Registered post scratch card says you won a prize — pay fees first to claim it
A registered-post letter arrives with a scratch card in the name of Amazon, Flipkart, or another e-commerce brand. Scratching reveals a large prize. A helpline number or WhatsApp contact collects advance fees for taxes and processing — the prize never comes.
Also known as: scratch card postal prize scam, fake Amazon scratch card letter, fake Flipkart gift letter advance fee, registered post lottery fraud India, e-commerce prize letter scam
Already happened to you? Do this in the next few minutes
Call 1930 now- 1 Call 1930 — the national cyber-crime helpline — right now. The sooner you report, the better the chance of freezing the money before it moves.
- 2 Call your bank to freeze the account and block the card immediately. Use the number printed on your card, never a number from the message or caller.
- 3 File a report at cybercrime.gov.in and keep every message, screenshot, and transaction ID.
What to do right now
- 1 Do not call or message the helpline number or WhatsApp contact in the letter — it connects directly to fraudsters
- 2 Amazon, Flipkart, and other real e-commerce companies never run scratch-card prize schemes by postal mail
- 3 Do not pay any advance fee — no matter what documents are produced, the prize does not exist
- 4 If you have already paid: immediately contact your bank and file a complaint at https://cybercrime.gov.in under 'Online Financial Fraud'
- 5 Keep the envelope, letter, and scratch card — police may want them as physical evidence
- 6 Report at https://cybercrime.gov.in or call 1930 (national cyber helpline).
Red flags
- ⚠ The letter arrives by registered post with your correct name and address, lending it false legitimacy
- ⚠ No legitimate e-commerce company runs scratch-card prize campaigns by postal letter
- ⚠ A helpline or WhatsApp number in the letter connects you to a 'company representative' — real Amazon and Flipkart use only their published in-app support channels
- ⚠ Advance payment is demanded for 'income tax', 'processing fees', or 'documentation charges' before any prize is released — this is always fraud
- ⚠ Forged income tax clearance documents and company seals are sent on WhatsApp to appear official
- ⚠ New fees keep appearing even after you pay the first one
E-commerce companies in India do not run prize schemes by postal mail. Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho, and similar platforms notify users only inside their apps. A physical letter arriving unexpectedly with a scratch card is almost always a scam, regardless of how official the letterhead looks or what documents are sent on WhatsApp. The registered-post delivery is the key element that makes this scam more convincing than the usual SMS prize fraud — keep the envelope as evidence when you report it.