Been told I've won - scam or not? - please help!

DragonRider83

Hi guys,
I could really use some advice as I have no idea what to do - this has never happened before.

In January I entered a competition to Win Tickets To The Crystal Maze Live (it won't let me post the link, but it's searchable on the main competitions page) and yesterday I received an email telling me that I have won. The email contains all of the same T&Cs as specified in the original post, is spelled correctly, has the Sony Xperia logo, has an email address and phone number and looks totally genuine. According to the original post, the competition ended on 28th February, so the timing also makes sense. It also went to my Gmail address which I don't usually use for competitions but did on this occasion because it required Google login to enter, and it addressed me by the same username I used to enter. The only thing that made me slightly suspicious was that it's got a 'click here to confirm you want to accept the prize and register your details' button, which can obviously be a sign of a scam, but can also be a genuine way to claim. It also says I have to claim before the 15th or they will offer the prize to someone else.

I decided to be vigilant and contacted Sony Xperia using their official contact details on their website (not the email address contained within the email) to make sure it was genuine. This morning I received an email (which looked very run-of-the-mill and in slightly broken English) saying that they have never had a competition or offer with regards to that specific event and that the email had not been from them. But the thing is, I know they DID run the competition because I remember entering it! So I'm thinking what if this person on customer service who replied to my email has made a mistake?

The only thing that might make sense is that the email telling me I have won is from a company called Infrared (the exact email address is xperialounge@weareinfrared.com) which is an events marketing company, and includes things like live events, so again this suggests it is genuine, and perhaps the competition was handled by this company instead of by Sony themselves, hence why whoever answered my query couldn't find it? Although the original post says 'This Competition is organized and hosted by Sony Mobile Communications AB, 221 88 Lund, Sweden (“Promoter”) from: 14 January 2019 to 28 February 2019 (inclusive). ' It also says in the T&Cs on the original post that the winner will have to click a link in the email and enter their registration details.

So basically I'm totally confused. Can anyone PLEASE suggest what I should do? It's really weird that Sony customer support have said it's not from them, but everything else adds up and most scams are far more obvious and don't purport to be from genuine competitions. Obviously I don't want to fall for a scam, but equally my gut tells me this is genuine and I really don't want to miss out if it is!

Thanks so much,

DragonRider

sleepyjones

Sounds legit to me.

If you mouse over the "Click here to confirm..." link, does the URL go to somewhere you might expect? (when you mouse over the link should appear in the bottom left of your browser)

cagsd

DragonRider83 wrote: »

It also says in the T&Cs on the original post that the winner will have to click a link in the email and enter their registration details.

That tells me all I need to know: it sounds perfectly legitimate and in keeping with the published T&Cs.

DragonRider83

Thanks guys - I had the idea of getting in touch with Infrared directly, who have confirmed it is indeed genuine and have given me further instructions. So happy!

Blulu

I'm not 100% sure, but in my experience, the scams don't usually say that I've won, they say that I've been selected as a possible winner, or something similar to that.

Hope it's genuine and you enjoy it.

Blu XXX