It is important that you know how to identify lottery scams and make sure the emails are deleted from your inbox immediately and without opening them.
Identify the Scams
More often than not, identifying email lottery scams can be done easily, simply by checking the email address which is usually a free email available to public users like hotmail.com, yahoo.com, netscape.net, and many others.
If you have recently received one of the scams that are popular in the world today like the famous “Nigerian Scam”, the “Spanish Lotto Scam” or one of the other regular tricks you may have read the email and unbeknownst to you, your email has been added to a list of targets only to receive hundreds of additional emails all containing junk or spam emails. In the worst case scenario, naive email readers open the email, get excited by the possibility of a huge award and then proceed to offer all contact information including bank details which can then be used to steal from personal accounts. Even if money is not stolen, these spammers can commit serious identity theft based on the details you provide.
How to know if it’s legitimate or not?
An actual, legitimate sweepstakes does not require any prior purchase or payment to enter. There are no taxes or any shipping fees to pay and if you win, you win because of lady luck alone. Promoters of fake contests or lottery prizes often do not reveal their identities while legitimate ones are open and transparent with all of their personal information. Legitimate people and sweepstakes also provide contact details where if you like, you are able to remove your names and contact details from mailing or telephone call lists.
Be careful, be vigilant and don’t let yourself get taken by a fraudulent lottery email.
