If you've ever received an e-mail from a displaced political refugee requesting your help with depositing a substantial amount of money into your bank account, then you've been the target of advance fee fraud. Commonly referred to as 419, this scam is named after the Nigerian criminal code that defines it and its penalties. But what began in Nigeria has now become a global epidemic. Concerned Nigerian native Chidi Igwe analyzes 419 from a historical, political, and economic perspective in an impassioned effort to raise public awareness about the scandal that has tainted his country. Delving into the origin and propagation of 419, Igwe presents candid interviews and detailed accounts of people intimately involved with the 419 community-from the victims to the operators themselves. Igwe also discusses the different variations of 419, the failure of Nigerian law enforcement to contain the outbreak, the effects of advance fee fraud on other countries' economies, and how to avoid becoming a 419 victim.
More than a guide to understanding advance fee fraud and how to protect oneself against it, this is also a call to arms for a worldwide cooperative mission to eliminate the scam and eradicate Nigeria of the taint of 419.