The Minnesota Department of Commerce is warning senior citizens in the state to watch out for phony Publishers Clearing House letters telling them they’ve won $100 million.

At the heart of the scam is a $6,000 check enclosed with the letter. Seniors are told to cash the check and wire an amount of money to “process” their winnings.

However, the check bounces and the “winners” are out the money they wired, along with any returned check processing fees.

The Commerce Department says that it hasn’t yet had any reports of Minnesotans losing money to the scam, but the department is aware of people in other states who fell for the fake letter.

In North Dakota, if you receive such a letter telling you you’ve won money in the Publishers Clearing House sweepstakes, you should contact the North Dakota Attorney General’s Office to see if it’s a fake or the real thing.

A key point to remember is, if you’ve won a sweepstakes, you’ll never be asked to send money to “process” a winning claim.