"Powered By Google" Lottery Scam

Online users, please be aware of the "Powered By Google©" lottery scam email message below. The fake email message was created and sent by cyber-criminals to trick the recipients into sending their personal information and money, by claiming that they are winners of the Electronic Online Sweepstakes organized by Google. Remember, there is no Google lottery or sweepstakes, and Google will never ask its users to send their personal information via email message.

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Powered By Google Lottery Scam

This type of lottery scam will ask you to send your personal information and subsequently ask you to send money in order to receive your prize. But, please do not respond to the email message or follow the instructions in it. Google is not taking part in or endorsing any lottery games, so if you receive an email claiming that you have won some lottery prize endorsed by Google, it is a scam.

The “Powered By Google©” Lottery Scam

From: Google Inc [mailto: cmohlinger@justierradelfuego.gov.ar ]
Sent: Tuesday, July 19, 2016 7:11 AM
Subject: Powered By Google

Dear Google User,

You have been selected as a winner for using Google services. Find attached email with more details.

Congratulations,

Matt Brittin.
CEO Google UK.

©2016 Google - Terms & Privacy

The fraudulent email message above has the following letter attached:

Google

Google UK Ltd Belgrave House 76 Buckingham Palace Road London SW1W 9TQ United Kingdom.

RE: OFFICIAL LETTER.

Ref No: GFSP/ 31177/137782/2016 Batch: GFSP/ 373977/GPWIN/UK

we heartily congratulate you over your success in the official publication of results of the E-mail Electronic Online Sweepstakes Organized by Google (randomly picked by our automated system/Random Name and E-mail Generator (RNG), in conjunction with the foundation for the Promotion of Software Products (FPS), held here in London UK. Google earns its profit mainly from advertising using their very own Google search engine, Gmail, Gala, Sify,e-mail service Google Maps, Google Apps, Orkut social networking and YouTube video sharing, which are all offered to the public for free.

We wish to congratulate you once again, for being among the Twelve (12) selected winners. Hence we do believe with your prize, you will continue to be active in your patronage to Google and its Products. ABank Cheque will be issued in your favour, hence you have won for yourself the sum of £950.000.00 (Nine Hundred and Fifty Thousand Great British Pounds Sterling), One Google Nexus 10 Tablet and also you have been enlisted as One of the Google ambassadors for 2016.

To claim your reward, please contact our Foreign Payment Bureau officer by neatly filling the mandatory payment requirements hereunder, as your payment will be released and arranged by our United Kingdom Office:

MANDATORY PAYMENT REQUIREMENTS.

(1) (2) (3) (4) (5) (6) (7) (8) (9) (10)

Your Full Names: Your Contact Telephone/Mobile Number: Your Nationality/Country: Your Contact Address: Occupation: Age/Gender: Marital Status: Private Email Address: Ever Won An Online Lottery? How Do You Feel As A Winner?

Contact Person: Kent Walker Senior Vice-President and General Counsel Contact E-mail: kentwalkersvpgpa41@googlemail.com , kentwalkergoogleu@qq.com

Note: You can either fill your claims form by printing and manually filling out the requested details or you can fill directly on E-mail, or provide the details on Microsoft Word separately.

NOTE!!! For security reasons, you are advised to keep your winning information confidential till your claims are processed and your money remitted to you. This is part of our precautionary measure to avoid double claiming and unwarranted abuse of this Program by some unscrupulous elements. Please be WARNED! ! ! !

Congratulations from the staffs & members of Google board commission.

MD Matt Brittin, Chairman of the Board and Managing Director, Google United Kingdom

Office of. the. Director Google United Kingdom 1 6..../07/1.6

Sign ...: ................... • ..

Larry Page Co-Founder & CEO 07/16/16

©2016 Google Incorporation.

Remember, the email message is a lottery scam and there is no prize, so please do not send your hard earned money to the cyber-criminals behind the scam. If you send your personal information, the cyber criminals will use it to further scam you.

Check the comment section below for additional information, share what you know, or ask a question about this article by leaving a comment below. And, to quickly find answers to your questions, use our search Search engine.

