • "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.
  • +31649304315 (Netherlands, prepaid mobile phone)

Fraud email example:

From: "Prizeaward" <nvlotto@yahoo.cn>
Date: Tue, 22 Jul 2008 21:57:09 GMT
Subject: YOU WON CALL TO CONFIRM


YOU WON CALL TO CONFIRM
Postbus 3074,2280GB
Rijswijk
The Netherlands
www.postcodeterij.nl

We are pleased to inform you of the result of the just concluded annual =
final draws Euro Online Promotions held in Rotterdam,The Netherlands on =
the 20th of July;2008.The online cyber lotto draws was conducted from an =
exclusive list of 500,000 e-mail addresses of individuals and corporate =
bodies selected by an advanced automated random computer search from the =
internet.

No tickets were sold.The selected e-mail addresses were attached to =
tickets numbers which were spinned by our ballot machine.Your e-mail =
address attached to ticket number 710160033343 emerged as one of ten =
winners in the category =22A=22 with the following winning information =
:REFERENCE N0 :NLT 30018, BATCH N0: VBJ01773432

You have been approved for a payment therefore of EURO 1,000,000.00(one =
million EURO)Be advice to keep your winning information confidential until =
your claims has been processed and your money remitted to you. This is =
part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming and unwarranted =
abuse of this program.

You should contact our claims agent that will assist you in the claimant =
procedure on the information below:
******************************
Name: Mr Peter Van Der
Tel: +31-649-304-315
Fax: +31 847 254 686
Email: bvlottonl=40yahoo.cn
******************************
Remember to quote your winning information,that is your reference/batch =
number and your personal information as stated below:

1. Name in full
2. Address
3. Nationality
4. Agea
5. Phone/Fax

Congratulation once more
Yours faithfully,
Mary Van Dotcha
Games/Loterij Coordinator=

Anti-fraud resources:

• What can you do when you receive 419 spam