Protect Yourself and Report the Latest Frauds, Scams, Spams, Fakes, Identify Theft Hacks and Hoaxes
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Have you received an email from "Mr. Williams Millet" at "Standard Chartered Bank Plc" telling you that "your email address won in the second category" or something similar, and to contact "foreignremittance@standardcharteredonline.net" to collect your winnings? It is a scam. No legitimate, legal lottery notifies winners vian email (see footnote)! The scammers may change the names and details, but it is still a scam!
Below is the example of the fake email scam (the email is the scam, not any persons or companies named in the email) claiming to be from the "Standard Chartered Bank Plc".
Although the most important clue is that no legitimate lottery will ever email a winner, there are many other signs that this is a fraud. We have highlighted some of these in the email below, not the least of which are:
Email address ballot: There is no such thing as a "computer ballot system" or "computer email draw". No one, not even Microsoft has a database of email addresses of the type or magnitude they suggest.
"No tickets were sold": You care to explain where the money comes from? Perhaps the lottery money fairy? Why would a lottery give away money to "email address randomly selected by a computer ballot draw system"? This is CLEARLY nonsense: you MUST, repeat MUST buy a ticket to have a chance of winning any lottery!
Terrible spelling, punctuation, syntax and grammar - Scammers apparently don't know how to use spell checkers. We assume they dropped out of school before that class. They use almost excessive and random CapItaLiZAtion. Names are usually in all capital letters for some reason known only to these illiterate criminals. They often can't even spell "February" or know that "22th" ought to be "22nd". These scammers usually write at the 3rd grade level. Being non-native English speakers, they also often get first names and surnames (last names reversed), so you will frequently see names like "Mr. SMITH JAMES.", instead of "Mr. James Smith", along with the peculiar usage of periods (full stops) and spaces or the lack thereof. Real lotteries also proofread their emails and look and read more professional.
Using free email account: The scammer is writing to you from a FREE email account (Yahoo, Hotmail, Excite, AIM, Gmail, etc.). Don't you think a real organization would use it's own email, it's own domain and website?
Keep Confidential - Real lotteries THRIVE on publicity - they don't want you to keep anything secret - the publicity causes people to buy more tickets. there is NO risk of "double claiming" because they can validate where the ticket numbers were sold. The scammer want you to keep quiet because they don't want the police or ConsumerFraudreporting to hear about them! It should read: "For our own security, you are advised to keep your winning information confidential until we have finished scamming you!"
Email notification: NO REAL LOTTERY SENDS AN EMAIL TO NOTIFY WINNERS. Period. Full-stop. End of story. There mere fact ALONE that you received an email saying you won a lottery is proof that it is a scam.
Here is a typical scam lottery winning notification.
Tue, 22 Apr 2008 13:46:44 -0400
From: foreignremittance@standardcharteredonline.net
Address: Nigeria Model branch,
Ikeja Branch, 30, Aromore Street,
Off Adeniyi Jones Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos.
Tel: +234-8069686145
Subject: Payment Approval.
Dept.: International Fund Transfer and Remittance.
Date: 15/4/2008
PAYMENT APPROVAL
Attention: Brad Pitt,
I ACKNOWLEDGE THE RECEIPT OF YOUR MAIL,. BE INFORMED
THAT WE HAVE FULLY FINALIZED THE VERIFICATION PROCESS
OF YOUR FILE AND HAVE COME TO THE CONCLUSION THAT YOU
ARE THE REAL AND BONAFIDE WINNER OF THIS LOTTERY FUND.
NOTE THAT WE ARE GOING TO EFFECT YOUR LOTTERY WINNING
FUND TRANSFER AND THIS IS NORMALLY EFFECTED BY TWO
WAYS:
1. INTERNATIONALLY CERTIFIED BANK DRAFT THROUGH
COURIER SERVICES.
2. BANK TRANSFER.
THE FOLLOWING COURIER SERVICES WILL BE SENDING TO YOU
THE CERTIFIED BANK DRAFTS TO YOUR RESIDENCE .
YOU ARE THEREBY ADVISED TO CHOOSE ANY OF THE COURIER
SERVICES THAT YOU THINK WILL SUIT YOU AND I WILL GIVE
YOU THE PAYMENT INFORMATION WITH WHICH YOU CAN MAKE
PAYMENT FOR THE COURIER SERVICES FEE.
BREAKDOWN OF THE TRANSFER OPTIONS
(1) INTERNATIONALLY CERTIFIED BANK DRAFT THROUGH
COURIER SERVICES
Mailing..............................................$250.00
Insurance..........................................$180.00
Vat
(5%).............................................$150.00
Winner's Certificate...........................$150.00
TOTAL...............................................$730.00
Mailing...........................................$250.00
Insurance.........................................$150.00
Vat
(5%)...........................................$120.00
Winner's Certificate.....................$180.00
TOTAL...............................................$700.00
Mailing..............................................$230.00
Insurance..........................................$160.00
Vat
(5%).............................................$90.00
Winner's Certificate.......................$100.00
TOTAL...............................................$580.00
(2) ACCOUNT-TO-ACCOUNT TRANSFER
Transfer charge: $400.00
Insurance: $200.00
Affidavit: $150.00
Winner's Certificate : $100.00
TOTAL: $850.00
NOTE : AS SOON AS YOU HAVE CHOSEN THE TRANSFER
SERVICE OF YOUR CHOICE, CONTACT ME IMMEDIATELY SO
THAT I WILL GIVE YOU THE PAYMENT INFORMATION WITH
WHICH YOU CAN PAY FOR THE COURIER SERVICES CHARGE AND
YOU WILL HAVE TO PROVIDE YOUR BANKING INFORMATION IF
YOU HAVE CHOSEN THE ACCOUNT-TO-ACCOUNT TRANSFER
OPTION.
ONCE AGAIN , ACCEPT MY CONGRATULATIONS ON THIS LOTTERY
WINNING.
Attached below are your Central Bank Transfer/Payment
Approval and your Deposit
Certificate,Congratulations!!!
Your Immediate response will facilitate the transfer
of your prize money.
Yours truely,
Mr. Williams Millet
Managing Director/CEO
Standard Chartered Bank Plc
Click here for the huge list of the names of the currently identified lottery scams companies
* Re: emails of winnings. We know of only ONE exception in the world to this rule - and if you bought a ticket from them, you would know it, and would used their safegaurds.