Senior Citizen Alerts

Seniors Should Say No to Con Artists Claiming to Be with FTC, Promising Sweepstakes Prize

Scammers just want you to send money for the “taxes” and “insurance”

Oct. 17, 2008 – Senior citizens are most often the target of con artists and the Federal Trade Commission has just issued a warning that scammers, claiming to work for the Federal Trade Commission are calling consumers and claiming that they have won a lottery or sweepstakes. They just need to send money to pay for taxes and insurance. Do not fall for it.

As the nation’s consumer protection agency, the FTC never collects money directly from consumers. But the public may be fooled, because by using Internet technology, con artists can make it appear that they are calling from Washington, DC, where the FTC is headquartered. The FTC’s name may even be displayed on consumers’ caller ID machines.

All the public has to do, according to the con artists’ pitch, is pay the taxes and insurance on their “winnings.” The caller asks that consumers wire money or send a check for an amount between $1,000 and $10,000. In reality, there is no prize, and the scammers disappear with the consumers’ money.

Real sweepstakes don’t require you to send money to claim a prize. To learn more about avoiding this type of scam, read below.

What You Should Do When Scammers Exploit the FTC’s Name, Promise Phony Prizes

“Hi, I’m calling from the Federal Trade Commission to tell you that you have won $250,000…”

Someone who claims to work for the Federal Trade Commission calls to inform you that you have won a lottery or sweepstakes. To receive the prize, all you have to do is pay the taxes and insurance. The caller asks you to wire money or send a check for an amount between $1,000 and $10,000. What should you do? Don’t send money or account information, and immediately report the incident to the real Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

The FTC is the nation’s consumer protection agency. It investigates fraud and provides free information, but it never collects money directly from consumers. FTC staffers don’t have any involvement with this sweepstakes scam, but they do want you to avoid it.

The caller might suggest that the FTC is supervising the giveaway. He or she might even use the name of a real FTC employee. Your Caller ID might display the Federal Trade Commission’s name or a Washington, DC area code. Don’t be surprised if you receive repeated calls and follow-up faxes.

No matter how convincing the impersonation, you should never send money to claim a prize. No FTC employee will ever call to ask you to send money. Legitimate sweepstakes companies won’t either. Many older consumers and their families have reported this kind of scam, but anyone could be contacted.

Keep from falling for the lure of sweepstakes scams by taking a few precautions:

   ● Don’t pay to collect sweepstakes winnings. If you have to pay to collect your winnings, you haven’t won anything. Legitimate sweepstakes don’t require you to pay “insurance,” “taxes,” or “shipping and handling charges” to collect your prize.

   ● Hold on to your money. Scammers pressure people to wire money through commercial money transfer companies like Western Union because wiring money is the same as sending cash. If you discover you’ve been scammed, the money’s gone, and there’s very little chance of recovery. Likewise, resist any push to send a check or money order by overnight delivery or courier. Con artists recommend these services, so they can get your money before you realize you’ve been cheated.

   ● Look-alikes aren’t the real thing. It’s illegal for any promoter to lie about an affiliation with — or an endorsement by — a government agency or any other well-known organization. Disreputable companies sometimes use a variation of an official or nationally recognized name to try to confuse you and give you confidence in their offers. Insurance companies, including Lloyd’s of London, do not insure delivery of sweepstakes winnings.

   ● Phone numbers can deceive. Some con artists use Internet technology to call you. It allows them to disguise their area code: although it may look like they’re calling from Washington, DC, or your local area, they could be calling from anywhere in the world.

   ● File a complaint with the FTC. If you receive a call from someone who claims to be a representative of the government trying to arrange for you to collect supposed sweepstakes winnings, file a complaint at ftc.gov or call 1-877-FTC-HELP. Your complaint will be most useful to enforcement officials if you include the date and time of the call, the name or phone number of the organization that called you, the FTC employee name that was used, the prize amount, the amount of money requested, the payment method, and any other details.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.