How do I report a scam?

Table Of Content

• Skip the scams as you look for options to avoid foreclosure
• Williams-Sonoma Will Pay Record $3.17 Million Civil Penalty for Violating FTC Made in USA Order
• Do people really win Publishers Clearing House?
• Tip 9: If You Believe You’ve Been the Victim of a Fraudulent Contact…
• Is Publishers Clearing House Legitimate?

Third, receiving a real prize is never dependent on giving money first. This kind of requirement is illegal for lotteries. You have to be able to enter to win the prize without doing anything which would cost money.

Skip the scams as you look for options to avoid foreclosure

If you’re a legitimate winner, you won’t be subject to fees or charges before you can claim your prize. If you’re asked to pay anything to claim your winnings, you’re dealing with a PCH scam. Instead, the complaint charges, consumers enter an arduous journey through pages of advertisements and sales pitches before they can actually enter the sweepstakes.

Williams-Sonoma Will Pay Record $3.17 Million Civil Penalty for Violating FTC Made in USA Order

Just make sure to confirm your prizes by calling PCH directly. Do not send money, gift cards or share personal information with anyone who may not be from PCH. If you are asked to provide your credit card number or provide your financial bank account information in order to claim a sweepstakes prize — STOP. Fraudulent scam artists often request this information and then go on a spending spree with your credit card; or wipe out your bank account. Again, it’s important that we stress you did not hear from the real Publishers Clearing House.

Do people really win Publishers Clearing House?

A spoofed website looks like the official PCH entry form. If you use it, however, you transmit your information directly to scammers instead. Here are some tips on how to identify fake websites. When it comes to smaller prizes, they notify winners via an overnight express carrier (like USPS Express Mail, FedEx, or UPS) or through email. Prizes are awarded in eight weeks after selecting the winners.

It’s a simple win-win situation where the company makes huge sales and consumers get a chance to win major prizes, and awards. Second, if you are a client of a fee-only fiduciary financial advisor, reach out to them anytime you've been cold-called for money. Over the years, we have heard and learned to evaluate many different appeals for money both from illegal scam artists, legal financial sales pitches, and real financial predicaments. As fiduciaries, we are on your side to ensure that your goals are met.

Is Publishers Clearing House Legitimate?

Although PCH is a legitimate sweepstakes with winners every month, that doesn’t mean it’s easy to win. StatisticsHowTo says the odds of winning the lifelong $5,000 a week prize is 1 in 6.2 billion. Your odds of a one-time cash prize of just $2,500 is roughly 1 in 130 million.

21Investigates: Scam Alert – Publishers Clearing House scam - 21 Alive News

21Investigates: Scam Alert – Publishers Clearing House scam.

Posted: Mon, 22 Apr 2024 14:49:00 GMT [source]

Then they use this content to target people who follow the PCH page — and inform targets that they’ve won. Eventually, the scammers ask for up-front payments, a portion of the winnings, or financial data. This scam starts with a phone call informing you that you’ve won a cash prize, a new car, or a vacation. In order to claim the prize, you need to send money to the organization to pay for processing fees or other charges.

Secaucus couple charged in multimillion-dollar ‘Publishers Clearing House’ scam - NJ.com

Secaucus couple charged in multimillion-dollar ‘Publishers Clearing House’ scam.

Posted: Thu, 28 Mar 2024 07:00:00 GMT [source]

Keep sending warnings because these scams are here to stay. We don't edit comments to remove objectionable content, so please ensure that your comment contains none of the above. The comments posted on this blog become part of the public domain. To protect your privacy and the privacy of other people, please do not include personal information. Opinions in comments that appear in this blog belong to the individuals who expressed them. They do not belong to or represent views of the Federal Trade Commission.

Publishers Clearing House (PCH) has agreed to compensate customers affected by its “misleading” business practices $18.5 million, according to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). (read only if sent a check) We advise that you contact your bank to see if that check can be stopped. I told them they would have to pay the shipping and they said keep it. If someone calls you stating to be from the claims department and impersonating PCH personnel such as Mr. Goodman, ignore them. “Scammers are pretending to be Publishers Clearing House and tricking people into sending them money,” the FTC says on its website.

These sites are bogus and are in no way affiliated with Publishers Clearing House or our famous Prize Patrol. The message that you have won a Walmart gift card is bogus and any mention of Publishers Clearing House, our employees, or the PCH Prize Patrol is fraudulent and being used without our permission or authorization. Consumers should not respond to these bogus text messages and should not share personal or private information which could lead to identity theft or credit card fraud. The purpose of this blog and its comments section is to inform readers about Federal Trade Commission activity, and share information to help them avoid, report, and recover from fraud, scams, and bad business practices. Your thoughts, ideas, and concerns are welcome, and we encourage comments. We review all comments before they are posted, and we won’t post comments that don’t comply with our commenting policy.

First, familiarize yourself with the common Seven Elder Abuse Scams. Knowing how they will try to trick you can help protect you. When can we expect to see a refund of our money we spent over the years??

While this may be the first time you have ever encountered it, they have likely run this scam multiple times. The fact is that Publishers Clearing House will never contact major prize winners to let you know that you have won money. When PCH fans win big, we show up at their house unannounced, cameras rolling, so that we can capture their big moment. PCH will not contact you via social media, phone call, text message, or similar means of outreach. If you have to pay to get your prize, it’s a scam. Never send money to collect a prize, sweepstakes check, or lottery winnings.

Jory MacKay is a writer and award-winning editor with over a decade of experience for online and print publications. He has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Victoria and a passion for helping people identify and avoid fraud. The agency says PCH made it seem as though customers needed to purchase a product on the PCH website in order to be eligible to win or to better their chances of winning a prize.