Online Lottery Scams

"Congratulations, you have won the UK Olympic Online Lottery! With your winning numbers from the April 23rd drawing you are now $3.5 million richer. Please contact us at the below email address and we will get started on remitting your prize money to you."

This sounds like the dumbest thing anyone could ever fall for, but I definitely bit hook, line and sinker. I consider myself as educated as the next person, but just like most Americans, I was looking for that big payday. I started rehearsing all the things I wanted to tell my boss, looking at the house I was going to buy, the places I was going to travel and things I was going to buy.

During the excitement, I did not stop to question the fees they were charging me to handle the transactions. I just headed over to Western Union and sent the money as quick as I could. By the time I started to realize I was being scammed, they had already taken me for $1,800. When you think you have won millions, this seems like a really small sum to have to pay to receive your prize. Looking back that should have been the first red flag I noticed.

This happened to me about six months ago and since then I have researched a lot of these scams and have also noticed they are getting more coverage on the news here in the US. I guess it is somewhat comforting to know that I am not the only rube that fell for this scam. I just know that I am going to do all I can to make sure that no one else sends their hard earned money over to these criminals.

Most of these scams start with a simple email stating that you have won a lottery through an online drawing. Since we are spending more time online these days, it is plausible that one of the sites you were visiting sent entries on your behalf. Also, the emails clearly explain how you were entered for the lottery. After some research, I found it pretty amazing how easy it is for someone with the right knowledge to track your time on the internet. These people know the sites you visit and the groups you are affiliated with.