Illinois Lottery officials say residents of the state should be on guard against a number of ever-present scams related to lotteries.

The Illinois Lottery has announced that scams typically try to dupe people into believing they have won a large lottery prize. A woman in Chicago last week reported that she had been contacted by email and telephone about having won a $26 million prize in a foreign lottery. She paid out $7,000 to retrieve the promised prize and officials say she will almost certainly never see the money again.

Other lottery scammers claim they need supposed winners to pay fees up front before claiming prizes.

Lottery Superintendent Michael Jones says most scammers contact targets by email.

Anyone with questions should contact the Illinois Lottery.