The Napanee Crime Unit are warning people that scams are everywhere after a Loyalist Township woman found herself the victim of a lottery scheme.
A 72-year-old Loyalist Township woman was told by a “Facebook friend” that her name was on a lottery website and that she was one of several who had a won a prize.
Unfortunately, the woman did not realize her friend’s account had been hacked and the lottery website was a fake.
She was asked to pay a large amount of money in order to receive her prize. The woman eventually reported the scam to police.
Lottery scams and other prize fraud schemes are everywhere.
FRAUD… Recognize it…Report it…Stop it. Here are some tips to help you recognize a lottery or prize scam:
- Never send money to anybody you don’t know and trust.
- Ensure the person you are speaking with is who you know them to be.
- Don’t provide personal banking details to anyone you don’t know and trust.
- Examine the terms and conditions of any offer very carefully. Claims of free or very cheap offers often have hidden costs. Calls to premium rate phone numbers or premium text messages can be very expensive.
- Ask yourself, “Did I willingly enter this contest?”
For more information on this and other types of fraudulent scams, please go to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre website at: http://www.antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca/english/home.html.
