Attorney General Steve Six is notifying Kansans of a new twist on an old scam using well-recognized business names. If a consumer receives notice of winnings from such a lottery or sweepstakes entry, Six warns that the winnings may be fraudulent and any check or notice may contain false information.

Consumers in central Kansas have received notifications of prizes accompanied by documents that appear to be checks. The consumer is asked to deposit the check in their bank account, then wire money using Western Union or MoneyGram back to the issuer of the check to pay “clearance or processing fees.”

The consumer is directed to call a number from an area code in Quebec, Canada to “release winnings and validate [the] check” that was enclosed. The letter also contains a seal similar to the official seal for the United States Department of Justice, and claims it is “Approved by the Attorney General.”

In reality, those rare legitimate sweepstakes winnings do not require advance payment of fees or taxes. Taxes are collected by government agencies, not by a company that provides the sweepstakes winnings.

Many scam artists will issue a check to a consumer, then ask the recipient to deposit the check, and before the check has time to clear the issuing bank request the consumer wire money from their account back the scam artist. These requests are usually accompanied with a sense of urgency, that the prize must be claimed by a certain date, and waiting for the check to clear the issuing bank would allow the prize to expire.

Another similar type of scam includes information that the consumer has won a foreign lottery, but that certain fees must be paid before the check can be issued. Consumers are reminded that the only lottery that is legal in Kansas is the Kansas State Lottery.

If consumer believe they have received a fraudulent price check, contact the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division at 1(800)432-2310.