Most of us will have seen them before, the scam emails that are supposedly from one or other of the lottery operators that are located all over the world. These messages claim that we have won a lot of money. Usually they mimic the details, logo and name of a legitimate lottery operator, like those who sell UK lottery tickets to buyers in foreign countries. Actually most of these senders are not linked in any way to the legal operators of lotteries. Mostly these mails come from people who operate a scam also known as advance fee fraud. Their aim is not to pay you winnings, even though that’s what they claim, but rather to get money from you.
Be careful and do not fall for this type of con. Use common sense when receiving unexpected messages by email, especially those involving money. It is all too easy to be scammed and lose money that you can’t afford to. Fortunately these con-men are mostly creatures of habit and give some clues that they are not on the level.
One important fact to bear in mind is that you cannot be a winner in a competition that you didn’t even enter. This may sound obvious but a lot people are still fooled like this. Be on your guard if you are suddenly sent an email telling you that you are the winner a of a lot of cash yet you never even bought a ticket in a foreign lottery.
Another suspicious sign is the secrecy which they ask you to observe, according to them because there have been some mix-ups with names and addresses of prizewinners. They also use phrases like email draw or claim that the prize is being paid from a draw that had no sold tickets. Beware, no genuine lottery works like this.
In the email you will usually be requested to make contact with a claims agent. In the case of a genuine lottery a staff member will make direct touch with you not a third party. If you should contact this agent they will ask you to make a payment to them to cover, processing fees, courier charges or some other bogus reason.
No genuine lottery operator charges upfront amounts that must be paid before you can claim your winnings. In any case this is illegal in most countries. A real lottery will deduct any charges for the winnings, so you should be very suspicious of anyone who asks for money upfront. If you pay any money over to this agent its almost a guarantee that you will never hear from them of see your money ever again.
Another clue is the type of language used. Terms like Lottery Sweep Stake or Winning Notification are typically not used by legitimate operators, whether official lottery companies or for example other businesses like those that sell UK lottery tickets to non-UK residents.
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