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 "Mr Sott Hales" at "EUROPEAN SWEEPSTAKES PROMOTION" saying you won their promotion or lottery promo and replied with questions, only to get an email telling you not to be "skeptic" to contact "Mrs Evelyn Micheal" to collect your winnings? It is a scam. And don't get too excited if the names are different; the scammers make many versions of this scam!
It is actually a very simple scam. They claim you won a promotion, which is giving away millions of dollars based on a randomly selected email address. The scam is obvious: it's simply preposterous to think that any company would randomly give away money to encourage you to buy their product. That would be self-defeating.
Although the most important clue is that no legitimate lottery, and almost no legitimate sweepstakes or promotions will 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.
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. 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.
Using free email account: The scammer is writing to you from a FREE email account (Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.). Don't you think a real organization would use its own email, its own domain and website? Wouldn't they want to promote that?
What are they promoting? No one promotes "world peace" or "use of the internet" by handing out millions to random strangers. And if they are promoting a product, then this must be the world's worst promotion, because no one has heard of it, outside of the email you just received.
Pay a fee to collect the prize: Nope, it is illegal for free sweepstakes and promotions to charge you ANYTHING! Of course, in a scam, that is the whole point: to get you to send money to the scammer.
It is a typical scam promotion sweepstakes winning notification. Also see these pages:
EUROPEAN SWEEPSTAKES PROMOTION
Taberner House Park
Lane Croydon CR9 1DH
United Kingdom.Ref: win/oct102/06
Batch:05/10/wa34Attn: {insert your name here},
This office is in receipt of your basic information for us to finalize the processing release of your winnings. But I will say that we are running behind time as a result of your been skeptic. You will agree with me that in as much as I am assisting in this process for the quick release of your winnings I will not be a mislead to your success .
In a nutshell I will advise that you do not allow your been skeptic make you miss a GOD sent opportunity which you do not know when next it will come by following the agencies instruction in making payments of the required fees without delay so that all can be finalized over here on your behalf and you could be receiving your prize winnings without any hitch.
It may interest you to know that after verification of your winning notification and documentation, we are required to get( Legal and administrative fees, Stamp duty ,Zonal lottery and Gaming board fees , Vat ) on your winning claims to enable the PAYING BANK carry out the transfer/payment of your winning and also make or leave you as the true beneficiary of the DRAW under the EUROPEAN SWEEPSTAKES PROMOTION , zoned under london Croydon Payment Center as all winnings must be notarized and a certificate of award must be obtained from the UK Gaming Control Board to complete the claims process.
This is in conformity with the lottery claim regulations by our Organization & the UK Gaming Control Board. Winners are to cover the legal charges for the notarization of the claims form and the acquisition of the certificate of award not EUROPEAN SWEEPSTAKES PROMOTION.
As soon this if duly finalized, All neccesary documents will be forwarded immediately on your behalf to the corresponding payment bank for them to contact you to effect release of your winnings to you within 48 hours real time banking.
You are advised to send the fees via WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER to our accounts officer in the uk for immediate processing of your winning claims .
Name of officer: Mrs Evelyn Micheal.
Address: 622 Crown House, North Circular Road, London , NW10 7PN
www.europeansweepstakepromotions.itgo.com
You can call me on my direct line to facilitate the release of your funds.
Tel: +44-704-570-4582
Fax: +44-707-502-0590Send confirmation of payment so that we proceed immediately.
I await your urgent response,
Mr Sott Hales.
Click here for the huge list of the names of the currently identified lottery scams companies
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