Beware of Lottery Scam

Land based games like 5/90 game, being a fixed odd game is usually not prone to scams, however with the advent of different mobile/online games especially now that Nigerians can play international lotteries from within the country, there is need to be vigilant in order to avoid being scammed.

Even smart people fall for scams so don’t think “I am too clever to be a victim” Always stop and reset and weigh every aspect of the scenario when you receive some certain emails, calls or messages that sounds too good to be true, about winning huge prizes.

• Never fall for an email that claims you just won loads of cash from a game, but that you have to make a one-time transfer fee to have it released to you. The message can claim that the up-front money that you are to pay is for taxes and processing fees. Please DO NOT SEND ANY MONEY TO CLAIM ANY PRIZE.

• A lottery requires you to purchase a ticket in order to participate so the first question to ask yourself when you receive this ‘winner’ emails/messages, is “did I actually play any lottery for there to be a winning. If the answer is no, then it’s definitely a scam. There is no miracle; you cannot become a winner, if you did not participate in any game; even if you get referred to a genuine website of the interested host.

• If at all you participated in any lottery, check the email address you used and the name of the Company you played with. Be more careful if the email is coming from an account like yahoo. If the heading to the email you received, starts with generic greetings like ‘hello’, ‘good morning’, ‘dear customer’ then it’s 100% likely that you are not the only recipient of that mail. If a message claims that you are a winner, they should already know who you are. Also look for unprofessionalism in the wordings and construction of the message (s) received; typos and grammatical errors etc. All these are warning and red flag raising signs. DO NOT GIVE OUT PERSONAL INFORMATION.

• If you played a foreign lottery, note that no foreign body will contact you directly, as your tickets are purchased by the agent company you participated through. Please avoid anything that requests payment via money order, wire transfer, bitcoin etc., as genuine lotteries do not ask for money or any form of payment to redeem your winnings. Please any such request is bogus. Furthermore, familiarise yourself with the terms & conditions of the online company you participated with so that you will know how they operate, in the event a winner emerges.

Hang up, if it’s a call; delete if it’s an email/message. DO NOT RESPOND.

Note: Lottery is Fun, Play Responsibly, and don’t Play if You Can’t Afford to Lose.