british lottery scam

[danny_galaga]

if you've ever gotten a letter from the 'spanish lottery' telling you "YOUVE WON!" you would have noticed how obviously fake it was. but my housemate got an entry form for the 'british lottery' and it looks quite convincing. they even have a web paging telling you about how to spot scams!

http://www.europeanlotteryguild.com/scam_protection.htm

but of course they are listed here themselves as a scam:

http://www.fairtrading.nsw.gov.au/Consumers/Scams/List_of_known_scams.html

and here:

http://www.commerce.wa.gov.au/ConsumerProtection/ScamNet/Scams/European_Lottery_Gui.html

needless to say, whenever you get unsolicited mail like this- throw it away.

[Dartful Dodger]

Danny’s right, if you get an email saying you won the British Lottery it's a lie.

Because I already won it.  I filled out the personal forms including my social security number yesterday so I should be receiving my prize within the next 2-3 weeks.

[ark_ader]

Wow lucky you.  Hope you gave them your bank account number.  The money is deposited much quicker that way.

Congrats! 

[danny_galaga]

Actually, this is a much more organised scam than the ol' email crap. It's an actual letter (snail mail, those bits of paper that go in envelopes- envelopes, those bits of paper folded to make a holder for snail mail). The letter is a large sheet of high quality printed material, about A3. double page, double sided. The 'official' look to it is bolstered  by the quality of printing you see on cheques. It takes the form of an entry form for a lottery pool. You send $25 to them or something. They've spent real money and time on this. This letter originated from Holland. Why these clowns don't get shut down and arrested is beyond me...

[patrickl]

This letter originated from Holland. Why these clowns don't get shut down and arrested is beyond me...

We're too busy cherishing our royal family apparently

[Dartful Dodger]

Actually, this is a much more organised scam than the ol' email crap. It's an actual letter (snail mail, those bits of paper that go in envelopes- envelopes, those bits of paper folded to make a holder for snail mail). The letter is a large sheet of high quality printed material, about A3. double page, double sided. The 'official' look to it is bolstered  by the quality of printing you see on cheques.

I get a lot of those from time shares and car dealerships, even insurance companies are doing that.

At least once a week I shred a bogus looking check.  What sux is, what if one of those was a real check?  That junk snail mail could be costing me money.



F’n Holland and its royal family allowing their subjects to make money off of the stupid people from other countries.

[shmokes]

It's probably a government scheme to pay for the Royal family.

For real, wtf?  Do lotteries work differently in the EU than the US?  If I buy a lottery ticket nobody would know that I won unless I say, "Hey . . . look.  I won!"  Why would you get this letter and think it was real if, for example, you hadn't bought a lottery ticket or, for example, if you didn't have a winning lottery ticket in your possession?  Or is it just something into which every taxpayer is automatically entered?

[danny_galaga]

did you guys miss the bit where i mention it 'takes the form of an entry form'? scams have come full circle back to the time honoured tradition of getting people to send them money, rather than phishing for account details...

[shmokes]

Wait . . . they get people to pay them $25 without even telling them they've won?  $25 just to play???  Hahahahahahahahaha   

[Franco B]

There is no such thing as the british lottery. There is the National Lottery where you have to pay to enter it.

There have been a few of these scams around as late and one major bust was made a few weeks ago. They generally inform you that you have one ten brazillion pounds but to claim it you have to send a ~£25 'admin fee'.

Occasionally once the crooks have you hooked, they keep asking for more and more money before you can claim 'your prize'.

Two things stick out here....

1) Do you really expect to win a competition you never even entered?

2) If you have won ten brazillion pounds why would you need to pay an admin fee? They would just take it off your winnings (not that the admin fees would be collected in that way anyhow).

If something sounds too be good to be true......

[patrickl]

Wait . . . they get people to pay them $25 without even telling them they've won?  $25 just to play???  Hahahahahahahahaha   

Isn't that what a lottery is?

BTW I looked into the company in the Netherlands and (at that address) they are listed as a marketing organization (Continental Mail Processing BV). Could be just the direct mail company handling the forms for this European lottery guild. Coincidently they are housed right besides the building where one of our webservers is housed. Next time I go there to check on that server I'll go see if I can spot some illegal actitivities going on overthere 

[shmokes]

Well yeah, but $25?  A lottery ticket here costs $1 or $2 for the deluxe one.  I can't imagine many people playing a $25 lottery.

[CCM]

Well yeah, but $25?  A lottery ticket here costs $1 or $2 for the deluxe one.  I can't imagine many people playing a $25 lottery.

Pennsylvania regularly runs a special Millionaire Raffle where each of a limited number of tickets costs $20.  Higher dollar lotteries like this are not that rare...

http://www.palottery.state.pa.us/contentwide.aspx?id=20598

Also, there are a lot of scratch-off games that cost anywhere from $5 to $20 per ticket.

[shmokes]

I see.

[RayB]

Don't you americans have charity lotteries? Here in Ontario a couple hospitals have them as a means to raise funds for things like cancer research or running the sick kids hospital. Tickets are $100 each, but very limited in number.

[danny_galaga]

Yeah, there are charity lotteries here too. I regularly buy the $50 MS tickets. and the RSL (retired services league) is more pricey than a regular lottery too. Funny, i got my dad into the RSL lottery even though he always thought it was a scam. After only two tickets, he won 10 grand!

[Dartful Dodger]

There's been an auto dialer calling random people telling them the manufacturer's warranty on their car was expiring and for just a few dollars they can have it extended through this company.

Apparently a lot of people just assumed it was legit and signed up for it.  It was so bad that the government had to get involved to stop the company from advertising that way.

[thatitalian]

I also have a lottery organisation set up! It is called the BYOAC lottery! There are some fantastic prizes! You can see them HERE.

All YOU need to do is send me £25!...

[patrickl]

My company receives a lot of "invoices" that are not realy invoices. These really look like invoices but somewhere (in small print) it says that it's an offer to which you agree by paying. They tend to mimic the style of regular invoices that every company pays (phonebook, chamber of commerce fees)

Twice people called me that they had my requested order for business paper ready with my logo on it. They only needed my signature so they could send it to me. If I could put that on the fax. One wonders how many people are that stupid that they fall for something like that. They got quite agressive when I told them I hadn't ordered anything and that they would have my signature already if I actually did order something.

It's just amazing how many scams they try.

To be honest, the biggest scam is when you can win a TV (or something small) when you send an SMS (text message). They collect millions from that nonsense and pay out a TV!

[Franco B]

I always enter the competition on the gadget show just because the prizes are ridiculous. There may be only a tiny chance of winning it but if you ain't in it, you can't win it.

One of my college mates won it one week, he got the phone call whilst we was in class. Lucky ---smurf--- got £17,000 worth of gadgets.

[Dartful Dodger]

Jamaican Gangs Collect Millions In Fake Lottery Contest

Okay, I can kind of see getting suckered for $100 by one of these, but over $100,000 or a quarter of a million?

[danny_galaga]

Jamaican Gangs Collect Millions In Fake Lottery Contest

Okay, I can kind of see getting suckered for $100 by one of these, but over $100,000 or a quarter of a million?

yeah, those scams make my lottery seem legit in comparison...