Brought to you by WBIW News and Network Indiana
Last updated on Wednesday, December 10, 2014
(BEDFORD) - Lawrence County Sheriff Sam Craig is warning residents about a Publishers Clearing House Scam.
"We received a call from a resident yesterday saying they received one of these calls," Craig added.
The person wanted the resident to go to a local store and purchase a claims card.
"[The card] would contain all of the resident's banking information," Craig added. "By the time the scammer got to this point in the conversation the resident realized it was a scam and hung up on the caller."
Publishers Clearing House officials cannot emphasize strongly enough to beware of these scams.
"Unfortunately, these scams are especially prevalent right now - when the real PCH is about to award one lucky individual a life-changing SuperPrize," Officials say. "As much as we try to warn unsuspecting individuals about the difference between the real Publishers Clearing House Sweeps and an illegitimate scam, we too often learn about good, honest folks like you going through some unfortunate experiences."
Here are 4 important warning signs to be aware of to help you spot the scammers and their deceitful tricks:
1. If someone contacts you claiming to be from PCH, and tells you that you've won a prize award - then asks you to send a payment or money card in order to claim the prize - STOP! You have not heard from the real PCH. IT'S A SCAM! At Publishers Clearing House the winning is always free and you NEVER have to pay to claim a prize award.
2. If you receive an email notifying you that you have won a major prize in the Publishers Clearing House Sweepstakes, DON'T BE FOOLED: IT'S A SCAM! Publishers Clearing House does NOT send e-mails notifying consumers that they have won a major prize. If you win a major prize in our sweepstakes (like our February 28th SuperPrize), you'll know when the Prize Patrol shows up at your door with the Big Check.
3 . If you receive a phone call from someone claiming to be from Publishers Clearing House and are asked to send money, pay a fee or pre-pay taxes to enter, collect or claim a sweepstakes prize, DON'T BE FOOLED: IT'S A SCAM! You have not heard from the "real" Publishers Clearing House. The call you received was most likely from a fraudulent sweepstakes scam operation. Again, at Publishers Clearing House the winning is always free.
4. If someone from Publishers Clearing House sends you a friend request on Facebook, DON'T BE FOOLED: IT'S A SCAM! The Prize Patrol will NEVER send friend requests to you on Facebook. Moreover, the PCH Prize Patrol members (Danielle Lam, Dave Sayer, and Todd Sloane) never send private messages on Facebook. In addition, PCH does not notify its winners through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or any other social media website.
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