+13 @gvillager I live close to a small mom and pop store that recently sold a winning Powerball ticket. A few days after the big win I went to the store and the owner just happened to be there and we were talking about it. He said he found out he sold the winning ticket when the lottery officials called the next morning. He said they didn't disclose the date or time it was sold and they didn't request any surveillance footage. I imagine if the lottery officials did want surveillance video they would request it for the whole day (or several hours) and not just for a specific time to protect the buyers identity. With that in mind a couple of weeks ago I found out that a cousin of mine just became the head of security at a major retailer that I've bought tickets from in the past. I've since stopped buying tickets there because he is one of the last people that I would want knowing or even suspecting that I was the winner.

+12 @Swerve99 nothing. and they have in the past.

+8 @PickASwitch The fear of a fatass lawsuit alleging invasion of privacy. If I lived in a state that allows anonymity for a lottery winner, and I was exposed by the retailer, I’d get that joint shut down. If you’re selling the tickets, you are acting on behalf of the lottery organization. If the organization says I can stay anonymous and you release my info, you’re in breach of contract. I’d sue the store, the lottery company would probably revoke the store’s rights to sell the tickets, which will drop the amount of foot traffic that store gets, they get shut the hell down.