419 scam: "Switzerland Department of Humanitarian Affairs"<humanitriancare@careceo.com> YEAR 2013 EMAIL PRIZE AWARDS

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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:
- "security keeping 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. )
- "claims agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
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.
- +447011139759 (UK, redirects to a mobile phone in another country)

Fraud email example:

From: "Switzerland Department of Humanitarian Affairs" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <humanitariancare@careceo.com>
Date: Fri, 15 Feb 2013 19:32:04 +0700
Subject: YEAR 2013 EMAIL PRIZE AWARDS

Switzerland Department of Humanitarian Affairs
Palais des Nations CH-1211 Geneva 10
Switzerland.

:::______YEAR 2013 EMAIL PRIZE AWARDS________:::
Dear Winner,
We at United Nations (UN) global office likes to officially
congratulate you for the draw that was conducted by our organization
which featured you as the third place winner,
with a cash prize of $550,000 United States Dollars.
First prize $950,000 Second prize $700,000 Third prize $550,000
and $350,000 to be given to 67 persons that there E-mail was also selected for the draw.
Our organisation holds promotions each year just to promote our
global publicity and reputations, and as one of our plan to exploit more corners
of the world.
This promotion is just one of various ways we are presently using to
achieve this global vision of ours.Your email address with Winning
ID............(UNO-154/4456/011) was luckily drawn to be this year's
third place winner of a cash prize of $550,000 United States Dollars.
This money and gift we believe will enable you make some impact in the
society.
Ensure you contact Mrs. MaryJames who is our claims official in
London/UK and can understand only English languages. See details
of him below.
Name: Mrs. MaryJames
Email: humanitariancare@careceo.com
Tel: +44-7011139759
When contacting the claims agent you should include the following
*** Your Full Name:............................
*** Address:.................................
*** Phone number:..........................
*** Age:...............
*** Gender:......................
*** Occupation:.....................
*** Marital Status:........................
*** Nationality:.................
This Email have been sent several times.we had no response from you
.you will be responsible for the security keeping fee and that
the only thing you have to pay and get funds.
If you still alive please pay for it.
We know you must be excited and very happy about this news you have
Just received from us and the truth is that we are doing this to put
Smiles into homes and hearts of people worldwide.
Special greetings from the entire Staffs of United Nations
Trust Funds Worldwide.
Signed,
Mr. Ban Ki-moon
(UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY GENERAL.)
=============================================================
*NOTE** you must be 18years or older to claim. Late response is not
Accepted. Misconduct and non adherence to instructions leads to prize
Termination

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam