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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: "MR.Ben" <xx@yy>
Reply-To: ATM.coms@hotmail.com
Date: Thu, 07 Sep 2023 02:08:27 -0700
Subject: YOUR ATM CARD $20 MILLIONS USD IS READY NOW.

GREETINGS; I BEEN TRY TO CONTACT YOU SINCE OVER 2 YEARS CONSIGN YOUR ATM CARD OF $20 MILLIONS DOLLARS BUT YOUR EMAIL SHOWING VIRUS. IF YOU ARE STILL USING THIS EMAIL, PLEASE GET BACK TO ME TO DISCUSE HOW TO DELIVER THE ATM CARD TO YOU. MY NAME IS MR.BEN.THANKS.
Please consider the environment before printing. This message, including any attachments, contains confidential information intended for a specific individual and purpose and is protected by law. If you are not the intended recipient, please telephone or e-mail the sender and delete the message and any attachment(s) from your system. Any disclosure, copying, forwarding or other means of distribution of this message without PFN’s authorization is strictly prohibited.

Anti-fraud resources: