Is It Really PCH or Is It a Scam?

If you’re wondering “Is It Really PCH or Is It A Scam,” please follow these 3 important tips to stay safe!

Greetings, fans and friends,

We love our fans! And we want you all to have the best, most fun experience possible entering the free and fabulous PCH Sweeps!

And that’s why, when we hear stories about scammers, we feel awful! Because whether it’s a scammer pretending to be from Publishers Clearing House or from any organization at all, the act of swindling an innocent person into handing over their hard-earned money is just WRONG!

In fact, I heard about a recent incident involving 3 individuals who were charged with running a cross-country sweepstakes scam targeting the elderly.

Prosecutors say the suspects tricked 7 victims who thought they had won as much as $3.5 million in sweepstakes prizes into sending them more than $695,000 by mail or wire transfers! These unfortunate elderly folks were allegedly told they needed to pay taxes and fees before collecting their prizes.

It just makes me sick to tell you, dear fans and friends, about stories like this. And as much as we wish the scammers would go away, we know that unfortunately, it’s going to keep on happening.

That’s why we want you to know that we at PCH, working alongside law enforcement authorities, are always doing everything we can to take action against scammers!

Here are 3 very important things to keep in mind:

1. PCH NEVER Notifies Major Prize Winners by Phone! If you DO receive a phone call claiming that you’ve won a major prize from Publishers Clearing House, it’s a certain sign that you are the victim of a scam – no ifs ands and buts about it!
2. PCH will NEVER ask you to send money to claim your prize. On the other hand, a scammer will almost always ask you to wire money, or purchase a prepaid card, in order for you to claim your “prize award.” Always remember, at Publishers Clearing House, the winning is always 100% FREE!
3. If you do receive a scam call, take immediate action! Please fill out our online Fraud/Scam Incident Report as soon as possible. At PCH, we want to keep you safe!

In addition, be aware for these other signs of scams:

• PCH will NEVER send friend requests on Facebook, or contact you via Twitter or Instagram
• PCH will NEVER email, text or private message you to tell you you’ve won a prize.
• Do not fall for those “fake check” scams! In these types of scams, you might receive a real-looking check in the mail, and then be asked to wire back a portion of the money, which the scammers might claim is your “entry fee.” Again, this is a scam: the check is fake, and the real PCH would NEVER ask you to pay a fee in order to claim a prize!

At PCH, we love our fans, and we love to give away money! So if you’re ever wondering “is it really PCH or is it a scam,” please remember these tips, and you’ll be sure to keep yourself and your families protected from those nasty scammers!

As always, stay educated … stay protected … and STAY SAFE!

Debbie K.
PCH Creative