419 scam: "Ing. Aron de la Cruz V=?ISO-8859-1?Q?=C3=A1zquez?=" <aron.delacruz@cucs.edu.mx> Yahoo/Msn Seasonal Lottery Program is Here Again

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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:
- "yahoo/msn lottery inc" (no such lottery exists)
- "yahoo/msn lottery" (no such lottery exists)
The following phrases in this message should put you on alert:
- ",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)
- "you are advise to" (this email uses bad English)
- "info.micropromoawardlottery2010@ymail.com" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
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.
- +447045726041 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: (sent from abused email account)
Reply-To: info.micropromoawardlottery2010@ymail.com
Date: Wed, 20 Oct 2010 20:15:53 -0500
Subject: Yahoo/Msn Seasonal Lottery Program is Here Again

Yahoo/Msn Lottery Incorporation
10 Bina Gardens,South Kensington,
London.United Kingdom.
Dear Winner,
We are pleased to inform you of the result of the just concluded draws
held on the{08th Of October,2010} by Yahoo/MSN{Hotmail} in conjunction
with I pod Worldwide Promotion.
Your email was among the 20 Lucky winners who won L1,000,000.00 GBP{One
Million Great Britain Pounds} each in the Yahoo/MSN{Microsoft} 2010
On-line Promo. This draw is being organized to create and improve a larger
awareness record for Internet users worldwide.
However the results were released on the {14th Of January,2010} and
your email was attached to ticket number (7PWYZ2008) and ballot number
(BT:12052008/20) with Winning number(YM09788) and Ref number.
(YM35447XN) The on-line draws was conducted by a random selection of
email addresses from an exclusive list of 29,031,643 E-mail addresses of
individuals and corporate bodies picked by an advanced automated random
computer search from the Internet. However, no tickets were sold but all
email addresses were assigned to different ticket numbers for
representation and privacy.
The selection process was carried out through random selection in our
computerized email selection machine (TOPAZ) .
This Lottery is approved by the British Gaming Board and also licensed by
the The International Association of Gaming Regulators (IAGR).This lottery
is the 3rd of its kind and we intend to sensitize the public.
To begin the claim processing of your prize you are to contact the On-line
Co-coordinator and provide him with the following informations as stated
below, so we can proceed with the verification and clearance process of
your file.
1. Full Names :
3. Phone Number:
5. Occupation :
6. Sex :
7. Age :
8. Nationality:
9. Ballot No. :
10.Ticket No.:
Mr. Harry Briggs
Microsoft Promotion Award Team
Phone :+447045726041
E MAIL:info.micropromoawardlottery2010@ymail.com
*You are advise to forward these informations as soon as possible to
enable us attend to your file.
This email is registered and sent only to a certified Yahoo/MSN{Microsoft}
promo winner.
You are to keep this award strictly from public notice until your claim
has been processed and your money remitted to you.
This is part of our security protocol to avoid issues of friends or
relatives trying to claim a prize on the rightful winner's behalf.
Our special thanks and gratitude to Bill Gates and associates.Accept our
hearty congratulations once again.
Yours Faithfully,
Mrs Elizabeth
Head Of Council
Verifications Dept.
Yahoo/Msn Lottery Incorporation
10 Bina Gardens,South Kensington,
London.United Kingdom.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam