Fraudsters are impersonating lottery millionaire couple Colin and Chris Weir, who won £161m on the Euromillions Lottery last year.
The scam email has been sent to hundreds of thousands of people telling them they will receive a large sum of money from the couple’s charity foundation. Victims are told they must send personal details before they can get their money.
The email reads: “Compliments of the day, My name is Mr Colin Weir. On July 12, 2011, my wife and I won the biggest Euro-Millions Jackpot of £161,163,000 and we just commenced our 2012 Cash/Charity Donation programme. Your email address was submitted to my wife and I by the Google Management Team and you received this email because we have listed your email as one of the lucky beneficiaries. Kindly send us the below details so that we can issue a cheque for £1,500,000.”
To receive the “donation”, the recipient must provide details including full name, age, occupation and mobile number.
The email is exploiting the Weirs' reputation for generosity to deserving causes.
If you receive this email do not reply or send any personal information. For Get Safe Online's information and advice on how to avoid identity theft, click here.
(Source: Action Fraud)
