Sweepstakes-All Scams and Lies!
Sweepstakes scams are thought to be a thing of the past. But a recent survey shows that quite a few are still falling for such sweepstakes scams.
Sweepstakes scams are basically check forwarding scams. Scammers and fraudsters representing a reputable organization inform and then forward their potential victims a check valuing anywhere between a few hundred to thousands of pounds. The point here is not the amount of the check, but it is the balance amount that the scammers or fraudsters request to be deposited back. A check for say $5000 would include a ‘fee’ of $3500, which is to be wired back to an account (most probably in another country). This would serve two purposes (i) the sweepstakes ‘winner’ gets to keep the remaining $1500 and (ii) also qualifies to take part in a jackpot.
Now the reality, the check received is a fake and is not worth even a penny. This will only be determined after the victim has wired the ‘fee’. There are a lot of telltale signs that the scammers leave behind once the ’scheme’ starts off. Some telltale signs left by scammers, which can save are:
1.Research and use the same tool which the scammers use against you-internet. Scammers using fake names and addresses of fake companies, can be verified on the internet. Most of the times addresses and pin-codes do not match.
2.Contacting such scammers through email or telephone, can prove to be a bad-idea.
3.Verify the check. Every bank is assigned a different code for their checks. Generally the last two numbers mentioned at the end of bottom of the check determines the bank.
4.The letter or email will include grammatical errors, wrong punctuations, spelling mistakes etc. But since scammers are getting smarter by the day, it is quite possible that one might receive a perfectly drafted letter or email very soon.
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