Got a message saying you won a lottery you never bought? It is a scam. Here are the red flags, why no real lottery charges a fee, and how to report it.
Every day people in India get WhatsApp messages, SMS, or calls saying they've won ₹25 lakh from "KBC", "Jio", or a "lucky draw". These are fraud. You cannot win a lottery you never entered, and a real prize is never released after an upfront payment. This page shows the red flags, how the scam plays out, and exactly how to report it — plus how a genuine state-lottery prize actually works so you can tell the difference.
If a message or call has any one of these, treat it as a scam:
The message gets you to make contact. The fraudster then asks for a small "refundable" fee to process the prize. Once you pay, they invent new charges — tax, courier, RBI clearance — and keep extorting money for weeks, insisting on WhatsApp-only contact and different bank accounts each time. The "prize" never arrives. The central government does not run any lottery, and "KBC" is a TV show, not a lottery operator.
A real Indian state lottery works the opposite way to the scam. You buy a paper ticket (₹6 for Nagaland/Sikkim Dear, ₹50 for a Kerala weekly, ₹250–₹500 for a bumper) from an authorised retailer. The result is published as an official Directorate PDF — we mirror it on each result page so you can match your number yourself. You then claim in person with the original signed ticket plus KYC within the claim window; the Directorate deducts TDS from the prize. Nobody contacts you first, and no fee is ever taken to "release" a win. When in doubt, ignore the message and check the official result yourself: today's result · how to claim.
We never message or call winners, never ask for a fee, and never sell tickets. We only mirror official results so you can verify a number against the Directorate's own PDF.
No — it is a scam. There is no KBC/Jio WhatsApp lottery, and you cannot win a lottery you never bought a ticket for. The message exists only to get you to pay a fake "processing" or "GST" fee. Block the sender and do not reply.
The clearest sign is an advance-fee demand: a genuine lottery never asks you to pay anything to release a prize. Other red flags are winning a draw you never entered, contact only over WhatsApp/SMS from a personal number, urgency ("claim within 24 hours"), and poor grammar.
Never. For a real state lottery you buy a ticket at a shop, match your number against the official result, and claim by submitting the original ticket with ID — tax (TDS) is deducted by the Directorate from the prize, never collected from you in advance. Anyone asking you to pay first is a fraudster.
Stop all payments immediately, save every message/call log/receipt, and call the national cyber-crime helpline 1930 or file at cybercrime.gov.in right away. Tell your bank to try to freeze the transfer, and file an FIR at your local police station. Acting within the first hours gives the best chance of a freeze.
Call 1930 (National Cyber Crime Helpline) or report at cybercrime.gov.in. For money already sent, also inform your bank and file a police FIR; consumer issues can go to the National Consumer Helpline on 1915.
You buy a paper ticket (₹6 to ₹250) from an authorised retailer, the result is published as an official Directorate PDF, and you claim a win in person with the original ticket plus KYC within the claim window. No one calls or messages you first, and no fee is ever charged to release a prize.