The British National Lottery strikes again!
Of all of the lottery companies who are misused for this type of scam, the UK National Lottery is the one which is used the most.
On some days I get about 3 to 4 from different crooks, all claiming to be announcing that I have won. Of course, I also get the same message from different freemail accounts as well as several coming from just one account.
These are sent to my accounts which used to be in plain text and easily found on my websites. For some time now though, I have coded my e-mail addresses or use separate Software to prevent bots from harvesting my accounts from my websites.
Since I started doing that, I have never received any kind of scam or spam e-mail on any of my new accounts.
One particular piece of software I use is "My Contact Station" which effectivly blocks the use of e-mail harvesters. If you are interested you can get the software direct from My Contact Station
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: mario.neves <mario.neves@netcabo.pt>
Date: Oct 13, 2007 7:02 PM
Subject: Your Email Address Has Won!(Contact Our Claims Agent Via......dept_claimsinfo01@yahoo.co.uk)
To:
BRITISH NATIONAL LOTTERY HEADQUARTERS:
Ref: UK/9420X2/68
Batch: 074/05/ZY369
British National Lottery,
28 Tan Field Road,Croydon,London
Dear Selected winner,
This is to inform you that you have been selected for a cash Prize of £7,534,370.00(Seven Million,Five Hundred And Thirty Four Thousand,Thirty Seven Pound Sterling) in cash.from International programme held on October 2007 in the United Kindom,The selection process was carried out through random selection in our computerised email selection system from a database of over 250,000 email addresses drawn from all the continents of the world which your email was among the first ten (10) lucky winners,from a file E-ticket Number credited to KTU/9023118308/03. You are therefore advise to contact Claims Agent for the release of your winnings provide him with the under listed informations.CONTACT PERSON: Mr.Wiltold Smith
EMAIL: dept_claimsinfo01@yahoo.co.uk
Do not have doubt over Your participation in this Promotion, as all Participants were selected Through an electronic computer ballot system for all email users drawn From over 2,500,000 email addresses of individuals and companies from Africa, America, Asia, Australia, Europe, Middle East, Oceania, North American,and South American.To file in for your claims Contact your Claims Attorney
with the following information:
1. Name:
2. Telephone Numbers:
3. Age:
4. Address:
5. Country:
6. Occupation:
7. e-ticket:Number:
8. Amount Won:
===================================
Claims Wiltold Smith
Email: dept_claimsinfo01@yahoo.co.uk
====================================
CONGRATULATIONS,
LOTTERY COORDINATOR
Tel: +447045709504
Labels: Internet fraud, LotteryScam, UK National Lottery
posted by Michael Holdcroft @ 7:33 pm
2 comments
2 Comments:
Sample Email Scams Involving the British National Lottery:
"BRITISH NATIONAL LOTTERY International Lottery Programs"
Mr Brown Walter, Mrs Kate Ross
How to Recognize Them and What To Do If You Receive One
The scammer using the pseudonyms of "Mr Brown walter" and "Mrs Kate Ross" thinks your dumb enough to believe that lotteries give away money who don't buy their tickets. In fact, just by having an email address, the scammer says you won! However, if the obvious fact that NO lottery ever emails people to tell them they won, and you can't win from your email address, without buying a ticket and the scammer doesn't understand the difference between English first and last names (Brown Walter / Walter Brown); then you're starting to worry us. And that's what the scammers are counting on, a combination of greed and stupidity on the part of the victims.
Of course, there are only two legal lotteries in Britain, the National Lottery and the Monday Lottery, anyway, and they do NOT use email to notify winners. Below is a scam email actually received. And note that the UK National Lottery says (we're quoting them directly):
* "If the email says ‘Winning Notification’ or ‘Lottery Sweep Stake’ in the text, the email you’ve received is not from UK National Lottery;
* We don’t tell players how much they've won in an email; and
* We don’t ask for any Player information like name, address or bank details on an email."
See this page on the official UK National Lottery website
DO NOT reply to any emails you receive that claim you have won a lottery that you did not enter. They are frauds. You will lose your money. There is no "free lunch"; don't be foolish and believe a scam! We can not say it any more plainly: YOU WILL NOT BE NOTIFIED BY EMAIL BY ANY LEGITIMATE LOTTERY THAT YOU WON A PRIZE. If you do receive such an email, it IS a fraud, do not reply to it! If you DID reply to one, click here to see what you will likely receive back.
For your education and entertainment, we have highlighted some of the obvious clues that this is a scam; such as the use of a free Yahoo email account and the omnipresent claim that your "email address attached to ticket..." was the key to winning. As if email addresses are used to hand out money...
In the UK, call the hotline at 020 7211 8111 to check or report lottery scams.
Adibintoro,
many thanks for your report.
Your explaination covers about everything I have been preaching about for the last 10 years.
Michael
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