Most grocery stores have a bunch of free magazine stands at their exit doors. One day you find little lottery scratch cards on those stands. You scratch your card and bam! The 3 numbers (or 5) in a row match! You are a winner and are required to call a number provided.
You call, wait in line for a bit, and you are asked to provide the confirmation number found on your winning card. You punch that in and wait for the long congratulatory message, explaining you that you are a winner – then you are required to give some personal information. The length of the whole call is over 4 minutes and you will be charged a fortune, because this is a hotline. Also, your personal information will now be sold to telemarketers and you’ll never get rid of them.
How to avoid: one – there’s no such thing as a free lottery card, and, two, never trust lottery scratch cards that ask you to call a number.