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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.

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

Fraud email example:

From: "CONGRATULATIONS" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <euromillions48@gala.net>
Date: Fri, 1 Oct 2010 01:38:58 -0700
Subject: EUROMILLIONS LOTTERY PRIZE AWARD


Important Notice:
All Beneficiary must claim their prizes as soon as possible and furnish us
your payment confirmation within (21) days Thank You Mr. Arnold Foster.


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The e-mail and attachments are confidential and intended only for selected recipients. If you have received it in error, you may not in any way disclose or rely on the contents. You may not keep, copy or distribute the e-mail. Should you receive it, immediately notify the sender of the error and delete the e-mail.Also note that this form of communication is not secure, it can be intercepted, and may not necessarily be free of errors and viruses in spite of reasonable efforts to secure this medium.
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Anti-fraud resources: