How to spot a fake BISP / 8171 prize message in 10 seconds

Every week, thousands of people in Pakistan get a message saying they've won money from BISP, a lottery, or a lucky draw. Almost all of them are scams designed to take your OTP, your CNIC, or a small 'processing fee'.

The five tells of a fake prize message

• It asks for a fee, 'tax', or 'customs charge' before you can get the money. Real benefits never charge you to receive them.
• It asks for your OTP, PIN, or full CNIC. No real institution asks for these over SMS or WhatsApp.
• The link doesn't end in gov.pk — look for lookalikes like bisp-gov.top or 8171-verify.xyz.
• It creates urgency: 'claim in 2 hours or lose it'.
• The sender is an unknown mobile number, not an official short code.

What to do

Don't reply, don't click. Paste the message or link into Drofsecurity's free checker and block the sender. If you already shared an OTP, call your bank or wallet helpline immediately and block the account.