ANOTHER ROUND OF SECURITY CHECKS SHOWS
ALL LOTTERY PRIZES PROPERLY PAID

For media-ready jpeg image of the of the Iowa Lottery's "Sign it. It's Yours." logo click here.

Lottery Conducts Checks In Eight Communities

DES MOINES, Iowa – The Iowa Lottery has conducted another round of unannounced security checks at Iowa retail locations to see how winning tickets would be handled, and all prizes again were properly paid by store personnel.

Lottery personnel posing as customers visited 14 randomly-selected retail locations Wednesday and Thursday in central and western Iowa, presenting tickets for cashing that each had won prizes ranging from $10 to $100. In every instance, the location paid the correct amount.

The latest round followed checks conducted by the lottery in late February, when its investigators visited 126 Iowa retail locations and presented 128 tickets for cashing. All prizes were paid correctly that time as well.

Iowa Lottery CEO Terry Rich said the retailer compliance program has resulted in positive news for our state.

"We will continue these checks as part of our focus on security and integrity," Rich said. "There have been problems involving lottery-ticket redemption outside Iowa, and we must remain vigilant against that here."

In Minnesota, eight people who worked at retail locations were charged with felony lottery fraud after retail compliance checks by the Minnesota Lottery in December and January. Investigators said each of the clerks kept a winning ticket they were presented and attempted to claim the prize themselves.

And this year in California, more than two dozen people working at retail outlets have been arrested for the grand theft of winning lottery tickets as part of checks by the California Lottery. All of the California suspects were accused of cheating lottery customers.

Rich said the Iowa Lottery varied its approach in its latest checks. In February, lottery security investigators, all of whom were men, posed as the customers. In the latest checks, investigators oversaw the process, but female lottery employees posed as the customers and presented the tickets for cashing.

Rich said it's important for the lottery to cover a range of scenarios as part of its work.

"Players must be confident that they'll be paid all prizes they have won," Rich said. "They must know that the lottery's games are fair and secure. And retailers must follow the rules. Our ongoing checks will help accomplish those goals."

During the February checks, about half the retail locations visited did not require that lottery tickets be signed before cashing them. Rich said the lottery has been working to educate retailers and the public about the importance of signatures on lottery tickets, and there was improvement in that area in the latest checks. About a quarter of the retailers failed to require a signature this time.

Rich said the lottery will visit those locations to inform them that ongoing violations will not be tolerated.

"I want to again emphasize that the easiest way for people to protect themselves is by signing their ticket as soon as they purchase it," Rich said. "A signature on a lottery ticket identifies it as belonging to the person who has signed it. That provides protection and avoids confusion for all those involved in the validation process. Consumers should protect themselves by signing their tickets and retailers should check for that signature."

Over the past few years, the Iowa Lottery has increased its focus on lottery security in a variety of ways. In January 2007, the lottery held a joint news conference with the Attorney General's Office to warn Iowans about lottery scams. The Lottery also enhanced the player security information it offered on its Web site (visit www.ialottery.com and click on "Player Security" to learn more).

In 2008, the lottery instituted two other security enhancements, requiring that tickets be signed on the back before they can be checked or cashed; and that receipts be printed for all lotto and instant-scratch tickets that are checked or cashed. Two receipts are printed – one for the retailer and one for the lottery player – that show the results of a particular ticket and whether it has won a prize. Receipts are not involved for pull-tab tickets, as the amount of any pull-tab prize won is already printed on the ticket.

Rich said the Iowa Lottery is a leader in consumer protection, and it will not compromise on the issue.

"Our increased focus on that area over the past few years is designed to protect against even the possibility of fraud," he said.

Rich said the lottery will continue periodic, random checks of ticket validation.

The retailers visited by the lottery this week included a mix of businesses in Denison, Carroll, Jefferson, Fort Dodge, Hampton, Story City, West Des Moines and Des Moines.

Anyone who has a concern about the lottery, its products or operations should contact the lottery at 515-725-7900 or e-mail the lottery at Wmaster@ialottery.com. Anyone with a security-related concern should make their inquiry directly to the Lottery Security Department at 515-725-7888.

There are a variety of ways to learn about the lottery and its products:

• Watch the televised drawings in lotto games.
• Check information on the lottery Web site at www.ialottery.com.
• Ask a retailer to print winning numbers reports from the lottery terminal.
• Call one of the lottery's five regional offices around the state for information.
• Listen to lottery results on local radio stations.
• Check lottery results in local newspapers.
• Call the lottery’s winning numbers hot line at 515-323-4633.
• Sign up for the lottery's VIP Club and receive e-mails of winning numbers and drawing results.
• Sign up for the lottery's text-messaging service that sends winning numbers and other information directly to a player's text-enabled mobile device.
• Follow the Lottery on Twitter, friend the lottery on Facebook or visit the lottery's blog at www.ialotteryblog.com.

Since the Iowa Lottery's start in 1985, its players have won more than $2.2 billion in prizes while the lottery has raised more than $1.1 billion for state programs.