Online users, beware of USA Mega Powerball lottery scams like the one below. The scams are getting more and more clever, and prey on your desire to win a big prize. There have been people who have lost their entire life savings because once the scam artists make a little money off of you, they keep coming back for more.
A Sample of a USA Mega Powerball Lottery Scam
From: Randi-Joe Plourde <plourde-r@webmail.uwinnipeg.ca>
Date: 15 February 2019 at 07:32:30 GMT
Congratulation! Your Email ID was selected for $1 MILLION USD in the USA MEGA POWERBALL PROMO.Send Names,Age,Reconfirm Mobile No,Email ID,Home Address & your Pin UAPB98789W.
How do the scams work?
Very simply, the first thing they send you is a letter or e-mail stating that you've won a big prize (see sample letter below).
Often, the scams will put USA Mega or some other recognizable name or logo on the paper to make it look official.
If you get the scam through e-mail, sometimes they will even make the e-mail address seem as if it has come from USA Mega, such as "USAMegaPrizes@yahoo.com". Rest assured, that is not our e-mail address!
Also, most times the scam artists will also include a very real-looking check for a few thousand dollars. Keep in mind, the check is not real — if you went to cash it, the check would be worthless. But it looks real, making you very excited at this point that you've actually won something.
The scams always boil down to this: they want you to send them money. Most of the time, they claim that you need to send them the taxes on your prize. After all, they sent you the check, so why not just deposit the check, and then send them the money from your account via Western Union?
That's the key. They are trying to get you to send your real money from your bank account, in exchange for their fake check that they gave you.
Don't Be Fooled!
You cannot win a prize for a contest you did not enter.
REPEAT: You cannot win a prize for a contest you did not enter.
Because many of these scams originate from outside of the United States, English is often not their first language, and typically there will be misspellings and strange wordings in the letter.
For example, you may see congratulations spelled as "congradulations". Or you may see a strange wording such as, "We are most joyous to bring you good news!"
When you get an e-mail, note the e-mail address it came from, and where they want you to reply. A real lottery would never use a "Yahoo" or "Hotmail" e-mail address — they would always use a real dot-com domain name after the "@" sign.
What can you do to protect yourself from scams?
When you get a letter or e-mail saying you won a prize, simply throw it away or delete it immediately.
That's all! The sad reality is that there are so many of these scam artists out there, that reporting a scam to "the authorities" will do little or nothing to stop them. Just throw away the letter, or delete the e-mail, and don't give it a second thought.
Not all scams will look just like these, but they give you a good idea what to look for.
These are real scam letters and checks sent to us by our readers. You will note that some of the materials are very easy to see that it's a scam, and others look authentic. But for those who don't know anything about lottery games, even the clear forgeries can look real.
In the sample letters, see if you can spot:
The misspelling "Congradulations"
Prize description does not match the game they are referring to (Mega Millions does not have a prize category "A", whatever that is)
Use of USA Mega logo, to try to make the letter seem legitimate
The barcode at the bottom, to try and make the letter seem legitimate, except the barcode reads "0123456789" — not exactly a realistic code!
Just the fact that you're getting a letter at all is odd. In Mega Millions you buy tickets, and the lottery has no idea who the winners are before they walk into lottery headquarters and redeem the ticket. Think about it: isn't that why you hear about unclaimed jackpots all the time? The lottery has no idea who to tell about the win because all tickets are bought anonymously!
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:
- Equifax
- Experian
- TransUnion
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).