The Federal Trade Commission is warning that scammers are posing as well-known charities to tell people they won a sweepstakes. The calls and ads claim a prize is waiting, then demand a payment or a Social Security number to release it. The FTC’s rule is short: a real prize never requires a payment.

The warning is in a consumer alert the agency published Oct. 26. The Spanish-language version is also posted on the FTC’s consumer site.

How the charity sweepstakes scam works

The FTC’s consumer alert says scammers pose as reputable charities. They may say a person won a charity-sponsored sweepstakes because of a past donation, or they may call as someone from a charity the person already supports.

The scammers use real charity names or similar-sounding ones, in phone calls, social media ads and other places. The alert names no specific charities, so there is no list of organizations to avoid. The trick depends on a name that sounds familiar.

The payment is the giveaway

The FTC does not hedge on this point. “Only scammers demand you pay or give them personal information like your Social Security number to get a prize,” the alert says. It adds, “The moment someone tells you to pay to claim your prize, you know you’re dealing with a scam.”

The agency’s advice is to never pay to get a prize. Paying will likely cost money and bring more sweepstakes calls, mail and spam. The alert also says it is illegal to ask someone to pay or buy something to enter a contest or to increase the odds of winning.

For a reader who just got a call, the question is plain: did a charity phone with news of a sweepstakes win and ask for a fee, a card number or a Social Security number? If so, the FTC says that is a scam, and hanging up is the right move.

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The FTC warns not to trust caller ID alone. “Don’t trust it, even if it shows a real government agency or company name or phone number,” the alert says. A familiar name on the screen proves nothing.

Paid search ads are another route. The alert says scammers buy ads on Google Search and Bing that lead to imposter sites. The FTC advises searching a charity or contest name along with words like “complaint,” “review” or “scam,” and scrolling past the paid ads at the top rather than relying on the first results.

The agency’s separate guide to donating safely adds more red flags. They include pressure to give right away, thanks for a donation the person does not remember making, a local-looking area code on the caller ID, and a charity name that closely resembles a well-known one. It also calls a promise of sweepstakes winnings in exchange for a donation a scam, and says it is illegal.

What scammers ask for, and how to check a charity

The FTC’s guide to fake prize scams lists the payments scammers request. They include wire transfers through services such as Western Union or MoneyGram, payment apps such as Apple Pay, CashApp, PayPal or Zelle, cash, gift cards and cryptocurrency. The agency says those methods are hard to trace and hard to reverse.

The same guide lists other warning signs: pressure to hurry with claims of a limited-time offer, a notice that may have gone to many people at once, offers to play a foreign lottery, and links or downloads in unexpected texts, emails or social messages that may install malware. It says legitimate sweepstakes are free and winners are chosen by chance.

Scammers also ask for “taxes,” shipping, processing or customs fees up front. Another trick is the overpayment check: a person is sent a check and told to return part of the money. The FTC says fake checks can take weeks to be discovered, and then the bank will want the funds back.

To check a real charity, the donating guide points to the BBB Wise Giving Alliance at give.org and CharityWatch at charitywatch.org. It also suggests confirming tax-deductibility through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search and finding the state charity regulator through nasconet.org. Most states require charities or their fundraisers to register. A donor who wants to pay safely is told to use a credit card or a check, not cash, gift cards or wire transfers.

Where to report a charity prize scam

People who paid a scammer are told to act quickly, since the sooner they report, the better the chance of recovering money. Reports go to ReportFraud.ftc.gov, a state attorney general and a local consumer protection office. The FTC also lists the U.S. Postal Inspection Service if the offer came by mail, and IdentityTheft.gov if personal information was used.

The state charity regulator also takes reports. A person making one should include the name of the organization or fundraiser, the phone number and what the fundraiser said.

Told a charity prize needs a fee or a Social Security number?

A person who reads out a Social Security number or card number to a fake charity caller has handed over what a criminal needs to open accounts or call the bank. The sweepstakes line is only the bait.

A credit freeze shuts that door before the caller can use the number. Scam-Proof Your Accounts in a Weekend shows how to freeze your credit at all three bureaus, free by federal law, in one sitting, and its first-hour plan lays out the calls to make if a fake prize call already went too far. It comes in a large-print edition.

Get the credit-freeze and bank-lock guide for charity sweepstakes callers →

This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.