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Scammers aren’t just reaching out via phone calls. People have reported receiving letters claiming they won the PCH sweepstakes. In Minnesota, one letter said that the recipient had to pay $15,000 in taxes to claim their multimillion-dollar prize, AARP reported. First they copy images and content from the PCH Prize Patrol official Facebook account.
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The scam starts with a call or letter saying you’ve won the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes. But to collect your prize, they say, you need to send money to pay for fees and taxes. Typically you’ll be asked to send money by Western Union or MoneyGram, or by getting a reloadable card or gift card.
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Thankfully, a number of people came to the rescue and told the user to stop communicating with the scammers. The user later appeared to confirm getting out of the situation ok. Publishers Clearing House began in 1953 as a service that hawked magazine subscriptions.
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PCH would never request you send money to claim a prize and we never notify major prize winners by phone or mail. The Federal Trade Commission works to promote competition and protect and educate consumers. The FTC will never demand money, make threats, tell you to transfer money, or promise you a prize.
Learn about the latest Publishers Clearing House scams. PCH — famous for surprising winners at their front doors with giant checks and balloons — must substantially change its business practices, the FTC said. Calling ahead or requests for payment of any kind — such as shipping fee, tax, or deposit — are telltale signs of fraud. PCH provides customers with assistance and can answer any sweepstakes questions you may have. If you wish to report a scam contact to us, you may do so by clicking here to fill out and complete a scam incident report. Recognizing the difference between legitimate sweepstakes and other types of offers that may not be legitimate will help you protect yourself and your family.
Responding to competitors, the company began to entice homeowners by offering them “sweepstakes” — chances to win tens of thousands and then millions of dollars. If you've already sent money to a PCH scammer, contact your local police office. You'll also need to be extra cautious in the future because scammers consider people who have already been scammed to be easy prey, and there's a good chance that you will be targeted again. Publishers Clearing House works diligently to fight scams, both by working with law enforcement officials and through public education.
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The Publishers Clearing House scam is a type of sweepstakes scam in which fraudsters impersonate company representatives and claim you’ve won a prize. If you think you’ve won a prize from Publishers Clearing House (PCH), you need to be especially careful with how you proceed. In this guide, we’ll explain how PCH scams work, the red flags to look out for, and what to do if you’ve sent money or information to scammers.
The first is an attempt to retrieve personal information from a person, including some of the things mentioned earlier (social security number, address, date of birth, etc.). In essence, these people are looking to commit identity fraud. Therefore, you should never give out any of this information online, particularly to those who are claiming to be from PCH. Since its inception, the hallmark of the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes has been that no purchase, fee, cost or payment is ever necessary to enter or win. This message appears repeatedly in our mailings in many forms, is present in our website disclosures and is featured on our toll-free customer service line. When PCH fans find and follow the page, the scammers message them to tell them they've won a prize — and ask for money before they can claim their "winnings." Victims hand over cash but never see a prize.
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Second, the PCH Prize Patrol members (Danielle Lam, Dave Sayer, and Howie Guja) and PCH employees do not send private messages on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Third, Publishers Clearing House does not notify our winners through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or any other social media website. Finally, if you ever receive a message or contact asking you to send any money to claim a prize IT IS A SCAM.
At PCH we include a Sweepstakes Facts insert in every promotional offer we send. Be sure to read the Sweepstakes Facts, as well as our Official Rules. They are there to provide you with all the information you need to play safely! Don’t fall for ‘lookalike’ mailings that try to mislead consumers by imitating legitimate sweepstakes.
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Using a variety of bogus representations including "prepayment of taxes," "refundable deposits," and "shipping &handling," scam artists perpetrating these frauds seek to have consumers forward money. In May 2022, Google and Twitter users were searching for answers after receiving phone calls from scammers who claimed to be affiliated with the Publishers Clearing House (PCH) sweepstakes. The reality here was that the company only notifies winners of their prizes by visiting them in person with their PCH Prize Patrol. They never award prizes over the phone, on social media, in email, or through the mail. If you receive a telephone call from someone claiming you have won a sweepstakes prize and are asked to send money — STOP — you have not heard from a legitimate sweepstakes company.
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