419 scam: patrick pichette <info@mail.com> OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION LETTER

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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:
- "will come to you as a surprise" (a common phrase found in 419 scams)
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!

Fraud email example:

From: patrick pichette <info@mail.com>
Reply-To: patrick.pichette@gpawarduk.com
Date: Fri, 30 Aug 2013 15:27:24 -0700
Subject: OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION LETTER

Google UK Ltd
Belgrave House
76 Buckingham Palace
Road London SW1W 9TQ
United Kingdom.
Ref No: GAAP/ 5653/657/2013
Batch: GAAP/ 563/GAPRO/UK
OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION LETTER.
It is obvious that this notification will come to you as a surprise but please
find time to read it carefully as we congratulate you over your success in the
following official publication of results of the E-mail Electronic Online
Sweepstakes Organized by Google, in conjunction with the foundation for the
Promotion of Software Products, (F.P.S.) held on June 20th , 2013 here in
London UK. Google earns its profit mainly from advertising using their very
own Google search engine, Gmail, Gala, Sify, e-mail service Google Maps,
Google Apps, Orkut social networking and You Tube video sharing, which are
all offered to the public for free.
We wish to congratulate you once again, for being among the Twelve (12)
selected winners in the ongoing E-mail Electronic Online Sweepstakes. Hence
we do believe with your prize, you will continue to be active in your
patronage
to Google and its Products. A Bank Draft of £850,000.00 GBP {Eight
Hundred and Fifty Thousand Great British Pounds} will be issued in your
name by our Foreign Payment Bureau and also a certificate of prize claim will
be sent alongside your Bank Draft.
You are advised to contact our Foreign Payment Bureau with the following
details below for the Processing of your Claims:
FOREIGN PAYMENT RELEASE FORM.
(1) Your Contact Address:
(2) Your Contact Telephone/Mobile Number:
(3) Your Nationality/Country:
(4)Your Full Names:
(5) Occupation:
(6) Age/Gender:
(7) Marital Status:
(8) Private Email Address:
(9) Ever Won An Online Lottery?
(10) How Do You Feel As A Winner?
Mode of Price Remittance.
(1) Bank Transfer: (Bank Transfer of your official winning prize to your bank
account).
(2) Courier Delivery Of your Certified Winning Cheque/Bank Draft in your
Name and other Winning Documents safely to you.
……………………………………………………………………………………………… …
Mr. Patrick Pichette,
Claims Administrator,
Email: patrick.pichette@gpawarduk.com
…………………………………………………………………………………………………
NOTE!!! For security reasons, you are advised to keep your winning information
confidential till your claims are processed and your money remitted to
you. This is
part of our precautionary measure to avoid double claiming and unwarranted
abuse of this program by some unscrupulous elements. Please be WARNED!!!!
Congratulations from the Staffs & Members of Google Board Commission.
Mr. Larry Page,
Google Incorporation.
©2013 Google Incorporation.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam