Beware of lottery scams: Sites to avoid

Lottery scams are unfortunately widespread worldwide.

There are also many forums and articles on the internet that allow you to identify and deal with them.

The procedure generally used is one that uses your so-called selection to be the happy winner of a certain sum of money. During the conversation, you will be asked for personal information by phone, including your credit card number.
There are also other methods such as receiving an SMS, email, or links on certain social networks.

How can one recognize a secure site?

As one might expect, there are few problems on good online lottery sites, provided one is careful. Some visual cues are present on the site and depend on the type of browser you are using.

First, before you enter your credit information, verify your address bar, which must be transferred in a secure mode, you will then see https appearing instead of http.https is usually accompanied by a closed yellow padlock on your address bar.

Second, each site offers a secure way of encrypting personal data such as SSL (Secure Socket Layer) and SET (Secure Electronic Transaction).

Other criteria could be taken into account in determining if a site is not trustworthy such as the site layout (unframed images, overflowing text, unrecognized characters …) or additionally, spelling of the website or links which will redirect you to sites often unknown.

If you have been scammed by an online lottery and want to share your story, do not hesitate to comment on this page.