A hoax email is doing the round, promising its recipients hundreds of thousands of dollars for winning an online raffle organized by the Nelson Mandela Foundation and sponsored by the insurance division of Old Mutual and Standard Bank.

“There is no such lottery draw and the Nelson Mandela Foundation is not involved in any such campaign,” the organisation warned for the third time this year.

According to the email with the title “2010 World Cup Lottery Draw Notice” has been circulating since January this year. < br>
It reads: ”Dear Winner, This is to inform you that the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, here in South Africa, has held an Internet Raffle Draw, and your e-mail address was among the 2010 e-mail addresses that was picked through the computer ballot system. We therefore with great pleasure, notify you that your e-mail address happened to come out top number (1) out of the 2010 e-mail addresses, on the final ballot draw, and this had made you the jackpot winner of the sum of US$850,000.00 (eight hundred and fifty thousand United States Dollars)."

It continues: "Be aware that this raffle draw was organised by the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Local Organizing Committee (LOC) of the 2010 World Cup, to create awareness for the World Cup, as South Africa is finalizing their preparation for the hosting of the 2010 World Cup. Below are your winning details...”

In the email, the people behind the scam asks recipients to furnish personal details including their names, addresses, telephone numbers and dates of birth and provides the name and e-mail addresses of an “agent”. The Nelson Mandela Foundation urges the public not to disclose any of this information and ignore the emails.

Source: The Weekend Post