419 scam: The United Nations Development Programe <info@undp.org> Grant

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"419" Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam

The so-called "419" scam is a type of fraud dominated by criminals from Nigeria and other countries in Africa. Victims of the scam are promised a large amount of money, such as a lottery prize, inheritance, money sitting in some bank account, etc.

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.

Keep in mind that scammers DO NOT use their real names when defrauding people.
The criminals either abuse names of real people or companies or invent names or addresses.
Any real people or companies mentioned below have NO CONNECTION to the scammers!

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:

This email uses a separate reply address that is different from the sender address. Spammers use this to get replies even when the original spam sending accounts have been shut down. Also, sometimes the sender addresses are legitimate looking but fake and only the reply address is actually an email account controlled by the scammers.
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "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)
- ",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!

Fraud email example:

From: The United Nations Development Programe <info@undp.org>
Reply-To: mpiyanun.undp@live.com
Date: Sat, 6 Jun 2009 19:00:47 +0200 (CEST)
Subject: Grant

www.undp.org/about/
Concern,
The United Nations Development Program , in conjunction with the
Society for family health (SFH) and the European Union (EU), is giving
Out a yearly donation of US$1,000,000.00 (One million united states
Dollars) as a specific Donation/Grants to 5 Lucky international
Recipients worldwide, this is to assist against terrorism.

Note: All beneficiaries email addresses were selected randomly from over
100,000 internet websites, mini mart shops cash invoice around your area
In which you might have purchased something from. Be Informed that NO
TICKET WERE SOLD, You are required to fill the form below and email it
To the office of our Executive Secretary with the below contact for
Qualification, documentation and processing of your claims. You are to
Contact the EXECUTIVE SECRETARY with your
Qualification numbers (UNDP-777-900, SFH-6747-46).
=====================================
FUNDS RELEASED AND VERIFICATION FORM
1 . Full Name.:.......................
2 . Contact Address.:... .........
3 . Present Country.:..............
4 . AGE /DATE OF BIRTH: .....
5 . TEL/FAX NR:....................
6 . OCCUPATION /SEX:..........
7 . WINNING EMAIL ID:........
========================================
CONTACT PERSON,
EXECUTIVE SECRETARY: Mr. Musa Piyanun
E-MAIL ADDRESS: mpiyanun.undp@live.com
========================================
Respectfully
Kemal Dervis,UNDP Administrator

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam