Hundred thousands of Britons have become victim of a lottery scam, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) the consumer watchdog warned. According to the watchdog around 140.000 adults fall victim to the scams, costing the general public an estimated £260 million a year.

The OFT said only 6% of the victims report the crime to the police, but the average loss per victim was £1,900. Senior director of OFT’s Consumer Markets Group, Heather Clayton said: “Lottery scams are a serious issue affecting 140,000 adults in the UK each year which is why we want people to recognise the warning signs. Remember that if a win looks too good to be true, then it probably is.” Paul Jay, Head of Information Security at the Camelot Group said: “We never advise players that they have won a prize via an unsolicited letter, email or telephone call and we never ask for upfront fees or personal information. If you haven’t purchased a ticket for The UK National Lottery, you won’t have won a prize, and we would urge players to treat letters, emails and phone calls telling you otherwise with absolute caution.” A spokesperson for the government said the government is working to target online scams in order to protect consumers.

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Results of a study commissioned by Florida governor Charlie Crist, to examine the effects of online casino gambling in the state, have been made public. The only problem is that the study is not objective and gives Crist unfair advantages in his battle against online gambling.

People in the gambling market question the source of the gambling survey. In the study, when looking at the possibility of a gambling law to allow online gambling and casinos, the committee said that gambling opponents argue that prevalence of gambling addiction is three to four times higher with Internet gambling than with non-Internet gambling. No source is mentioned, which gives the impression that this is scientific fact, while experts say that evidence show the contrary. A gambling analyst from online casino advisory said: “Studies done from Harvard Medical School to the government of South Africa have found online gambling to be significantly less addictive than land-based gaming. Only a recent UK survey, which has been debunked for its questionable scientific conditions and interpretations, has suggested otherwise.” EGRmagazine said that regulated gambling in Florida could earn 100 million dollars in revenue, but Crist pushed aside scientific evidence asserting no objective estimates exist to assess potential state revenues.

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One of the biggest online casino software developers in the industry, Playtech, is aproved as an Associate Member of the World Lottery Association (WLA), recognised as an authority for state lotterys and gambling businesses world wide.

With the aproval, Playtech will become a primary provider of lottery software and develop practices for lotteries in exsisting markets. The WLA has associate in 76 countries around the word, creating a revenue of more than 108 billion pounds. Playtech wil enter new markets previously unavailable because of the worldwide reach of the WLA. Mor Weizer, Chief Executive at Playtech said: “We are very proud to have been approved as an Associate Member of the WLA. It reflects our strong focus and experience in regulated gambling markets, not least our work with the various lotteries which are leading operators and members of the WLA. We look forward to contributing to the Association’s development in the future.” Jean Jorgensen, WLA Executive said: “We welcome Playtech as an Associate Member to the WLA and look forward to working with them.”

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Everybody knows mistakes happen, but did a mistake ever pay you 1,000,000 pounds. This happened to 58 year old Audrey White when she bought a £2 scratch of lottery ticket, but got a £5 ticket instead. As luck would have it, the ticket was worth 1 million pounds.

The 58 year old Palace Bingo Club worker went to buy a scratch off card at her local grocery store in Suffolk. After getting some scratch cards she won a few pounds, when she asked the clerk for another £2 lottery ticket, the clerk pulled out a £5 ticket. Since she won a few pounds, White decided to keep the ticket. When she got home she rubbed it off, and became an instant millionaire. Mrs White said: “I asked for a £2 card and she pulled out the £5 one by mistake. I’d already won £5 on another scratch card so I decided to have a go. I rubbed it off when I got home later and I just couldn’t believe it, I’m still in a state of shock.” White has worked at her local Palace Bingo Club as an assistant manager for years, but does not plan on quitting now that she’s a millionaire. White has 3 children and it is reported that a few years ago she faced losing her home, she can now pay of her mortgage.

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Internet casino gambling in Chile will receive an extra boost in the nest months, Loteria de Concepción, the state lottery operator has recently negotiated a seven year contract one of the world best online casino provider, Intralot gaming.

