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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: "Mrs Alice Lewis" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <lewis.alice23@yahoo.com.tw>
Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2014 12:43:10 -0700
Subject: Please reply back to me immediately

Dear Beloved ,

I am Mrs. Alice Lewis suffering from cancerous ailment' I was married to
Mr. Adams C Lewis, my husband worked with Chevron/Texaco in the United Kingdom
for twenty years before he died in the year 2005, My late husband deposited
the sum of GB?14.5 Million (fourteen Million Five Hundred Thousand Pounds
sterling) with a Bank, Recently my Doctor told me that I have limited days
to live due to the stroke and cancerous problems I am suffering from I have
decided to donate this funds to you believing you are going to use it for
the work of God and want you to use my husband’s effort to fund the upkeep
of widows and charities worldwide, I took this decision because I do not
have any child that will inherit this money and my husband relatives are
bourgeois and very wealthy persons and I do not want my husband hard and
earned money to be misused.

Awaiting your urgent reply,

With God all things are possible.

Your Sister,
Mrs. Alice Lewis

Anti-fraud resources: