If you have difficulty with English and your country's flag is not listed above, we will do our best to answer you in your own language.

Please do not email us questions that are answered by the links and information below.

Lottery Questions:

• All About Lottery Winning Notifications

•  What to do if you have received a winning lottery notification.

• What to do if a check or money order was enclosed in your notification.

• What to do if you deposited or cashed a fake lottery check or money order and now your bank wants its money back (covers many different situations including check cashing stores)

• What to do if you were arrested or are at risk of arrest for passing a counterfeit lottery check.

Hired by a foreign company to write, sign and mail checks:                                                  

As of April, 2007 a new scam scenario is being marketed by both Nigerian and Eastern European fraud groups.

The victim is "hired" to

• Receive blank check stock, write the checks for different amount, sign the checks, and send them to addresses specified by the fake employer

  - OR-

• Purchase blank check stock and special ink, is provided or told to purchase a check writing program, and then follow the same instructions as above.  In this scenario, the victim is given the money for the purchases.

Payment may be by commission (per check) or by volume of checks written, signed, and sent.

If this has happened to you, contact Fraud Aid IMMEDIATELY (click on contact link at bottom of page). 

You are in the middle of a money laundering operation in which you are laundering stolen money or drug money sitting in a scammer's bank account or writing checks on an identity theft victim's bank account (company or individual).  You are being used to "layer" dirty money or to steal money from the accounts of innocent fraud victims.

What's really happening to you, Truth vs. Scam: The legal truth about work-at-home money, package, and check-forwarding jobs, and check-writing jobs

Verify a that an email is a scam: go to Joe Wein's Scam-O-Matic

ID Theft                                                                                                                                                                               

Your ID Theft Prevention TO DO List < EVERYONE who has opened a scam email or Spam must read this for their own protection.  Plus, if you have been corresponding with fraudsters you are at VERY HIGH risk of ID Theft.

Threats from the scammer                                                                                                                                            

What to do if you are being threatened by scammers

How to REALLY verify a check, money order, any draft

Counterfeit / Stolen / Forged Check Scams, suspicious checks or money orders:

SUSPICIOUS CHECKS                                                                                                                                                     

How to handle suspicious checks, money orders, Traveler's checks, all drafts

Receiving cash, checks, or money orders, or merchandise

What's really happening to you, Truth vs. Scam: The legal truth about work-at-home money, package, and check-forwarding jobs, and check-writing jobs                                                                                 

You were hired by a foreign company to do one or more of the following:

• Receive and forward merchandise

• Process payments

• Receive money through Western Union or MoneyGram and resend it

• Receive wired funds into your bank, PayPal, credit card, or portfolio account and resend it.

• Write checks on bank accounts you do not personally own (see Hired by a foreign company to write, sign, and mail checks)

You've been sent too much money and must wire the overpayment to someone.

Someone you met online wants you to cash checks or money orders for them or send packages somewhere.

Click on the statement or statements below that best describes your situation:

• You have received packages your are supposed to reship.

• You have been told you will be receiving packages but they haven't arrived yet.

• You have received checks or money orders and you still have them.

• You have been told you will be receiving checks or money orders but they haven't arrived yet.

• You deposited checks or money orders, have received cash by Western Union, or have had funds wired into your bank. PayPal, credit card, or other account, but you still have the money

• You cashed the checks or money orders at a bank or store and you still have the cash

• You cashed or deposited checks or money orders, or have had funds wired into your bank account or credit card account, and you have sent and/or spent the money:

  - dealing with the bank

  - dealing with the store

• You receive calls from strangers asking, "Where is my product?"

• The bank or store is threatening you.

MONEY BACK

Getting your money back

GETTING THE BAD GUYS

Catching the criminals

 

Your Identity Theft Prevention To-Do List

How to REALLY verify a check or money order. KNOW and understand YOUR LIABILITY when you cash or deposit a check or money order or receive funds wired into your account

DO YOU WANT TO KNOW IF YOU WON A LOTTERY OR SWEEPSTAKES?

1.  DID YOU BUY A TICKET?  NO?

THEN YOU DID NOT WIN A LOTTERY.

2.  BEFORE THE DRAWING, DID YOU REGISTER WITH AN ONLINE LOTTERY or SWEEPSTAKES COMPANY LIKE FREELOTTO OR GROUPLOTTO?

IF YES, LOG IN TO YOUR ONLINE ACCOUNT AND CHECK YOUR WINNINGS AND INSTRUCTIONS.

IF NO, THEN YOU DID NOT WIN THE LOTTERY.

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If you have a question that is not answered by the links on this page, click HERE