Note: Some of the information in samples on this website may have been impersonated or spoofed.

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Comments, Questions, Answers, or Reviews

Comments (Total: 3)

To protect your privacy, please remove sensitive or identifiable information from your comments, questions, or reviews. We will use your IP address to display your approximate location to other users when you make a post. That location is not enough to find you.

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August 28, 2016 at 1:28 AM by
"Powered By Google" Lottery Scam
an anonymous user from: New York, United States

I received an e-mail today from Name: Eric E. Schmidt

Tel: (650) 623-1441

Email: seeric600@gmail.com

concerning: "E-mail electronic online sweepstake organized by Google"

I thought you might want to look into this also.

Susan.

Delete

August 28, 2016 at 7:44 AM by
"Powered By Google" Lottery Scam
info

Thanks for the information. The email is a scam. There is no Google lottery or sweepstakes.

Delete

August 22, 2016 at 10:11 AM by
"Powered By Google" Lottery Scam
info

Here is another scam:

"Von: Mr.Jim David [mailto:webmaster@hotmail.com]

Gesendet: Samstag, 20. August 2016 15:12

An: Recipients

Betreff: Dear Email User

Dear Email User,

Your email address has been selected as one of our locky winners to recieve

a cash award of One Million United States Dollar from Google incorporated.

For more details, do write back.

Powered By Google Inc.

Mr.Jim David"

Delete

Write Your Comment, Question, Answer, or Review

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Online Threat Alerts Security Tips

Pay the safest way

Credit cards are the safest way to pay for online purchases because you can dispute the charges if you never get the goods or services or if the offer was misrepresented. Federal law limits your liability to $50 if someone makes unauthorized charges to your account, and most credit card issuers will remove them completely if you report the problem promptly.

Guard your personal information

In any transaction you conduct, make sure to check with your state or local consumer protection agency and the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to see if the seller, charity, company, or organization is credible. Be especially wary if the entity is unfamiliar to you. Always call the number found on a website’s contact information to make sure the number legitimately belongs to the entity you are dealing with.

Be careful of the information you share

Never give out your codes, passwords or personal information, unless you are sure of who you're dealing with

Know who you’re dealing with

Crooks pretending to be from companies you do business with may call or send an email, claiming they need to verify your personal information. Don’t provide your credit card or bank account number unless you are actually paying for something and know who you are sending payment to. Your social security number should not be necessary unless you are applying for credit. Be especially suspicious if someone claiming to be from a company with whom you have an account asks for information that the business already has.

Check your accounts

Regularly check your account transactions and report any suspicious or unauthorised transactions.

Don’t believe promises of easy money

If someone claims that you can earn money with little or no work, get a loan or credit card even if you have bad credit, or make money on an investment with little or no risk, it’s probably a scam. Oftentimes, offers that seem too good to be true, actually are too good to be true.

Do not open email from people you don’t know

If you are unsure whether an email you received is legitimate, try contacting the sender directly via other means. Do not click on any links in an email unless you are sure it is safe.

Think before you click

If an email or text message looks suspicious, don’t open any attachments or click on the links.

Verify urgent requests or unsolicited emails, messages or phone calls before you respond

If you receive a message or a phone call asking for immediate action and don't know the sender, it could be a phishing message.

Be careful with links and new website addresses

Malicious website addresses may appear almost identical to legitimate sites. Scammers often use a slight variation in spelling or logo to lure you. Malicious links can also come from friends whose email has unknowingly been compromised, so be careful.

Secure your personal information

Before providing any personal information, such as your date of birth, Social Security number, account numbers, and passwords, be sure the website is secure.

Stay informed on the latest cyber threats

Keep yourself up to date on current scams by visiting this website daily.

Use Strong Passwords

Strong passwords are critical to online security.

Keep your software up to date and maintain preventative software programs

Keep all of your software applications up to date on your computers and mobile devices. Install software that provides antivirus, firewall, and email filter services.

