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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:

Fraud email example:

From: "MR SMITH JOHNSON" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <smithjohnsonusdepartment@gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 6 Apr 2017 00:31:13 +0100
Subject: VERY IMPORTANT TO HEAR FROM YOU TODAY.

 
Hello
I'm Mr. Smith Johnson presently working as the  Director Inspection Unit in Abilene Muni Airport Kansas  . During our recent withheld package routine check at the Airport Storage Vault, I discovered an abandoned shipment (ATM CARD)left by a diplomat from africa who was supposed to deliver these packages to you but failed to provide necessary clearances needed by the US Customs
However, to enable me confirm if you are the actual recipient of this abandoned shipment, I will advise you to provide your current Phone Number and Full Address, to enable me cross check if it corresponds with the address on the official documents .
Smith Johnson
Office address
801 S. Washington
Abilene, KS 67410

Anti-fraud resources: