Corporate Social Responsibility

The NC Lottery was created to provide value to North Carolinians.

Player Security

At the NC Lottery, we want the public to feel secure and confident with all lottery practices when they play our games. Every lottery ticket, whether scratch-off or draw game, represents a fair and equal chance to win — for everyone! By sharing knowledge on how to report security issues and how to protect players, our experienced security team is able to work together with the public to prevent fraud and reduce unfair practices.

Reporting Suspicious Activity

Our security team includes highly-qualified investigators in six different regions across the state. This location diversity allows our investigators to focus the necessary time and attention to each individual case. Additionally, we have a staff of trained security operations employees who monitor our Security Hotline.

If you see or experience something that concerns you at a lottery retailer, please contact our Security Hotline, available 24 hours a day, at 888-732-6235 and provide the following information if you can:

Name of retailer and/or address of retailer
Date/Time of incident
Description of incident

While it doesn’t occur often, if there is ever a situation where a retailer undermines the integrity of NC Lottery policies and procedures, our security team will conduct reviews, and if warranted, an investigation. If it is uncovered that fraud was committed against our players and the public, suspension and/or termination of the retailer is a direct consequence.

When you buy an NC Lottery ticket, whether through a retailer, subscription services, or pay at the pump, you can feel confident that our practices are sound and prizes are fairly awarded.

Protecting Yourself

Lottery Scams

“If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”

Every day, criminals find new ways to scam victims out of money. The NC Lottery is sometimes contacted by citizens who have received telephone calls, letters, or emails concerning questionable wins from various lotteries, including the NCEL. To help you determine whether you have been contacted by a scam artist, we are providing a few guidelines, suggestions, and resources to help you stay safe while you play.

ONLY buy lottery tickets from authorized NC Lottery Lottery retailers. You can find an authorized lottery retailer here.
NEVER redeem a lottery ticket for someone you do not know
NEVER give your credit card, social security, driver’s license, passport, or bank account numbers over the phone, in an email, or through a letter to anyone promising lottery cash prizes or memberships
DO NOT RESPOND to a letter, email, or phone call requesting you to send money or to cash a check with subsequent directions to send a portion of the money back. The check is not valid and will bounce. No legitimate lottery will ever send you this type of communication. (View Example)
ONLY participate in a “lottery pool” with people you know and trust.

The Scam	The Truth

"This is a winning ticket, but I need money to claim it. If you help me with the upfront money, I'll share the jackpot with you."	Once the ticket is bought, no money is EVER required to claim a prize.
"I can't cash in my winning ticket because I'm not a US citizen."	You don't have to be a U.S. citizen to claim a lottery prize as long as you have proper ID.
"Let's call the Lottery. They'll tell us this is a winning ticket."	NC Lottery NEVER confirms that a ticket is a winner over the phone. The person on the phone is just a part of the scam.

These are just a few helpful tips to help prevent you from becoming a victim of fraud. As always, if you have any questions about the legitimacy of a lottery communication, please call our Security Hotline, available 24 hours a day, at 888-732-6235.

The following are resources where you can learn more about frauds and scams:

Player Tips

Players can take a few simple steps to protect themselves

Be an educated player: Know the rules before playing. You can view game rules on our website, or you can contact customer service at 1-877-962-7529.
Always play responsibly: Play with what you can afford to spend on entertainment.
Use play slips: Love picking your own numbers? Use a play slip to ensure the accuracy of the ticket.
Sign your ticket: Whoever signs the back of the ticket is the owner of the ticket.
Ask about pay-outs: Retailers don’t always pay out prizes the same. Before you scan the ticket, ask the retailer how they pay out prizes. You can always go to another retailer, visit a regional claim center, or mail in the winning ticket.
Scan tickets only once: Tickets can only be scanned at one location.
Verify ticket/winnings accuracy: Something doesn’t look right? Ask before leaving. It is the player’s responsibility to ensure accuracy of the ticket/winnings.
Redeeming a multi-draw? Get an exchange ticket: Retailers keep and deface all original winning tickets. If you’ve purchased a multi-draw and won, make sure you receive an exchange ticket for the remaining drawings.
Listen for the musical tune: If you win a prize above $50, the lottery terminal will play a tune.
Check the VFD customer display: If you win a prize under $599, the display will show you the amount won. If you win a prize above $600, the display will read, “Claim at Lottery”
Ask for a validation receipt: When redeeming a winning ticket, it’s always a good idea to ask for a validation receipt.
How to claim your prize: There are steps to take to claim your prize, and we have them here. Find out more.