ORLANDO, Fla — Sweepstakes and lottery winner scams are back and targeting local seniors online. In this kind of scam, criminals are posing a real jackpot winners and offering to give some of their money away, but there’s always a catch and many people end up losing money.
In the old days, scammers would send official looking letters in the mail. Now, as you might expect, most of these scams start with interactions on social media.
Do you have a consumer complaint or need help from Jeff Deal and Action 9? Click the banner below to submit a tip.
For many, social media can be a fun and interesting way to connect with the world, but behind the keyboard, there are dangers.
A Orange County woman who turned to Action 9 after coming across what she believed could be a lottery winner scam said, “I haven’t got any money left.”
She didn’t want her face shown or her name used, but she revealed to Action 9 Consumer Investigator Jeff Deal she lost more than $30,000 to online scammers in the past. They reached out to her and befriended her on Facebook and eventually claimed they were in need. Most of the money she received from an inheritance went out the door through PayPal and Western Union wire transfers.
“He just calls me his earth angel, and I’ve been there for him all his time,” she said referring to the scammer.
Since she lost that money in the past, she was suspicious when someone claiming to be lottery jackpot winner Mavis Wanczyk, contacted her and said she was looking to share her winnings with a few lucky people.
“Saying that she wanted to give me a million dollars and a car, a brand-new vehicle,” she said recalling the online encounter.
An online search showed her Mavis Wanczyk is a real Powerball winner who in 2017 won what was at that time the largest jackpot in U.S. history.
Better Business Bureau CEO Holly Salmons told Action 9, “Using the names of actual lottery winners as a part of their scam.”
Salmons warns lottery and sweepstakes scams are rampant on social media. The BBB has received ScamTracker reports about this specific scam using Mavis Wanczyk’s name. American Association of Retired Persons or AARP even wrote an article about it last year to warn seniors.
In all of these scams, the crooks will eventually ask the victim for money up front claiming they are for things like taxes or shipping fees. In this case, the scammers wanted those fees paid in apple gift cards, which is always a giant red flag. They even sent the woman a photo of a FedEx box addressed to her that supposedly contained some of the money. They also sent what appears to be an AI generated photo of Mavis Wanczyk holding a photo ID as proof of legitimacy.
Salmons said, “They’re going to ask you money. The only cash that’s going to exchange hands, unfortunately, is going to be out of your wallet and into their hands.”
Fortunately, the Orange County woman in this case contacted Action 9 and didn’t give any money. But at the time Action 9 Consumer Investigator Jeff Deal interviewed her, she was still unsure if this was a scam.
“I don’t know if she’s a scammer or not, but I’d like to go deeper to find out if she is or isn’t. And if she isn’t, then I’ll accept a million dollars,” she said.
In the end, Jeff Deal did get her to realize it was a scam, but that shows how convincing these scammers are. A good rule of thumb is if you must pay money up front to receive any winnings, that’s a scam.