419 Scam – Advance Fee / Fake Lottery Scam (2006-01)

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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:
- "claim agent" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
- "claims office" (real lotteries do not use a "claim agent" / "fiduciary agent")
- ",000,000" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
- "00,000.00" (they want you to be blinded by the prospect of quick money, but the only money that ever changes hands in 419 scams is from you to the criminals)
- "dr.thomaslaur@qq.com" (this email address has been used in a known scam)
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:
=?UTF-8?B?77u/QVdBUkQgQ09NTUlUVEVFINC60L7QvA==?= =?UTF-8?B?0LjRgtC10YLQsCDQv9C+INC/0YDQuNGB0YPQttC00LXQvdC40Y4=?= <sukumukal1@katamail.com>
Reply-To:
=?UTF-8?B?77u/QVdBUkQgQ09NTUlUVEVFINC60L7QvA==?= =?UTF-8?B?0LjRgtC10YLQsCDQv9C+INC/0YDQuNGB0YPQttC00LXQvdC40Y4=?= <dr.thomaslaur@qq.com>
Date: Tue, 6 Jan 2015 23:48:25 +0000 (UTC)
Subject: HAPPY NEW YEAR AND CONGRATULATION

Â HAPPY NEW YEAR AND CONGRATULATION
MOTTO : CELEBRATING THE DIFFERENCE YOU'VE MADE
Â£1,000,000.00 EMAIL SELECTION AWARD WINNING PRIZE 2015
!!!!!CONGRATULATION!!!!
Dear Lucky Winner,

We are pleased to inform you of the result of the E-MAILS LOTTERY RAFFLE DRAW an International program held on the 1 of January 2015.Your e-mail address was attached to the following information.

(1) TICKET NUMBER: 2300-87
(2) SERIAL NUMBER: BATCH/520-78765
(3) BENEFICIARYS REFFRENCE NO BF25694UK
(4) LUCKY DRAW NUMBER: 6016-678944333-632

which consequently won in the 2nd category, you have therefore been approved for a lump sum payment of Â£1,000,000.00 (One Million GBP).
Please contact the claiming Agent stated below to receive your winning Money immediately:

NAME: DR.THOMAS LAURENT
EMAIL; ( dr.thomaslaur@qq.com )

CONGRATULATIONS: Contact your claim agent for due processing and remittance of your prize money to a designated account of your choice.

This is therefore not a spam or a virus it's for you.

NOTE: In order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications, please remember to quote your reference numbers in every one of your Correspondences with your officers. Furthermore,should there be any change of your address, do inform your claims officer as soon as possible. Congratulations again from all our staff and thank you for being part of our Promotions program.

Best Wishes.
The Management.
Lottery Organisation.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam