About Sweepstakes Fraud

Sweepstakes can be an excellent marketing tool, beneficial to both sponsors and entrants. However, scammers have developed ways to exploit sweepstakes contests to swindle hard-earned money from winning contestants. Learn how to identify sweepstakes fraud to prevent from being a victim.

Function

Sweepstakes fraud can be executed via mail, telephone or e-mail. In all cases, the target is informed that they have been selected as the winner of a marvelous prize. This prize can be virtually anything, from cash and cars to vacations and electronics. The goal of most sweepstakes scams is to get the recipient to pay an "entry fee" or "claim fee" to accept the prize. Unfortunately, there is not a real prize and the thief simply takes off with the "entry fee" money.

Warning

Virtually everyone has been targeted for sweepstakes fraud. Thieves send mass emails or direct mail campaigns in the hopes of fooling as many people as possible. Many of these can be spotted easily, as poor grammar or unprofessional publishing techniques are a tip-off. However, growing access to high-tech printing techniques and other technologies are making it more difficult for recipients to immediately spot sweepstakes fraud.

Considerations

If you are unsure whether a sweepstakes notice is legitimate or not, the first thing you should do is read the fine print. If the sweepstakes requires you to pay "taxes," "shipping and handling fees," or an "entry fee," the sweepstakes is fraudulent. Real sweepstakes never ask winners to pay anything in advance to receive winnings.

Prevention/Solution

Beyond the fine print, there are several other red flags that indicate a sweepstakes is fraudulent. Some things to look for include:

Look for sponsors. A legitimate sweepstakes will always prominently display sponsor information, whereas crooks will not. Verify the phone number. Real sweepstakes will ask you to contact a toll-free number, while fake sweepstakes may provide a personal phone number. Verify the email address. Electronic sweepstakes will never originate from a personal email account. Also, be aware if the notification fails to mention your name. Scams are mailed in bulk, and generally will not include the name of the winner. Lastly, check the postage. Real sweepstakes winnings are unlikely to be sent via a bulk rate.

Expert Insight

While the thought of winning something can be exciting, a little extra investigation into the matter can greatly reduce your chances of getting scammed. In general, if you do not recall entering the sweepstakes for which you have "won," chances are the unexpected prize is too good to be true.