No funding yet for lottery scam campaign

A promised state-run education campaign to warn persons of the dangers of the lottery scam has failed to begin because of funding problems.

Minister of State in the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy and Mining, Julian Robinson, said he is unable to give a time frame for the implementation of the campaign.

He said the Jamaica Information Service has developed a proposal but the government will have to seek the funding to implement it.

Robinson said the lottery scam is negatively affecting Jamaica’s reputation as a location for business, tourism and specifically the information technology and business process outsourcing sectors.

Earlier this year, an organisation named Fairpoint launched a website to raise awareness about the telephone scam originating from Jamaica, targeting especially the elderly.

The organisation said it was working in collaboration with law enforcement in New England, in the United States.

Up to this week, persons in the US continued to complain about being bombarded with calls from suspected scammers from Jamaica.

radio@gleanerjm.com