Do you get SMS that your mobile number has won BP500,000 in a Draw/Lottery.

I have been in receipt of SMS from one of the mobile number which read as under:

"CONGRATS!!!; YOUR MOBILE NO. HAVE WON 700,000GBP IN CNN UK 9TH ANNIVERSARY MOBILE DRAW. CONTACT CNNNEWSONLINE@XBMAIL.COM WITH UR NAME, ADDRESS & NUMBER FOR DELIVERY.

FROM: 8285359647

"

This is not the first time message and such messages keeps on landing at various mobile users and not only the mobile users but also through emails. I have reasons to believe such messages to be of fraudlent nature and therefore have been advising through various medai like facebook, newsletter to all users not to respond to such messages. 

The modus operandii is that on seeking details from the receipient, they would be contacting and try to convince that the recipient has won the prize money and would seek some money to be deposited in one of their account towards processing fee. As is the nature of human, the person fall prey to such frauds in a very easy manner and start depositing the money. One fine night the scamester would fly away with lot of hard earned money and the awardee would turn into the victim of such frauds. 

When someone advises not to respond to such messages, people laugh at it or donot take serious and result is that the scamesters are doing their fraudlent businesses and one such example is a person who has been businessman has become victim to the tune of loosing Rs. 64.00 lakhs in a dream of earning more than Rs. 5.00 crores overnight thru winning lottery. The news as appeared in Navbharat Times dtd. 2nd November 2012 is reproduced:

I have been forwarding such messages to Commissioner of Police. But there is no respite to such messages. While I appreciate that there is a difficulty to trace the offender who is using email messaging for such messages, no action by Police in tracing the origination of mobile message is not understood. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) also needs to play a proactive role to curb such practices

I request all the readers that  such messages not to be responded and  to forward them to the Police Commissioner. Lets force Police to act to curb such fraudlent practices.