Illinois Attorney General Warns Oprah Fans of Scam

When you hear the name Oprah - you think of famous, and trustworthy friend.  There are fans all around the globe and it would be a dream come true to attend one of her shows, perhaps meet her in person and the thought of winning a sweepstakes where she is giving away money, well, who isn't interested in such a thing?
 
What would you do if you received in the mail or email for that matter, from none other than Harpo Studios, a sweepstakes entry to win a huge monetary prize?  A chance to attend and purchase tickets to her show?  All you had to do was give away your personal account information and deposit this realistic 'check' issued from Harpo Studios into your account, then send a third party a check for nearly the same amount given to you?  You 'trust' the source being such a huge fan and all - you think to yourself, why not?  What have I got to lose?

Beware!  It is a scam!  Sure, Harpo Studios is in face legit and trustworthy.  In fact, they did have a sweepstakes in 2006 where people received prizes.  However, in 2007 a scam was in place where
'fake' checks were being issued out to unsuspecting victims where they lost thousands of dollars.  Not to mention emails being sent out to look like the Harpo Studios' website that were really being rerouted to the scam artists' themselves.  If you are one of said victims, you should contact – Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and report the fraud that took place.  Out of state victims can also contact her by simply going on the Illinois Attorney General website and download the form after alerting local authorities.