The chance of winning a lot of money is certainly alluring, and con artists are ready to exploit our eagerness to win big money.

Sweepstakes and lottery scams have been around for a long time, and they’re still going strong. A retired North Dakota couple recently lost nearly $90,000 to a prize notification scam that started with a telephone call. The call supposedly came from the California Gaming Commission claiming they had won $1.7 million.

The initial contact in a sweepstakes scam is often a call, an email, or a piece of direct mail offering congratulations for winning some big contest. But there’s a catch: You’ll be asked to pay taxes or some type of fee to claim your prize. The scammers may request bank account information, urge you to send money via a wire transfer, or ask you to purchase gift cards and give them the card numbers.

Don’t ever pay a fee to claim a prize, and don’t wire money to or share gift card numbers with someone claiming to represent a contest or lottery. Both payment methods are always a sure sign of a scam.

Carefully examine the envelope of a piece of mail congratulating you on winning a sweepstakes. If your congratulations letter was sent bulk rate, it means a lot of other people got the same mailing.

Hang up on cold calls claiming to be from a lottery or sweepstakes such as Mega Millions lottery or Publishers Clearing House. They will not call you out of the blue to tell you you’ve won.

Don’t provide personal or financial information to anyone who contacts you about winning a prize. If you receive an offer of a free prize, like a trip, and are told you must provide credit card information, pay an advance fee or attend a presentation, it’s a scam.

Knowledge gives you power and AARP North Dakota has two upcoming educational programs to help people protect themselves from scams.

At 1 p.m. Monday, Sept. 27, join a one-hour telephone town hall with Parrell Grossman from the N.D. Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division, and Kathy Stokes, director of the AARP Fraud Protection program. Register your phone number at vekeo.com/aarpnorthdakota/ to be sure you are called when the town hall begins.

On Tuesday, Oct. 12, from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m., hear from the man who brought organized crime online as he talks about a lawless corner of the internet where personal information can be bought. Brett Johnson, formerly America’s most wanted cybercriminal, will show what you can do to protect yourself online. Register to attend this online event here: https://aarp.cvent.com/Godfather10-12-21.

If you think you have fallen victim to any type of scam, call the AARP Fraud Watch Network Helpline at 877-908-3360 for guidance and support, or visit the AARP Fraud Watch Network at www.aarp.org/fraudwatchnetwork.