Yes, Mega Millions prizes can be shared. Winners can decide how to share a prize when they claim it. Some restrictions do apply. Please check with the lottery in the state where you bought your tickets.

If you have not already purchased a Mega Millions ticket from a participating lottery, then this is a scam. You can’t win any legitimate lottery if you didn’t buy a ticket.

The scams take many forms and the scammers use many tricks. In most cases, the criminals e-mail or call to tell intended victims they have won a large prize. They might identify themselves as being with Mega Millions or another legitimate lottery, even though Mega Millions is a game, not an organization, and is only sold through participating lotteries.

These scams all have one thing in common: They try to trick you into sending them money or personal information by claiming that you have won a large lottery prize. The crooks usually try to get you to wire money for “taxes” or “fees,” or may try to get you to provide them with a bank account number, which they will then clean out.