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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: "United States Treasury Department" (may be fake)
Reply-To: <unitedstatestreasuryd@gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 7 Jan 2020 21:42:34 -0800
Subject: WE SINCERELY APOLOGIZE FOR THE DELAY !!

UNITED STATES TREASURY DEPARTMENT
Main Treasury 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington D.C 20220.USA
 
Attention: Beneficiary
 
                               I am sincerely sorry for the delay of your contract payment valued at US$10,700,000.00 (Ten Million Seven Hundred Thousand United States Dollars). I  apologize for any inconvenience or frustration this might have caused you. The delay was caused by minor problems with our payment system. While I take full responsibility for my mistake, I would like to assure you that this was a one-time error on my part as the U.S Department of the Treasury Executive Secretary, I have already made some reshuffles in the cabinet to ensure that this does not happen again.
 
From the records of outstanding contractors due for payment with the U.S Department of the Treasury, your name and Company was discovered as next on the list of the outstanding contractors who have not yet received their payments. I wish to inform you now that your payment is being processed and will be transferred into your bank account as soon as you respond to this email and adhere to the rules and regulations governing this reputable office. Also note that from the record in our file your outstanding contract payment is valued at US$10,700,000.00 (Ten Million Seven Hundred Thousand United States Dollars). I apologize again for the delay and thank you for your time and patience.
 
Your response to this email will be highly appreciated.
 
 
Sincerely,
Steven T. Mnuchin,
Executive Secretary,
United States Treasury Department.

Anti-fraud resources: