Central Bank of Nigeria - Advance Fees Fraud (419)

Advance Fees Fraud (419)

The name of the Central Bank of Nigeria has been used in a series of so-called 'Nigerian 419 Scams'. The fraudster sends an e-mail that appears to come from a Central Bank employee to millions of people saying the Bank has found an excess of money, or a debt owing to, a person or persons who have since died, and they wish to export it. The victim submits his own bank account so that the money may be placed therein, however this information is only used to add credibility to the scam, in order to lure the victim in further. Bank details and other personal information is used to create fake certificate or document that are allegedly from the Bank. Contrary to popular belief, the victim's bank account cannot be emptied in this fashion. And, if money was taken from an account, it could be reimbursed as it can be traced Instead, the fraudster will ask the victim to send money via wire transfer services such as Western Union or MoneyGram. A wire transfer sent abroad is untraceable and not reversible. The bank is in no way associated with such scams.