419 scam: <> CONGRATULATIONS FROM VIRGIN..

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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:
- ",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)
- "we advice you" (this email uses bad English)
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: <>
Reply-To: <vmtdraw222@outlook.com>
Date: Sat, 24 Oct 2015 20:24:08 +0530
Subject: CONGRATULATIONS FROM VIRGIN..

VIRGIN MEDIA TELECOMMUNICATION COMPANY
Headquarters New York City, New York, United States (Executive Office)
EC1V 4PW.Hook, Hampshire, England, United Kingdom (Operational Headquarters)
Tel: 0044-8713157814
E-mail: vmtdraw222@outlook.com

Congratulations Candidate, .
Your Registered E-mail address has won prize money in Amount of One Million Great British Pounds [£ 1,000,000.00 Pounds], on the ongoing 2015 Virgin Media Telecommunication Company England award. These said amounts are giving out to winners in each country round the world.
An E-mail draws which was conducted by Virgin Media Telecommunication (UK) Ltd. For charity bonanza to promote all new varieties of Virgin Media Telecommunication.

The draw No. 7PWYZ1887 brought out your E-mail Address from world data base of Internet E-mail users in World, And qualified you as a beneficed winner of the stated winning amount.

For easy / fast responds to your mail Send your information on this E-MAIL ID: vmtdraw222@outlook.com

To receive your winning prize, kindly fill the fund release form below and send it back to us immediately.

Full name:__________ Address:__________ Age:__________________________
Sex:________________ Nationality_________ Home Telephone #_______________
Mobile Telephone #___ Marital Status_______ E-mail address:__________________
Occupation:_________ Job Title :______________ Amount won:_____________________
Items won: __________ Draw Number : __________________

Note. You must fill your form correctly and send to this E-mail vmtdraw222@outlook.com We shall immediately commence the process that will facilitate the release of your fund to you.
Please do check your email every time of your submission, to know the procedure for your prize award.

We advice you not to disclose your winning to anybody at list for now, until you receive your winning price to avoid double claim from friends/relatives that might lead you to disqualification.

KIND REGARDS.
DR. EPHRAIM CHURCH
Tel: 0044-8713157814

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam