COLUMBUS, Ohio — Mega Millions lottery officials have issued an alert amid “increasingly aggressive scam operators” who are fraudulently using the Mega Millions name and logo in an effort to lure consumers into thinking they have won a big prize.
“One recent effort making the rounds is using WhatsApp to send ‘Cash Gift’ award notifications to random phone numbers around the world,” according to lottery officials. “It is promising a $700,000 cash prize, and the scammers hope that an unsuspecting recipient will pay a large fee to claim a ‘prize’ that does not exist.”
Lottery officials say there have also been increasing reports of callers claiming to represent Mega Millions who are calling potential victims with promises of cash and other prizes like cars.
“They can sound very convincing on the phone, but are simply trying to steal your money,” according to the scam alert. “They do not represent Mega Millions.”
It’s important to note there are no random prizes awarded from Mega Millions simply on the basis of phone numbers or e-mail addresses.
“Our game is sold only in the United States and only by our participating lotteries,” according to Mega Millions officials. “The only way to win Mega Millions is to first purchase a ticket from an American lottery; if you haven’t purchased a ticket, you haven’t won. And there is never a fee to claim a real lottery prize.”
It’s strongly advised you not respond to the potential scammers in any way.
Those with questions or concerns about the legitimacy of any site, e-mail, text message using the Mega Millions name and logo, you can contact the lottery HERE.
Editor's note: Video in the player above was originally published in a previous lottery story on April 21, 2023.