419 scam: "VITTORIO FONDAZIONE"<info@microsoft.org> Contact VITTORIO FONDAZIONE.for your cash grant/Donation now

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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 fake company names, fake addresses, non-existent institutions/documents or other details have appeared in scams before:
- "fondazione di vittorio" (not involved with lotteries)
- "vittorio fondazione" (not involved with lotteries)
- "vittorio foundation" (not involved with lotteries)
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- "please endeavor to " (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
- "insurance fee " (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "western union" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "money gram" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "money transfer control number" (this will cost you money - be careful with upfront payments to anyone you only know through email, especially if they promise you a lot of money. NEVER send money by Western Union or MoneyGram to people you do not know personally - NO EXCEPTIONS! Instant wire transfer services are not meant to be used with strangers because they offer no protection against fraud. That is precisely why the criminals want you send money that way. )
- "cheque " (Beware of any scheme that involves cashing checks or money orders and then wiring a portion of the funds somewhere - you'll be liable for the entire amount if the checks or money orders turn out to be fake, even after you have received and forwarded cash. If it's a lottery prize, remember that real lotteries do not pay large prizes by check. They wire the money directly to your bank account and you do not pay for that. Many scammers promise a large check only in order to then demand payment of courier fees for a fake courier service. )
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!
Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.

Fraud email example:

From: "VITTORIO FONDAZIONE" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <vittoriofondazione.org46@yahoo.com>
Date: Fri, 13 Aug 2010 13:15:31 -0700
Subject: Contact VITTORIO FONDAZIONE.for your cash grant/Donation now

VITTORIO FONDAZIONE.
Corso Ercole I d'Este 44,
Ferrara 44100 - Italy.
Foundation's Officer,
Fondazion Di Vittorio,
ITALY
http://www.fondazionedivittorio.it

The Foundazion di Vittorio, would like to notify you that you have been chosen by the board of trustees as one of he final recipients of a cash grant/Donation for your own personal, educational, and business development.The Fondazione Di Vittorio, established 1977 by the Multi-Million groups and now supported by the United Nation (UN) and the European Union (EU) was conceived with the objective of human growth,educational, and community development.
To celebrate the 33th anniversary program, The Vittorio Foundation in United Nations (UN) and the European Union Commission (EU)is giving out a yearly donation of US$250,000.00 (Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand United States Dollars) to 100 lucky recipients. These specific Donations/Grants will be awarded to 100 lucky international recipients worldwide; in different categories for their personal business development and enhancement of their educational plans. At least 15% of the awarded funds should be used by you to develop a part of your environment. This is a yearly program, which is a measure of universal development strategy.
You are required to fill the form below and email to the Payment officer in claims unit, Pireaus,greece for claim of your donation. Please do contact the officer in the below information. for qualification documentation and processing of your claims. After contacting the office with the requested data, you will be given your donation pin number, which you will use in collecting the funds. Please endeavor to quote your Qualification numbers (N-222-6747,E-900-56) in all discussions.

FULL NAMES:__________________ADDRESS: ____________________
CITY:_________________________STATE:_______________________ZIP: ______________
COUNTRY_______________SEX:_______________
AGE:__________________MARITAL STATUS:___________OCCUPATION:_________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS:_____________________
TELEPHONE NUMBER:_____________________

You to indicate once more your mode of delivery for the purpose of documentation in HEAD OFFICE.

DHL Cost of delivery
Mailing: US $100.00
Vat:US $10.00
Insurance:US $200.00
Total:$310 usd

FEDEX Cost of delivery
Mailing:US $70.00
VAT US $10.00
Insurance: US $200.00
Total:$ US280.00

UPS Cost of delivery
Mailing: US$80.00
VAT US$10.00
Insurance: US$200.00
Total:$ 290.00

All three options are 24hours delivery after shipment

Description Of your Parcel To Be Couriered:

Bonded draft of weight :-------------0.17kg
Total weight of parcel :-------------0.32kg
Colour of Parcel :-------------Brown
Length of days :-------------Same day

================================
NB: THE INSURANCE FEE (US$200:00) IS ABSOLUTELY COMPULSORY, AND MUST BE PAID BEFORE THE SHIPMENT OF YOUR PARCEL WHILE THE MAILING FEE SHOULD BE PAID TO THE DELIVERY AGENT THAT WILL DELIVER YOUR PARCEL TO YOUR DOORSTEP).
Due to the diplomatic content of your parcel, it will be illegal to send it without being insured as it will violate the federal delivery rules governing diplomatic parcel delivery. This means payment for the insurance fee must be made before the parcel is sent to avoid risk. This is because of some bad experience we had in the past.
We can not afford to re-issue your cheque if anything goes wrong. In this case payment for the insurance fee is absolutely compulsory, while the mailing fee should be paid to any of the above listed delivery company you choose at the point of delivery. Your prize is protected by a hard cover insurance policy, which makes it impossible to deduct any amount from the money before remittance.

Receiver Name: Juseph Kelvim
Receiver Address: limfous 22-24 Agia Sofia,piraeaus Greece
Sender's Name:
Sender's Address:
Amount To be Sent:
Text Question to be used: What is my name?
Text Answer: Mike
Money Transfer Control Number (M.T.C.N) .....................?

Here is the payment detail that you will use in making the payment Via western union or money gram outlet so that your cheque can be insured and then send to you via any of the above options.

Best Regards.
Mr Dino luciano
(Co_ordinator)

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam