Protect Yourself and Report the Latest Frauds, Scams, Spams, Fakes, Identify Theft Hacks and Hoaxes
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Have you received an email from "Dr. Victor Gustavo" at "EURO MILLION SWEEPSTAKE DE EUROPA" telling you that "your email address won in the second category" or something similar, and to contact "MR. HUGO SANCHEZ" to collect your winnings?
But what did and how you win? Is it a sweepstakes, a lottery or a promotion? The email uses all three terms, yet they are each very, very different things!
And pity poor Dr. Victor Gustavo; he has a PhD, yet he is reduced to working as a "lottery coordinator". Do you suppose he accidentally killed a patient and lost his medical license?
In any event, it is a scam. No legitimate, legal lottery notifies winners vian email (see footnote)! The scammers may change the names and details, but it is still a scam!
The Spanish Ministry of the Treasury has advised us that legitimate lottery tickets can only be purchased from authorized ticket sellers in Spain. Let us repeat that: The Spanish lotteries are only open to Spanish residents - you CANNOT win if you are not IN Spain AND purchased a ticket.
Below is the example of the fake email scam (the email is the scam, not any persons or companies named in the email) claiming to be from the "EURO MILLION SWEEPSTAKE DE EUROPA".
Although the most important clue is that no legitimate lottery will ever email a winner, there are many other signs that this is a fraud. We have highlighted some of these in the email below, not the least of which are:
Email address ballot: There is no such thing as a "computer ballot system" or "computer email draw". No one, not even Microsoft has a database of email addresses of the type or magnitude they suggest.
"No tickets were sold": You care to explain where the money comes from? Perhaps the lottery money fairy? Why would a sweepstakes or lottery give away money to "email address randomly selected by a computer ballot draw system"? This is CLEARLY nonsense: you MUST, repeat MUST buy a ticket to have a chance of winning any lottery!
Terrible spelling, punctuation, syntax and grammar - Scammers apparently don't know how to use spell checkers. We assume they dropped out of school before that class. They use almost excessive and random CapItaLiZAtion. Names are usually in all capital letters for some reason known only to these illiterate criminals. They often can't even spell "February" or know that "22th" ought to be "22nd". These scammers usually write at the 3rd grade level. Being non-native English speakers, they also often get first names and surnames (last names reversed), so you will frequently see names like "Mr. SMITH JAMES.", instead of "Mr. James Smith", along with the peculiar usage of periods (full stops) and spaces or the lack thereof. Real lotteries also proofread their emails and look and read more professional.
Using free email account: The scammer is writing to you from a FREE email account (Yahoo, Hotmail, Excite, AIM, Gmail, etc.). Don't you think a real organization would use it's own email, it's own domain and website?
Keep Confidential - Real lotteries THRIVE on publicity - they don't want you to keep anything secret - the publicity causes people to buy more tickets. there is NO risk of "double claiming" because they can validate where the ticket numbers were sold. The scammer want you to keep quiet because they don't want the police or ConsumerFraudreporting to hear about them! It should read: "For our own security, you are advised to keep your winning information confidential until we have finished scamming you!"
Email notification: NO REAL LOTTERY SENDS AN EMAIL TO NOTIFY WINNERS. Period. Full-stop. End of story. There mere fact ALONE that you received an email saying you won a lottery is proof that it is a scam.
Here is a typical scam lottery winning notification.
EURO MILLION SWEEPSTAKE DE EUROPA
C/ CARRACA DE MAYOR 4-9
28030 MADRID SPAIN.
TEL: 0034 658 157 212. FAX: 0034 615 337 673.
FROM: THE DESK OF MANAGING DIRECTOR
INTERNATIONAL PROMOTION/PRIZE AWARD DEPT
ATT: REF. No: ETT/425911/07.
BATCH NO: 00979015.
DATE: 25th March, 2008.
RE: AWARD NOTIFICATION/FINAL NOTICE.
We are pleased to inform you of the release of the EURO MILLON INTERNATIONAL PROMOTION PROGRAMME, held on the 5th day of March 2008.
Your name attached to the ticket number 032-22532881.810 with serial number 4226-19 drew the lucky numbers 19-28-31-40-44-49, which consequently won the lottery in the 3rd category.
You have therefore been approved for a lump sum pay $810,810.00 (EIGHT HUNDRED AND TEN THOUSAND, EIGHT HUNDRED AND TEN DOLLARS) in cash credited to file REF NO.NTT/425911/04. This is from a total cash prize of $5,368,770.00 (FIVE MILLION, THREE HUNDRED AND SIXTY EIGHT THOUSAND, SEVEN HUNDRED AND SEVENTY DOLLARS) Shared among the seventeen international winners in the category 1&3. CONGRATULATIONS.
Your fund is now deposited with a security company insured to your name. Due to mixed up of some numbers and names, we ask that you keep this award top secret from public notice until your claim has been processed and your money remitted to your account as this is part of our security protocol to avoid double claiming or unwarranted taking of advantage of this program by participants. Please send your Full Name, Home and Office Telephone & Fax Number, Mobile Telephone Number and your winning ticket number, reference numbers and amount won information for processing of your winning fund to our registered claim agent in address below.
All participants were selected through computer ballot system drawn from 25,000 names from Europe, South Pacific, Asia, Middle East and North America as a part of our international promotion program which we conduct once every year. We hope with a part of your prize, you will take part in our end of year high stake $1.3 Billion International Lottery.
To begin your claims, please contact your claims agent, MR. HUGO SANCHEZ the Foreign Service manager of FUND TALENT SECURITY COMPANY S.A. on Tel: 00-34 686 179 575. Fax: 00-34 912 919 715. Email: hsanchezy2k@yahoo.com for processing and remittance of your prize money to a designated account of your choice. Remember all prize money must be claimed not later than 23rd Day of April 2008. After this date, all funds will be returned to the Ministry of Economy and Finance as unclaimed.
NOTE: In order to avoid unnecessary delays and complications, please remember to quote your reference and batch number in every correspondence with us or your Agent Furthermore should there be any change of address do inform your claims agent as soon as possible.
You will be paying 10% (Ten percent) of your total prize money to the agent after you receive the money.
Congratulations again from all members of our staff and thank you for being a part of our promotion program.
Yours sincerely,
Dr. Victor Gustavo
Lottery Coordinator.
Message Basics and Contact DetailsMessage code YvsmygrusxGl Date & time sent 2008-03-25 Sender Mr. Vic Company Winning Email victo_gustavo23@yahoo.com
(NOTE: Please REPLY to victo_gustavo23@yahoo.com but DO NOT REPLY to en_notification@made-in-china.com)
Telephone 34-91-1814188
Fax 34-91-1814188
Country/Region Spain
Homepage
Sender's IP Address 198.54.*.*
Sender's IP Location South Africa
Click here for the huge list of the names of the currently identified lottery scams companies
* Re: emails of winnings. We know of only ONE exception in the world to this rule - and if you bought a ticket from them, you would know it, and would used their safegaurds.
* Re: emails of winnings. We know of only ONE exception in the world to this rule - and if you bought a ticket from them, you would know it, and would not be questioning it.