As of: January 29, 2024, 2:05 p.m
By: Vivian Werg
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Criminal telephone scammers are currently posing as lottery company employees.
What you should never do and how you can best protect yourself from it.
Chemnitz – Fraud attempts over the telephone are not decreasing.
On the contrary: According to the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA), telephone fraud is steadily increasing.
Although this type of rip-off is not new, it is still very lucrative for criminals.
An elderly couple fell victim to a telephone scam in which the fraudsters stole over 35,000 euros.
The cases of fraud are becoming increasingly bold and dangerous.
And it is becoming increasingly difficult for those affected to recognize it.
A particularly perfidious scam is the grandchild trick or shock call, which is used to specifically target senior citizens.
However, if certain tips and rules are followed, you will not fall for the nasty scam.
Lotto players are currently being targeted by fraudsters.
Beware of lottery fraud: How to recognize dubious calls © Andrey Popov/Imago
Beware of lottery rip-offs: You should pay attention to these instructions over the phone
As Sächsische Lotto-GmbH announced in a press release on Friday (January 26th), “an increasing number of fraudulent calls have occurred”.
“Many dubious calls have been reported, especially in the Chemnitz administrative district,” it continues.
According to this, the fraudsters pose as employees of the lottery company and try to obtain sensitive data such as their victims' bank details under a pretext.
The lottery company warned urgently about the new scam and expressly asked consumers to pay attention to the following information:
Unsolicited calls:
Sachsenlotto employees never call unsolicited.
Reconciliation of bank details
: Bank details are never compared by employees over the phone.
Personal Information:
Do not disclose personal information.
The lottery company never asks you to do this over the phone.
If in doubt, hang up immediately:
If you doubt the seriousness of the call, end the call immediately and contact the Sächsische Lotto-GmbH customer service.
The number is free.
Advertising calls:
Consumer advocates generally recommend simply hanging up on unauthorized advertising calls and under no circumstances disclosing data such as names, addresses, account details or other contact information.
Unfortunately, criminals are not afraid of any effort and effort.
They are highly professional and usually have a sophisticated approach.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is now increasingly being used for fraud, which significantly increases the danger for pensioners.
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Lotto telephone scam: Many contracts are only valid with a written summary
Telephone fraud can also lead to unjustified claims.
As the consumer advice center informs, those called are often pressured to say “yes”.
A short time later, those affected receive invoices even though they have not ordered anything or agreed to conclude a contract.
But consumer advocates have given the all-clear.
If this happens to you, you don't have to pay the bill.
However, written requests should not be ignored, but should be responded to in writing.
According to consumer advice centers, the law stipulates that many contracts have a term, so that they can only begin with the approval of a written summary.
This applies in particular to:
Many energy supply contracts (e.g. electricity and gas)
Contracts for internet, telephone and mobile phone connections
Contracts for participation in competitions
Contracts with lotteries
The consumer advice center has also compiled the most important information about reputable and dubious debt collection companies.
Lotto fraud: Spam calls and email spam are also on the rise
Mass sending of unsolicited promotional emails can also be annoying and unnecessarily clog your email inbox.
However, they often not only take up enormous storage space, but in the worst case can also be phishing attempts.
However, there are helpful tips on how you can prevent email spam.
However, experts recommend not simply deleting spam emails.
More importantly, according to the BKA, email attachments should under no circumstances be opened.
Spam calls are also increasing and can be blocked with simple steps.
(vw)