419 scam: "Western Union International" <lad@correct.go.th> WESTERN UNION PAYMENT NOTIFICATION

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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:
- "activation 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. )
- "cost of transfer" (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. )
- "western union" (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. )
- "mtcn" (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. )
This email message is a 419 scam. Please see our 419 FAQ for more details on such scams.
Western Union money transfer is completely untraceable and therefore is *not* safe to use with anyone you do not know personally. It is the preferred method of online criminals to collect money from their victims.

Fraud email example:

From: "Western Union International" <lad@correct.go.th>
Reply-To: wu.funds.agent@barid.com
Date: Wed, 29 Oct 2014 22:09:43 +0700 (ICT)
Subject: WESTERN UNION PAYMENT NOTIFICATION

Dear Valued Customer,

Your Compensation sum of $1 Million has been sent through western union.
Due to the law guiding western union on international money transfer, we
cannot send your $1 Million at once. Therefore we have set up your payment
to be cashing out $5000 3 times daily for a total of $15,000 in a day.
This will continue until your total sum is received.

Your first payment has been sent to you, but it is currently on hold due
to the fact that you have not completed the cost of transfer of all your
MTCN activation for immediate pick up in your Country. For you to pick up
your first payment you are required to send the cost of transfer of $194
immediately so that your transfer will be release on hold. Be informed
that after 120 hours of non compliance to this message, your fund will be
redirected to United Bank for Africa.

However, you can view the availability of this transaction through our
official website below.
https://www.wu.com/content/wucom/Countries/en_BJ/track-transfer.html

(M.T.C.N): 6368406063
Senders First Name: ...... DALE
Senders Last Name: ...... BUGGINS
Amount: $5000.00
Question: WHAT
Answer: MY MONEY

All you need to do is to contact Western Union Agent with this Email:
wu.funds.agent@barid.com

Contact Mr. James Manu, for full details of this message and to know how
to receive your money. Note you will only pay $194 for MTCN Activation fee
before you will start your $5000 daily withdrawal.

Mrs Shatrova Sergey
Information Manager
Western Union International

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam