Report finds that victims lost 33% more money in scams compared to 2019

By Kate Northrop

A report on sweepstakes, lottery and prize scams revealed that Americans lost a whopping $227 million to con artists last year.

Better Business Bureau investigator Steve Baker put out some eye-opening statistics that show a decrease in complaints but a troubling 33% increase in the amount of money lost by Americans to scammers.

Kathy Chapman told CBS News the story about how her unsuspecting 84-year-old father fell victim to a classic sweepstakes scam.

"I never would have thought my dad would be susceptible," she said. "It really shocked me."

Her father's first contact with the con artists began when they started calling his Michigan home in January. They acted as representatives from Publisher's Clearing House (PCH), a company that markets merchandise and magazine subscriptions with sweepstakes, giveaways, and prize-based games.

The victim was told that he'd won a cash prize to the tune of $2.5 million, a brand-new BMW, and gold medallions, but in order to receive his fake winnings, he would have to pay a series of taxes and fees.

After that, Chapman's father withdrew thousands of dollars at multiple locations, which signaled a red flag to his credit union. The credit union contacted the police, who then reached out to his daughters.

They confronted him about the ordeal, to which he responded that all he had to do was pay some taxes and fees to get his big prize.

"And I said, 'No, dad, that's not how it works," Chapman said.

It was still too late — her father had already mailed out packages of cash to the scammers. The damage? He lost $72,000.

"I'm still really angry," Chapman relayed. "He's done nothing to anybody. He's worked hard his whole life and got taken advantage of."

Baker explained that con artists are professionals and that their schemes can be compared to a huge organized crime business.

According to his report, scammers will often talk to victims every day to build trusting relationships, take notes about the victim's family and life, and try to isolate them from their family and friends. Baker said that they will use any method of communication they can, including U.S. mail, text messages, emails and social media.

One way to figure out if you're being scammed is to take a close look at the message you received. If there are words misspelled, inaccurate logos, or poor grammar, then it is positively a scam. Website USA Mega has a lottery scams page illustrating several actual scam letters that have circulated.

In one fraudulent email where con artists pretended to be representatives from PCH, they included photos of winners and a fake message for the board chairman. However, the email was riddled with typos, a clear indicator that the message should be ignored.

It is impossible to win a lottery or contest that you never entered, nor will a winner ever be asked to pay a sum of money prior to receiving a prize.

"If [you] get an email, a call, any contact, a letter that says you've won a prize, but you have to send money, rip up the letter, hang up the phone and report it to law enforcement, because that's a scam," PCH Vice President of Consumer & Legal Affairs Chris Irving clarified.

As a result of Chapman's father falling for the scheme, much of his life savings are gone.

"I want to prevent this from happening to anybody else," Chapman stated. "You know, to tell people you need to be suspicious."

Thanks to Win$500Quick for the tip.