I must be the luckiest person alive. In the past three days I found out I won 1.5 Million Euros in the UK lotto, One Million Euros in the Winx International Lottery Game, 1.5 Million Euros in the 2007 E-Mail Lottery, and 500,000 Pounds in an e-mail lotto held by the Coca Cola Company. Wow! What did I do to get all these riches?
The sad reality is there are actually people who succumb to these plans. For the pledge of a fast buck (or million Euros as the case might be) individuals will turn over their bank account numbers, wire money in the hopes of getting more back, or give other info that might result in identity theft.
These lotto and sweepstakes plans have gone on long before the internet, with among the oldest being the counterfeit sweepstakes which needed an entrance fee to claim your reward, which totaled up to more than the "prize" deserved. Another variation of that scheme was requiring the prospective "winner" to call a specific number to find out if she or he was a winner. The call cost the prospective "winner" a certain quantity per minute with an unusually-long wait time on hold. The real winner was the scamming business that made cash off the telephone call.
Today's thieves have a large choice of scam-delivery systems, including face to face, the phone, internet and mail. The same holds true no matter how the fraud is provided: if it sounds too good to be true, it is.
How Can You Recognize the Lottery or Sweepstakes Scam?
There are certainly genuine lottos and sweepstakes offers. Who hasn't purchased a state or multi-state lotto ticket from their regional lottery game retailer? Or, who hasn't seen among those sweepstakes offered by an acknowledged company advertising in the coupon section of the Sunday paper? You fill out the entry form or sensible facsimile (normally a 3" x5" card) with your name and address and send it off.
Therein is your most significant hint as to whether you're the victim of a rip-off. In a genuine lotto or sweepstakes you have actually bought the ticket or entered your name and address. When you haven't even gone into or purchased a ticket, in a fraud lottery or sweepstakes you are alerted you have actually won.
In addition, it's illegal to utilize the mail or telephone to play lotteries across borders, whether nationwide or state lines. Any lotto offer including the purchase of lottery game tickets for other state or country lottos might wind up with you being charged with unlawful activities.
One tactic used by foreign fraudsters including lottos or sweepstakes is providing you an "advance" on your jackpots. By the time you find out their check has actually bounced the loan you wired is in their hands.
A common rip-off would go something like this: You are approached in person by someone who claims he or she simply won the lotto however isn't qualified to claim it. Except that prior to you claim the reward from the lottery merchant you are needed to withdraw some cash from your account and Lottery Dominator Members give it to the ticket holder as a good-faith gesture. By the time you find out you're holding a non-winning lotto ticket, the thief is long-gone with your good-faith cash.
In order to safeguard yourself from these rip-offs, it is necessary to bear in mind the following:
Lottos
• It's unlawful to use the mail or telephone to play lottery games throughout borders.
• If you ever get a phone call, letter or e-mail revealing you just won a lotto, it's a rip-off.
Sweepstakes
• It's prohibited for a business to need you to pay to claim a sweepstakes or win reward.
• It's prohibited for a business to recommend that buying something will improve your possibilities of winning.
• Business can not request for cash from you for taxes they state you owe on a sweepstakes winning.
• Beware when entering sweepstakes from displays you see in shopping malls-- often times these are people simply wanting your name and address for a future sweepstakes scam.
• Only enter sweepstakes from identifiable business, and never pay a fee to go into.
Avoiding being the victim of a rip-off takes a healthy dosage of apprehension. If you are ever unsure about the legitimacy of an offer made to you, you can call the National Scams Information Center's Hotline at 1-800-876-7060.
In the previous 3 days I discovered out I won 1.5 Million Euros in the UK lottery, One Million Euros in the Winx International Lottery, 1.5 Million Euros in the 2007 Email Lottery, and 500,000 Pounds in The Ultimate Guide to Lottery Systems Pdf an e-mail lottery held by the Coca Soda Business. These lotto and sweepstakes plans have gone on long before the web, with one of the earliest being the phony sweepstakes which required an entryway cost to declare your reward, which amounted to more than the "reward" was worth. Who hasn't purchased a state or multi-state lottery ticket from their local lotto seller? In a genuine lotto or sweepstakes you have purchased the ticket or entered your name and address. In a rip-off lottery game or sweepstakes you are notified you've won when you have not even entered or bought a ticket.