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:
- "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. )
- "money gram" (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. )
- ",500,000" (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)
- "is 100% risk free" (almost true for the criminal trying to scam you - arrests of online criminals are rare)
- "affidavit " (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- "high court" (Barristers (lawyers) mentioned in 419 scams are always fake.)
- "federal high court" (This court is often mentioned in '419' scams to give the victim a reason why he/she should send thousands of dollars to the scammers. A 'Federal High Court' exists in Germany and Nigeria, but not in other countries, such as the UK, Spain, Netherlands, Senegal, Benin, South Africa or other countries where fake lawyers in scams often claim to be based. )
- "foreign exchange" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
- "international remittance department" (Banks mentioned in 419 scams are always fake (real banks don't communicate using mobile phones or free webmail addresses))
- "cotonou" (a location commonly mentioned in 419 scams)
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: Sir George Luke <atad43@gmail.com>
Reply-To: transsaction2016@gmail.com
Date: Tue, 6 Sep 2016 03:47:24 -0700
Subject: 101YOUR FUND HAS BEEN EXTENDED TILL TOMORROW DUE TO THE LABOR HOLIDAY
IN USA

YOUR FUND HAS BEEN EXTENDED TILL TOMORROW DUE TO THE LABOR HOLIDAY IN USA

All modalities to effect the payment and subsequent transfer of YOUR
fund have been worked out. This transaction is 100% risk free but-requires
100 percent confidentiality.

This is a golden opportunity which must not be allowed to slip out of any
careless acts and utterances. I chose you for this transaction because we
believe that good friends can be discovered and businesses such as this
cannot be realized without trust. You can be rest assured that your
security has been considered before you were contacted.

Now I need your bank account details information where the said fund of
US$45,500,000.00 will be transferred into, The attorney will use your bank
account information to file an application for foreign exchange control
allocation approval documents from various ministries and authorities in
charge of the fund approval documents in your name.

As soon as you received this mail please indicate your stand and your
willingness in this transaction before we will used your information to
apply for foreign exchange control allocation approval documents from
various ministries and authorities in charge of the fund approval
documents.

Be informed, that top most secret must be observed through out this
transaction for security reasons

BEAR IN MIND THEREFORE YOU HAVE UP TO THE END OF THIS WEEK TO COMPLY
WITH STATED INSTRUCTIONS OR THE ARRANGEMENT BETWEEN MY OFFICE AND YOUR
PERSON WILL BE CONSIDERED IN ADMINISTRATIVE TERMS (KIV)IF THIS COULD END AS
THE RESULT THEN YOU DO NOT STAND ANY CHANCE TO RECEIVE THIS FUNDS NOW OR IN
THE FUTURE.

IT WILL BE BETTER FOR YOU TO COMPLY WITH ADMINISTRATIVE INSTRUCTION AND
THIS WILL GIVE YOU A BETTER CHANCE TO GET A DIRECT TRANSFER TO YOUR ACCOUNT.

NOTE FURTHER THAT WE DETERMINE TO SERVE YOU AND HENCE THIS IS OUR OBJECTIVE
THEN YOU SHOULD COMPLY AS YOU HAVE BEEN DIRECTED.

READ THIS MAIL VERY WELL AND UNDERSTAND TO PROCEED. THERE IS GOOD NEWS HERE
BELOW: I WENT TO THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT TODAY, AND LUCKILY FOR ME I MET THE
CHIEF JUDGE RIGHT IN THE OFFICE, SO I HAVE TO BEG ON YOUR BEHALF TO ISSUE
ME THE AFFIDAVIT OF TRUE BENEFICIARY FORM AND HE SAID THAT THEY DONâ€™T ISSUE
SUCH CERTIFICATE WITHOUT SEEING THE BENEFICIARY IN PERSON. BUT AFTER
EVERYTHING I MADE HIM TO KNOW THAT YOU ARE A FAMILY, SO HE BELIEVED ME AND
ISSUED THE AFFIDAVIT CERTIFICATE TO ME TODAY. THIS AFFIDAVIT OF TRUE
BENEFICIARY FORM WILL EMPOWER YOU TO RECEIVE YOUR FUND WITHOUT ANY STOP
ORDER BY ANY OFFICE, BECAUSE YOUR US$45.5M WOULD HAVE BEEN STOPPED BY THE
IMF AND UNITED NATIONS, SO I HAVE HOLD ON TO THE TRANSFER TO GET AFFIDAVIT
OF TRUE BENEFICIARY FORM, SO THAT WHEN THE CARD WILL BE MADE ACROSS TO YOUR
ADDRESS, IT WILL NOT BE STOPPED BY ANY OFFICE OR ANY BODY.

THIS AFFIDAVIT OF TRUE BENEFICIARY FORM IS VERY IMPORTANT BEFORE THE
TRANSFER WILL BE MADE TO YOUR ACCOUNT, SO THAT YOUR CARD WILL NOT BE STOP
BY ANY OFFICE OR THE ONES I HAVE MENTIONED, SO YOU HAVE TO TRY YOUR BEST TO
GET THE SUBMISSION FEE AND FILL THE AFFIDAVIT FORM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE,
BECAUSE THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT HAVE GIVEN YOU ONLY 24HOURS TO SUBMIT THE
FORM BACK TO THE COURT.BECAUSE I HAVE PROMISED TO HELP YOU TRANSFER YOUR
FUND TO YOU, SO I HAVE TO PAY FOR MY FLIGHT TICKET GOING AND COMING BACK
WHICH IS $195 FROM COTONOU TO LOME TO SUMMIT THE AFFIDAVIT FORM BACK TO THE
FEDERAL HIGH COURT AND THAT IS THE SAME THING I PAID BEFORE I COLLECTED THE
FORM. DOWNLOAD THE ATTACHMENT AND FILL THE AFFIDAVIT OF TRUE BENEFICIARY
FORM BELOW AND RETURN IT BACK WITH THE SUBMISSION FEE WHICH IS US$75.00 AS
REQUESTED FROM THE FEDERAL HIGH COURT THAT THE AFFIDAVIT FORM SHOULD BE
FILLED AND RETURNED BACK WITHIN 24HOURS. HOWEVER,YOU ARE TO FILL OUT THE
FORM CORRECTLY

AND ATTACH YOUR PASSPORT PHOTOGRAPH, USE THE SAME INFORMATION TO SEND THE
SUBMISSION FEE THAT IS ATTACHED IN THE AFFIDAVIT FORM.

BE INFORMED THAT THE $75.00,SHOULD BE SENT BY EITHER MONEY GRAM OR WESTERN
UNION MONEY TRANSFER AS FOLLOWS:

RECEIVER'S NAME: GODWiN NNALUE

COUNTRY... BENIN REPUBLIC

TEXT QUESTION: IN GOD

TEXT ANSWER: WE TRUST

AMOUNT: $75.00 USD

MTCN:.............................

I HAVE DONE A VERY GOOD JOB FOR YOU, SO THAT YOU WILL RECEIVE ALL YOUR
PAYMENT WITHOUT ANY PROBLEM OR STORIES.

I WILL BE WAITING TO HEAR FROM YOU WITH THE MTCN.

BEST REGARD,

Mr George Luke

International Remittance Department.

Anti-fraud resources:

What can you do when you receive 419 spam