"Don't be fooled by these con artists," said Bill Moak, BBB Mississippi President. "Participating in these schemes can get you into trouble in more ways than one." Moak notes that not only can you lose all the money in your bank accounts, you could be subject to identity theft, and participation in foreign lotteries is prohibited by federal law.
Of special note is the "El Gordo" Lottery, which comes in a variety of forms. Recently, a consumer sent the BBB a copy of a solicitation supposedly originating from the "Santa Lucia Security Company S.A." in Madrid Spain, which promises the recipient that their "lucky number" has been drawn, entitling them to a payout of $615,810.00.
The lucky "winners" are instructed to act quickly to claim their prize, and to keep the letter confidential to avoid "double claiming or unwarranted taking of an advantage of this program by participants." A form is included with the letter, with instructions to write down the recipient's name, address, contact information, bank account and routing numbers, and even next-of-kin, and to send the form to an address in Rome, Italy.
"The best place for these offers is the shredder," Moak advises. "Consumers should not respond in any way to these offers."
Here are some additional tips:
- Participation could be illegal.
- There are no secret systems for winning foreign lotteries.
- If you play, expect more offers.
- Don’t give credit card and bank account numbers to scammers.
