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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: baumer.michael@icloud.com
Reply-To: hanitzschsallyann@gmail.com
Date: Wed, 28 Jun 2023 02:19:46 -0400
Subject: Witaj Beneficjencie/charity program.Hello Beneficiar/Hallo begunstigde

Hello Beneficiary,
This is to inform you our church foundation has chosen to donate $1,000,000.00 USD (One Million dollars) to you in my ongoing charity program. Your email address was one of the lucky ones to receive this prize. You came out victorious. For more details and claims, All reply should be copied and sent to:
E-mail:hanitzschsallyann@gmail.com
Best Regards,
Sally-Ann Hanitzsch


Hallo Begünstigter,
Hiermit möchte ich Sie darüber informieren, dass unsere Kirchenstiftung beschlossen hat, Ihnen im Rahmen meines laufenden Wohltätigkeitsprogramms 1.000.000,00 USD (eine Million Dollar) zu spenden. Ihre E-Mail-Adresse gehörte zu den Glücklichen, die diesen Preis erhalten haben. Du bist als Sieger hervorgegangen. Für weitere Einzelheiten und Ansprüche sollten alle Antworten kopiert und an folgende Adresse gesendet werden:
E-Mail:hanitzschsallyann@gmail.com
Mit freundlichen Grüßen,
Sally-Ann Hanitzsch

Anti-fraud resources: