LAGOS, Nigeria -
The answer is that many Americans have and will continue to be victimized by some variation of what is know as the Nigerian 419 scheme.
The 419 scheme is different from the garden variety scam or fraud. Participants are promised millions of dollars if they merely lend a helping hand. The stories are related to current events in Africa to provide shadings of authenticy. The pitches are laughable, of course: why would a government official in Nigeria contact a stranger in the United States to help sort out a legal problem-and reward that stranger with $5 million? Organized crime is frequently behind these schemes and has bought thousands of e-mail addresses, so one or two hits per thousand make it a lucrative fraud.
The 419 scheme follows a familiar pattern. An "official" from the central bank of Nigeria or other official sounding body comes into the possession of a large sum of money that for some reason is unclaimed. He asks you to help him transfer the money out of the country. You supply a small fee for "expenses" and your name, address and savings account number. In return you'll receive a percentage of the fortune. Once you send the account numbers and expense money, you'll not hear from the fraudster again. This type of fraud is known as "advance fee fraud."
The 419 worked victims by mail in the 1970s then progressed to faxes, then to e-mail. The latest version of the 419 includes a variation of phishing, e-mail and voice over Internet Protocol.
As with the new forms of phishing they will often be e-mailed in a photo or jpeg to avoid the firewalls that protect against text messages.
The variations on the theme are as colorful as they are absurd. They include: accounts frozen by the Nigerian government, government theft and subsequent paybacks, secret inheritances, money that is stained requiring a special stain remover, unclaimed funds, and deep water oil block fees.
The scam artists take on a modern day guise of Robin Hood and portray their venture as taking from the rich and giving to the deserving-victims of Africa's colonial past. They are often bizarre and humorous, but not innocent.
According to "Cry for Help," a collection of 419 emails published in 2006, the Nigerian Mafia is considered the source of the 419 scams and has spread from Lagos to become the most organized crime network in Africa.
