419 scam: "BMW AWARENESS PROMOTION."<bmwclaimagent@aol.com> ** CONGRATULATIONS YOU HAVE WON A BMW X6 SUV AND $250,000 IN THE BMW LOTTERY **

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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:

The following fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
- "the bmw automobile company" (no such lottery exists)
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "you are advice to " (this email uses bad English)
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 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.
- bmwclaimagent@aol.com

Fraud email example:

From: "BMW AWARENESS PROMOTION." (may be fake)
Date: Wed, 17 Jun 2009 05:24:34 -0700
Subject: ** CONGRATULATIONS YOU HAVE WON A BMW X6 SUV AND $250,000 IN THE BMW LOTTERY **

THE INTERNATIONAL AWARENESS
PROMOTION DEPARTMENT OF
THE BMW AUTOMOBILE COMPANY.
Customer Communication Center
P.O. Box 3608
Dublin, OH 43016-0306

The Board of Directors, members of staff and the International Awareness Promotion Department of the BMW Automobile Company, wishes to congratulate you on your success as one of our TEN(10) STAR PRIZE WINNER in this years' BMW Automobile International Awareness Promotion (IAP) held on Monday 08 of June 2009,in Dublin, OHIO.

This makes you a proud owner of a Brand new BMW 760Li Series and a cash prize of $ 250,000.00 GBP (Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand United States Dollars). Note: You are to keep your winnings and the following below strictly confidential so as to avoid double claims and complications:

Reference Number: BMW:2551256003/23
Ticket number: 5647600545188
Serial number: BMWP/556543450906

For you to collect your prizes, kindly fill the verification form below and send it to the BMW Claims Manager, Mr. Thomas Hooper of our claims Department through email, stating your receipt of this notification. He has been mandated to offer you assistance and facilitate the urgent
delivery of your prizes.

ENGR.THOMAS HOOPER
TELEPHONE: (202) 324-9999
EMAIL:bmwclaimagent@aol.com

And you should also contact the Corresponding Payout Bank for the Transfer of funds and also state your receipt of this notification.

Email: Sandy.Crawford@boa-online.us

You are advice to provide him with the following information:

VERIFICATION FORM:
1.) FULL NAME:
2.) AGE:
3.) SEX:
4.) ADDRESS:
5.) COUNTRY:
6.) PHONE:
7.) OCCUPATION/POSITION:

Congratulations once more, and keep trusting BMW Automobile for top quality automobiles.

ENGR.THOMAS HOOPER
DIRECTOR OF PROMOTIONS,
INTERNATIONAL AWARENESS PROMOTIONS,
BMW AUTOMOBILE.
THE BMW AUTOMOBILE COMPANY.
Customer Communication Center
P.O. Box 3608
Dublin, OH 43016-0306

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam