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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: "Jacob J. Lew" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <jacobj.lew001@yahoo.ca>
Date: Wed, 8 Apr 2015 10:09:09 -0500
Subject: UPDATE/TREAT AS URGENT

Attention: I am Jacob J. Lew, Secretary of the Treasury under the U.S. Department of the Treasury. You can get more details about me here: http://www.treasury.gov/about/Pages/Secretary.aspx Therefore, I traveled to Nigeria from United States of America, after the recent concluded meeting with the World Bank and the United Nations, an agreement was reached between both parties for us to settle all outstanding payments accrued to individuals/corporations with respect to local and overseas contractors payment, debt re-scheduling and outstanding compensation payment. Fortunately, you have been selected alongside a few other beneficiaries to receive your own payment of $1.5Million Dollars. However, We have been notified that you are to receive your fund valued at $1.5Million Dollars and the fund will be loaded into an ATM VISA card and deliver to your destination through genuine registered Delivery Company like FedEx Courier Company or DHL Courier Company to avoid any wrong transaction. You are advised to kindly reply this email with the below details enclosed to help us process your payment: (1) Full Names: (2) Residential Address: (3) Country of Residence: (4) Age: (5) Phone/Cell Number: (6) Occupation: (7) A Copy of your driver licenses: You really have to stop dealing with those people that are contacting you and telling you that your fund is with them, it is not in anyway with them, they are only taking advantage of you and they will dry you up until you have nothing left. Furthermore, I have a very limited time to stay in Nigeria so I would like you to urgently respond to this message so that I can advice you on how best to confirm your fund. Yours faithfully, Jacob J. Lew Secretary of the Treasury (U.S. Department of the Treasury) Direct email: ( jacobj.lew001@yahoo.ca ) Note: The information contained in this e-mail is private & confidential and may also be legally privileged. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify us, preferably by e-mail, and do not read, copy or disclose the contents of this message to anyone.

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