Update the operating systems on your electronic devices

Make sure your operating systems (OSs) and applications are up to date on all of your electronic devices. Older and unpatched versions of OSs and software are the target of many hacks. Read the CISA security tip on Understanding Patches and Software Updates for more information.

What if You Got Scammed?

Stop Contact With The Scammer

Hang up the phone. Do not reply to emails, messages, or letters that the scammer sends. Do not make any more payments to the scammer. Beware of additional scammers who may contact you claiming they can help you get your lost money back.

Secure Your Finances

  • Report potentially compromised bank account, credit or debit card information to your financial institution(s) immediately. They may be able to cancel or reverse fraudulent transactions.
  • Notify the three major credit bureaus. They can add a fraud alert to warn potential credit grantors that you may be a victim of identity theft. You may also want to consider placing a free security freeze on your credit report. Doing so prevents lenders and others from accessing your credit report entirely, which will prevent them from extending credit:

Check Your Computer

If your computer was accessed or otherwise affected by a scam, check to make sure that your anti-virus is up-to-date and running and that your system is free of malware and keylogging software. You may also need to seek the help of a computer repair company. Consider utilizing the Better Business Bureau’s website to find a reputable company.

Change Your Account Passwords

Update your bank, credit card, social media, and email account passwords to try to limit further unauthorized access. Make sure to choose strong passwords when changing account passwords.

Report The Scam

Reporting helps protect others. While agencies can’t always track down perpetrators of crimes against scammers, they can utilize the information gathered to record patterns of abuse which may lead to action being taken against a company or industry.

Report your issue to the following agencies based on the nature of the scam:

  • Local Law Enforcement: Consumers are encouraged to report scams to their local police department or sheriff’s office, especially if you lost money or property or had your identity compromised.
  • Federal Trade Commission: Contact the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) or use the Online Complaint Assistant to report various types of fraud, including counterfeit checks, lottery or sweepstakes scams, and more.
  • Identitytheft.gov: If someone is using your personal information, like your Social Security, credit card, or bank account number, to open new accounts, make purchases, or get a tax refund, report it at www.identitytheft.gov. This federal government site will also help you create your Identity Theft Report and a personal recovery plan based on your situation. Questions can be directed to 877-ID THEFT.

How To Recognize a Phishing Scam

Scammers use email or text messages to try to steal your passwords, account numbers, or Social Security numbers. If they get that information, they could get access to your email, bank, or other accounts. Or they could sell your information to other scammers. Scammers launch thousands of phishing attacks like these every day — and they’re often successful.

Scammers often update their tactics to keep up with the latest news or trends, but here are some common tactics used in phishing emails or text messages:

Phishing emails and text messages often tell a story to trick you into clicking on a link or opening an attachment. You might get an unexpected email or text message that looks like it’s from a company you know or trust, like a bank or a credit card or utility company. Or maybe it’s from an online payment website or app. The message could be from a scammer, who might

  • say they’ve noticed some suspicious activity or log-in attempts — they haven’t
  • claim there’s a problem with your account or your payment information — there isn’t
  • say you need to confirm some personal or financial information — you don’t
  • include an invoice you don’t recognize — it’s fake
  • want you to click on a link to make a payment — but the link has malware
  • say you’re eligible to register for a government refund — it’s a scam
  • offer a coupon for free stuff — it’s not real

About Online Threat Alerts (OTA)

Online Threat Alerts or OTA is an anti-cybercrime community that started in 2012. OTA alerts the public to cyber crimes and other web threats.

By alerting the public, we have prevented a lot of online users from getting scammed or becoming victims of cybercrimes.

With the ever-increasing number of people going online, it important to have a community like OTA that continuously alerts or protects those same people from cyber-criminals, scammers and hackers, who are every day finding new ways of carrying out their malicious activities.

Online users can help by reporting suspicious or malicious messages or websites to OTA. And, if they want to determine if a message or website is a threat or scam, they can use OTA's search engine to search for the website or parts of the message for information.

Help maintain Online Threat Alerts (OTA).

"Powered By Google" Lottery Scam