Lottery Scams

Whether you’re a regular Michigan Lottery player or you’ve never bought a ticket in your life, there is a chance that you might encounter a scammer who uses the lottery as a subject to build their fraud around. Lottery games have the potential to make millionaires in an instant, so some con artists try to use this to their advantage to steal money from innocent victims.

However, if you stay vigilant and remember a couple of golden rules, you can make sure that you never fall into any of these traps.

Here are some examples of lottery scams and how you might be targeted:

• Fake check – You may be told that you are a winner and asked for your bank account details, while being assured that your money will soon be deposited into your account.
• Upfront fee – Some scammers will notify you that you have won, but say there is a fee to pay upfront, or tax, before your winnings can be processed.
• Emails, letters and phonecalls – It might be a letter that uses a logo similar to the Michigan Lottery, or a phonecall from someone impersonating an official lottery. You will be told that you have won a lottery prize, perhaps because your email address has been selected in a random draw.
• Message from a big winner – The scammer might pretend to be a previous big winner and say they have generously decided to give away some of their fortune. They have chosen you at random and just need you to provide some personal or banking details before you can be paid.

Unfortunately, lottery scams have become increasingly widespread – some are very basic and easy to spot but others look much more sophisticated. Either way, you should remember that you can’t win a lottery prize if you have not bought a ticket. If you have played a Michigan Lottery game, you can check whether you are a winner by visiting a lottery retailer or contacting the lottery directly.

Here are some more points to remember if you are in doubt.

• Do not open any suspicious links
• Get in touch with your nearest Michigan Lottery regional office or the Division of Security
• Contact the local law enforcement to report the incident
• Ignore messages, friend requests or tags on social media suggesting you are a winner
• Keep in mind that if something sounds too good to be true, it is almost certainly a scam
• Remember the only way to win a lottery prize is to buy a ticket and match the winning numbers