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Lottery scams have been increasing at an alarming rate in recent years and currently lotteries are the most common form of scam targeting Australian consumers. Many Australian consumers have lost thousands and thousands of dollars to these scams. All these scams have two things in common – there is no lottery draw and there is no prize. Like all scams, the sender is trying to con you out of your cash.
You will typically receive notification from the overseas scammer by email or letter advising that you have won a significant sum of money in a lottery you have not entered.
The scammers will then require you to provide often extensive personal details in order to 'prove' that you are the correct winner. Also in order to release your winnings you will be required to pay a series of invented fees. These fees may be given names such as insurance costs, government taxes, bank fees or courier charges. Any money paid to these scammers is invariably lost.
It must be noted any lottery conducted outside of Australia cannot legally operate in Australia without the authority of domestic government lottery bodies who issue permit numbers that must be displayed.
The scammer is relying on your becoming excited by the possibility that perhaps you really have won the 'big one'! They are hoping that even if you are a little suspicious perhaps you feel it is worth risking a small sum of money on the possibility you have won all that money.
The scammer will require you to respond within a short time frame otherwise your winnings will be forfeited. They do this to prevent you from taking the time to think the decision through clearly and recognise the scam for what it is.
The scammer will also urge you to keep your winning notification private or confidential and therefore dissuade you from seeking an outside second opinion. Generally this is done with the pretence of maintaining security and preventing others from claiming your rightful prize.
Often scammers will use the names of legitimate overseas lotteries in order to gain credibility for the scam. Many such scammers use the names of legitimate Spanish lotteries such as “Loteria Primitiva” and “El Gordo” but in order to win these lotteries you must have purchased a ticket from an authorised distributor in Spain. Common names also include the International Lotto Commission and the Princess Diana Lottery.
Providing personal details such as bank details will open you up to having your identity stolen. You may have your bank account cleaned out or credit taken out in your name. Responding to emails through internet links may compromise your computer thus threatening your online banking security through secret downloads of spy-ware.
By responding you are verifying your name and address and it is likely that you will be placed on a list of consumers who are potentially vulnerable to such scams. You will then be bombarded with many more similar emails or letters.
