12 Warning Signs of Online Sweepstakes Games Scams to Help You Stay Safe

Winning an online sweepstakes games prize is a dream come true. However, that idea can suddenly turn into a nightmare if you do not know the distinction between a real win notification and an online sweepstakes games scam. The results of falling for online sweepstakes games scams can be difficult, resulting in economic loss, harassment by con men, and doing added to records of soft targets. By learning to identify the warning signs of an online sweepstakes software scam, you can bypass becoming a fool of prize fraud.

On the other hand, some things might seem important, but which are typical for sweepstakes software information. Learn about amazing Unsettling Things that Are not Signs of Scams for further news.

01  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Want You to Pay to Win the Prize

Sure online sweepstakes games will never ask you to provide fees to join or to receive a prize. You should never have to pay administration charges, service fees, or any other kind of costs up front to accept anything you have won.

Online Sweepstakes taxes are paid immediately to the IRS forward with your regular tax return, but for rare anomalies such as paying for port pays or hotel taxes. Anyone who requires you to pay taxes on winnings directly to them is working a scam.

02  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Use Free E-mail Accounts

It’s reasonable that some smaller, reliable sweepstakes games sponsors could enlighten you with a free email address. But if you get a win notice alleging to be from a big company like Publishers Clearing House or Microsoft, but the email appeared from a free account like Hotmail or Gmail, you can be sure that you are operating with an online sweepstakes games scam.

Sometimes scam experts will fool the email address so that it looks like it’s coming from a reliable company, even when it’s not. Here are suggestions on how to spot a phishing email.

03  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Tell You You Have Won Contests You Do not Remember Entering

You can only win online sweepstakes games that you start. If you get a win notification from a giveaway that you do not remember opening, it’s a red flag. Now, maybe you did come and do not recognize, but before you respond, take a moment to do some further research.

If you make your online sweepstakes games listings with folders, you can quickly inspect to make sure that you started that sweep.

Another way of checking that your prize win is certain and not a scam is to look up the telephone number for the online sweepstakes games sponsor, then call and confirm your winnings. Do not use a telephone number given in your different win notification unless you can prove that it is legitimate from the different source like a phone book.

04  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Send You a Large Check with Your Win Notice

To fool members into thinking that an online sweepstakes games scam is true, many con artists send forged checks along with their phony win information. Cashing false checks is a felony, and you could be responsible for fines and even conclusion of your bank account, as well as spending any money you wire. For more news, see Check Scams: What They Are, and How to Bypass them.

Remember, rightful online sweepstakes games want affidavits before sending out an award valued at more than $600.

05  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Instruct You to Wire Money

Criminals love to use settings like Western Union to receive illegal funds because it is nearly improbable to trace who took the money. Western Union transfers are checked like cash, and you can kiss any money that you wired to con professionals goodbye. In the few instances where you have to pay money to a sponsor, you would not be expected to use a wire service.

A new twist on this online sweepstakes games scam sign: con artists are now requiring their offerings to buy money pack tickets from retailers like Walmart. These cards let you transfer money by just reading out their products, and once you have done it, there’s little to no risk of getting your money back.

06  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Pressure You to Act in a Hurry

Online sweepstakes games scammers have a unique reason for wanting you to act fast: they want to ensure that they get their money before their check bounces or you read an essay like this one and understand that you are being defrauded.

If you feel like you are being pressed to decide before you have the time to ensure that the win is valid, you should be very different. In some examples, a sponsor might need a quick solution (for example, if they are selling away tickets for a show that weekend), but you should regularly have at least a few hours to review the notification. If there is no real reason for a rush to receive a prize, then it’s apparently an online sweepstakes games scam.

07  Sweepstakes Scams Require for Bank or Credit Card Info to Get Your Prize

Valid online sweepstakes games do not send wins by personal deposit, nor do they need to remove money from your bank or verify data using your credit card number. The only sensible information that a legitimate sweepstakes sponsor needs to prepare your win is a social safety number. Asking for a credit card number or a bank account is a huge red flag that you are buying with an online sweepstakes games scam, and you should never hand over this data.

08  The “Win” is From a Lottery (Mainly a Foreign Lottery)

It is difficult to win a lottery without buying a ticket and even in that case, you would have to find the winning symbols in a newspaper, the internet, or on TV and match them to your ticket. The lottery does not reach you to tell you that you won. If your win notification says you have won a lottery, you can be sure that it’s an online sweepstakes games scam.

Win reports from foreign lotteries are even more different. Not only do adopted lotteries have the same limitation as private lotteries, but it is also illegal to sell tickets for adopted lotteries across global borders. Consequently, unless you were really in a foreign country and got a lottery ticket, foreign lottery information are frauds.

09  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Don’t Know Your Name or Other Info

Many online sweepstakes games scams give thousands upon thousands of fraudulent emails or emails to every address they can get their fingers on, often without remembering the names of the people they are contacting. If your win notice has a general salutation like “Dear Sir,” it’s a good evidence that you’re dealing with a sweepstakes games scam.

10  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Pose As Government Organizations

To appear more reasonable, some online sweepstakes games scams play to come from government associations such as the “National Sweepstakes Board” (which doesn’t exist) or the FTC.

Real online sweepstakes games supporters, however, send their win information directly to the winners. Government organizations are not required in awarding sweepstakes games awards, nor do federal officers hand out the prizes. If you are not dealing quickly with a company sponsoring or administrating the giveaway, you are being scammed.

11  Online Sweepstakes Games Scam Notifications Arrive by Bulk Mail

When authorized online sweepstakes games sponsors send out win notifications, they use first rate postage or assistance such as FedEx or UPS to deliver information.

Online Sweepstakes Games scam artists, on the other hand, want to target the most members at the least cost to keep their values high. They lower their prices by using bulk mail for their mailings.

Any win announcement that arrives by bulk mail should be used with a great deal of doubt.

12  Online Sweepstakes Games Scams Contain Many Typos

Any group could make a minor slip when typing out a win notification. Nevertheless, obvious errors in grammar, spelling, and punctuation should set off red flags in your mind.

Many sweepstakes games scam found outside of the United States and Canada and are created by people with poor control of the language. Be very careful of any win notices that have a lot of mistakes, use strange or affected language, and unless sound “off.”