Lottery Scam - Google United Kingdom Official Notification Letter

The email message below the subject: 'Official Notification Letter,' is a fake and scam. The email message was not sent by Google. You should not respond to the message with your personal information. Every month, thousands of these email messages are sent out by scammers to trick their potential victims into stealing their personal information and/or sending money. Therefore, never send your personal information to anyone in an email message or send money to someone who contacted you via email message.

Advertisements
Lottery Scam - Google United Kingdom Official Notification Letter

The Google United Kingdom Lottery Scam

From: Google Security Department <pvoelkle @pvoelkle.com>
Date: Saturday, August 23, 2014
Subject: OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION

Google UK Ltd
Belgrave House
76 Buckingham Palace Road

London SW1W 9TQ
United Kingdom.

Ref No: GUK/ 8900/88/2014
Batch: GUK/ 955/GPKLI/UK

OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION LETTER.

It is obvious that this notification will come to you as a surprise but please find time to read it carefully as we congratulate you over your success in the following official publication of results of the E-mail Electronic Online Sweepstakes Organized by Google, in conjunction with the foundation for the Promotion of Software Products (F.P.S.). 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 You Tube 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 in the ongoing E-mail Electronic Online Sweepstakes; we do believe with your prize, you will continue to be active in your patronage to Google and its Products. A Bank Cheque have been issued in your favor, 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 2014.

To claim your reward, please contact our Foreign Payment Bureau officer below by neatly filling the verification and funds release form below, as your payment will be released and arranged by our United Kingdom Office.

MANDATORY FOREIGN PAYMENT RELEASE FORM.

(1) Your Contact Address:

(2) Your Contact Telephone/Mobile Number:

(3) Your Nationality/Country:

(4)Your Full Names:

(5) Occupation:

(6) Age/Gender:

(7) Marital Status:

(8) Private Email Address:

(9) Ever Won An Online Lottery?

(10) How Do You Feel As A Winner?

(11) Your preferred mode of prize remittance stated below:

* Courier Delivery of your certified winning cheque in your name and other Winning documents safely to your home address.

……………

Contact our Foreign Payment Bureau officer below:

David C. Drummond

Senior Vice President, Corporate Development and Chief Legal Officer with the E-mail account as follows:

Email: drdoerr @163.com
……………

Note: You can either fill your claims verification 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.

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

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.

Bookmark articleSave

Was this article helpful?

Advertisements

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.

Your post will be set as anonymous because you are not signed in. An anonymous post cannot be edited or deleted, therefore, review it carefully before posting. Sign-in.

October 13, 2015 at 9:08 AM by
Lottery Scam - Google United Kingdom Official Notification Letter
an anonymous user from: Tehran, Iran

Hi, I'm not sure if this is the right category...but still I hope someone will be able to help. The issue is about the email I've received. I just wonder if it's a scam or really something to do with Google? :

- - -

Google Anniversary Award Centre

Belgrave House, 76 Buckingham Palace Rd. London SW1W 9TQ, United Kingdom.

Your e-mail address winning details:

E- No: GUK/FPSP/1472/915/236

OFFICIAL WINNING NOTIFICATION LETTER

We wish to congratulate you over your success in the official publication of results of the E-mail electronic

online sweepstake organized by Google, in conjunction with the Foundation for the Promotion of Software

Products (F.P.S.P) and confirmed by our co-sponsors Visa®/MasterCard® International. Google earns its’

...

You are advised to contact our Foreign Payment Bureau with the

details below to file your claims:

PAYMENT CLAIMS FORM

1) Your Full Names:

2) Your Contact Address:

...

Name: David Drummond

Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer

Email: davdrummond9@googlemail.com

- - -

Delete

October 13, 2015 at 10:16 AM by
Lottery Scam - Google United Kingdom Official Notification Letter
info

No, it is a scam. There is no Google lottery.

Delete

October 14, 2015 at 1:39 AM by
Lottery Scam - Google United Kingdom Official Notification Letter
an anonymous user from: Tehran, Tehran, Iran

Thanks for your quick response, but they send again another email to me. The lawyer email I can send to you as below:

- - -

"PRIZE CLAIMS PROCEDURE:

On behalf of the screening committee of the Google Email Lottery Award Promotion, I wish to formally announce to you that you have successfully passed the e-mail screening, verification test and clarification from our payment Office. This means that you have been cleared for payment by the E-mail electronic online Sweepstakes Promotion organized by Google, in conjunction with the foundation for the promotion of software products (F.P.S.P).

Your claims information has been received in this office and you have been issued Claims PIN: 80 15 18 07. Due to Government Policies of the UK, all legal procedures should be observed, and this means that you have been officially cleared for payment by the Verifications Department at the headquarters of Google Award Incorporation. Your Funds, original copy of your source of funds, together with a covering document (Money Laundering protection) from the British government stating that the money was obtained legally from Google Lottery Incorporation have been obtained in your name.

...

Firm: Mark Harvey LLP.

Contact Person: Mark Harvey, Esq.

Address: 246a Vauxhall Bridge Road, London, SW1V 1AU, United Kingdom.

Tel: 44 745 237 8809, 44 743 072 8809

Email: legal@markharveyllp.com, markharveyllp@lawyer.com

...

Sincerely,

David Drummond

Senior Vice President and Chief Legal Officer,

Google Anniversary Award Centre."

Delete

Write Your Comment, Question, Answer, or Review

Advertisements

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).

Lottery Scam - Google United Kingdom Official Notification Letter