California Lottery Warns Against Using Third-Party Apps, Websites To Buy Tickets Online
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) — Looking to have a lottery ticket delivered to your door? The California State Lottery says there is no app for that, at least not in the Golden State.
California lottery officials warned players and retailers on Monday against using app-based and online lottery ticket resellers and courier delivery services.
"It's come to our attention that some of our retail partners have been working with lottery courier businesses and that they, along with California Lottery players, may not even know the potential vulnerabilities they could be exposed to," Alva V. Johnson, director of the California State Lottery, said in a statement. "The California Lottery is not affiliated with any third-party ticket delivery services. Players who choose to engage with them do so at their own risk."
Lottery officials did not identify any sites or apps are selling lottery tickets online. However, there is at least one app that allow users to play lotteries in as many as 10 states that recently got another round of funding from investors, and another site that allows players to buy lottery tickets on any device without requiring an app download or deposit. Lottery tickets can be purchased online in nine states and Washington D.C.
Online ticket ordering services in California are not permitted to operate in the state, so none of them operating now have been vetted, approved, or regulated by the California Lottery. Officials say they are also notifying its approximately 23,000 retailers of the "potential ramifications of engaging with ticket courier businesses."
