The operation of the Nigerianspam(scam) is highly unpredictable and often misleading. But usually, the operation would centre on the usual statements and involve the same intricacies.

The operation is professionally organized in Nigeria, with offices, working fax numbers, and often contacts at government offices. The investor who attempts to research the background of the offer will usually find that all pieces fit perfectly together. If they then agree to the deal, the scammer will send several documents bearing official government stamps; seals etc., and then introduce delays, such as "in order to transmit the money, we need to bribe a bank official. Could you help us with a loan?" or "In order for you to be allowed to be a party to the transaction, you need to have holdings at a Nigerian bank of $100,000 or more"

A variant of the 419 scam will appear to be sent by a barrister, representing the estate of some long-lost relative you never knew you had (your last name will be inserted into the email message) who perished along with his family in a car or airplane accident last April; the scammer will claim to have gone to a lot of trouble to find you in order to give you a share of the millions of dollars available if you'll just forward your bank account information to him. Another variant pretends to be a "winning notification" from a lottery company, typically in the UK or the Netherlands, requesting payment in advance to collect the sum that the victim has "won"

The scammers offers to buy some expensive item (which the victim advertised on eBay). For example:

• Official
• Certified bank
• Cashier's check

The check will have a mutually agreed higher value than the price of the item, so the scammer asks the victim to wire the extra money to some third party as soon as the check clears. The check typically clears after one or two days, but the fact is the counterfeit is not detected until several days or weeks later, by which time the victim has sent the item and the "additional money" to the scammer and his representative. Most banks will hold the victim accountable for the value of the counterfeit check.

In this type of scam the victim is asked to donate or invest in a local charity or church. While no direct monetary benefit is presented to the victim, these scams are perpetrated by the same scammers that also employ more traditional advance fee fraud and the scams follow roughly the same modus operandi as the previously mentioned scams.