Intralot gaming is based in Greece and works closely with the second largest lottery provider of Chile, Polla Chilena de Beneficencia. The contract will increase Intralots share in the gambling market in the country thanks to the state lottery provider. Intralot currently provides lottery, online gambling and sports betting technology in 50 countries. Online casinos and gambling are illegal in Chile, the only way for gamblers to bet on the internet, is to bet via the state-lotteries, the new contract will have a substantial impact in Chile. This new partnership will increase the popularity of online casino gambling in Chile and will give a new impuls for online casinos to be legalized and licensed in the country. The government of Chile knows that online gambling revenues will provide for a large portion of the country’s income. The question is if Chile will dive into the world of legalized internet gambling and online casinos. The latest step in legalising the gaming industry will certainly be a major positive impact on the country.

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Mi Hyun Moon a 40-year-old mother of two and a native Korean who lived in Queens for 20 year before moving to Philidelphia, walked into a Queens deli to get some change, but walked out as a multi-millionair.

Moon was visiting friends last month when she purchased a Lotto ticket after changing a $5 bill hit the huge jackpot of the lottery of the drawing of 14 September. Moon was a first time player of the lottery, and it was actually the first ticket she ever bought. The women said: “It was surreal, I’m overjoyed!” Mook visits the city regular for family visits, and on September 14, moon got the idea to test het luck and bought a Lotto Ticket at the Imperial Deli on 21st Street in Long Island City. She needed some change for the bus fair, but she had to buy something, she then decided to buy a Lotto ticket.

Moon realised four days after the drawing that she forgot to check if she won, she then saw she picked the right numbers. “I come back to Queens to visit with family and friends about once a month or so. This is one visit I will never forget!” she said. Moon won a whopping $2,839,929 lump sum payout, which will be cut to $1,869,263 after taxes. “To be honest, I am still getting over the initial shock,” she said. “I am dreaming of all the things I can do with the money. The kids’ college funds are paid for.” Moon also said that she plans to donate money to her church.

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The only thing left that stand between the lottery jackpot of 10.4 million pounds and the luckiest man in Canada is an autograph and some paperwork. The Court of Queen’s Bench in Alberta ordered the jackpot to its rightful winner.

The winner Seguro Nbabene is still annoyed by the time it took to get his winnings from the Western Canada Lottery Corporation (WCLC). Nbabene said he will take legal action against the WCLC for the missing interest but also for the emotional damage it caused him after he tried to claim his prize in February. Nbabene is called the luckiest man in Canada because he won the lottery 5 times in the last 5 years, in subsequent draws he won £61,000, £34,900, and twice £800,000 before he won the amazing 10.4 million pounds lottery jackpot. Nbabene claimed the prize in February, after he matched all numbers in the January 16, Super 7 draw. But a member of a group-buy agreement claimed he would share the prize with them, the WCLC handed the case over to the courts. One member of the group dropped the claim, and the other did not show up in court last Friday to challenge the winnings, Judge John Prowse told Nbabene the money was his. Nbabene said: “I won rightfully, I played the ticket, they advertised the money, I paid for the ticket, I won the jackpot and they refused to pay me right away, they have to pay for that. I’m asking for damages for the torture, mental torture… for all these delays for no reason. They shouldn’t torture a person like me just cause I won several times.”

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Osaka Governor Toru Hashimoto said the city should promote its sex and gambling-related industries to help the local economy back on its feet. He says business attractions in neighbouring Kyoto and Kobe are good examples of this and Osaka can celebrate its “vulgar and obscene” image.

Hashimoto added by saying the town should welcome casinos and red-light districts, yesterday in a speech to local business owners. According to Hashimoto Osaka should draw on its strengths by becoming an entertainment Mecca which may also increase tax revenue. It would also set apart the town from neighbouring Kyoto, a world-famous holiday destination, and Kobe, which was described by Hashimoto as a town of high fashion. Hashimoto is a 40-year-old lawyer and TV commentator who was elected in 2008, has said he wants to build a casino near Osaka Bay. This is the same district where he was approved this week to buy the city’s tallest building the world trade centre. Osaka lays in the centre of Japan’s second-biggest urban area. Hashimoto says gambling and red-light district will increase tax revenue and bring more work to the city.

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