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The National Intelligence Service on Tuesday warned of a lottery scam that has seen increasing numbers of Koreans fall victim to bogus lottery letters or e-mails demanding US$25-100 in membership fees. Messages typically read, ¡°Congratulations! You may receive a certified check for up to US$140 million!"
The NIS says the international lottery scammers purport to be representatives of the Vancouver branch of Australian Lotto 6/45, an actual lottery, and lure the gullible with the chance to win up to $140 million ? provided they buy the ticket first at a price of $100, $50 or $25. They call themselves Australian Lotto 6/45 Global Processing Centre with a postbox address in Vancouver, Canada, to give the impression that they are related to the reputable lottery Down Under.
¡°Canada¡¯s federal police has investigated some 5 percent of the replies sent to lottery scammers and discovered that some seven a day are sent from Korea,¡± an NIS official said. ¡°It is estimated that the scammers are cheating some 1,000 Koreans a month out of their money.¡±
The NIS also worries that the scammers sell the personal information they obtain to another criminal organization, which could take advantage of it in a separate scam, the NIS said. It warned citizens not to believe the promises and never to provide personal details or send money first.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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