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IPG Prize Distribution Department (Netherlands)

IPG Prize Distribution Department (Netherlands)

You are the winner of the Grand Prize of AUD 90,000 - Guaranteed!

fish hook and usb

That's the hook.

Hang on! The line above the headline says, "If your number is the winning number, we'll be able to announce: You are the winner … "

That's the line.

Where's the sinker?

 WA ScamNet readers have sent us examples of three versions of the same IPG Netherlands offer. Careful reading of the letter from the Prize Distribution Department, the "Personal Winner's Notification" or the "Last Notice to Respond to this AUD 65,000 Message!" tells you that:

You have not actually won a prize; and

  • You can join a lotto syndicate by paying $14.95 or $29.95 per month directly from your credit card account.

  • We say that it doesn't matter how you package it, baloney is still baloney.

To provide a direct debit authority for a credit card account to a stranger in another country is like putting blood in the water before swimming with sharks.

The good news is that IPG guarantees that you will win a prize (well, a share of a prize, really). The bad news is that there is no way, short of travelling to the Netherlands, that you can enforce the agreement or pursue enquiries if things do not work out as promised.