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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: "Breathitt, Kaitlin" <katie.breathitt@img.com>
Date: Thu, 15 Aug 2013 18:27:52 -0400
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS!!!



CONGRATULATIONS!!! Your Email Address has been awarded $2,500,000 USD in the Irish Lottery. Contact:
(george.philipsclaimsdept11@yahoo.com.hk<mailto:george.philipsclaimsdept11@yahoo.com.hk>) with; Your Full Names, Address, Telephone Numbers (Home and Mobile), Occupation, Sex, Nationality and Date of Birth. Thanks Announcer. Remember to quote your E-Ticket Number (GB/LOCOG/180/2013)

The preceding e-mail message (including any attachments) contains information that may be confidential, may be protected by the attorney-client or other applicable privileges, or may constitute non-public information. It is intended to be conveyed only to the designated recipient(s) named above. If you are not an intended recipient of this message, please notify the sender by replying to this message and then delete all copies of it from your computer system. Any use, dissemination, distribution, or reproduction of this message by unintended recipients is not authorized and may be unlawful.

Anti-fraud resources: