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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: Max Poultney <maxpoultney@yahoo.co.uk>
Reply-To: Max Poultney <maxipoultney@yahoo.com>
Date: Thu, 3 Oct 2013 11:45:13 +0100 (BST)
Subject: URGENT HELP NEEDED


Please can I borrow $1,680 ? I'm
trapped in hospital in Istanbul.I traveled to Istanbul ,Turkey for a
brief vacation. I had an accident on my way back my hotel suite, where a transit van hit me from behind. My credit card and phone got damaged
and not displaying. I need the money urgently to sort my hospital bills
and transport myself down to airport. I'll refund your money immediately I return home.Hope to hear from you very soon.
Max

Anti-fraud resources: