When playing the lottery it's important to do things by the book
Some members of the public think that lottery rules are designed to make it very difficult for a player to win a prize and try to collect it, or to confuse a player into making a mistake and forfeiting the win. None of this is true. Lottery rules are in place to ensure every part of the lottery process is conducted, verified, investigated, and paid out to the proper winner who has actually a valid and uncheated lottery jackpot.
Lottery rules conform to the rules and regulations demanded by the gaming regulator and are in place to ensure every lottery draw is conducted legally, fairly, and in an open, honest, and transparent manner. Lottery rules also ensure that players play and redeem their tickets in a standard format that can be verified.
One of the rules is that the ticket cannot be verified by a retailer unless the ticket is signed by the person redeeming the ticket. It is assumed by the lottery Operator that the person who signed the ticket is the actual owner of the ticket and only that person can redeem the ticket for a prize. So that is why they strongly suggest that a player sign their ticket as soon as it is purchased.
Another rule is that a winner must provide their name, hometown, and picture to be published on the Operator’s website and other marketing avenues to promote the lottery and to also ensure to the gaming public that real people do win lottery prizes. If you try to stay anonymous then you could end up forfeiting your win.
You also must make yourself available for an investigation/interview to verify certain aspects of the ticket and purchase to prove you are the rightful owner of the ticket. This includes providing acceptable ID, indicating where and when you bought the ticket, whether you have any relatives who work for the lottery Operator, and any other information requested by the investigation team. The point of this is to establish that you are the actual winner and that the ticket was properly purchased and no cheating or other activities were involved in your win.
If there are any irregularities discovered during the investigation or someone else contacts the Operator to say the lottery ticket is theirs or there was an agreement to share the win, the win is put on hold and a larger and more prolonged investigation commences in which you are obliged to be available for. This is information all players should know.
If everything turns out ok and you are declared the legitimate winner, then you must accept the prize as awarded, whether that be a lump sum, and annual annuity, or any other way the Operator declares the pize money to be awarded to you. Unless you are given an option on how you would like to receive your winnings, you must take it as the rules state.
Some big lottery winners like to try to stay anonymous and will challenge the Operator on this, sometimes even going to court over it. Some might want a lump sum payment rather than yearly payments even if the rules don’t allow it. And others will go out of their way to try to get any amount of the lottery win they can just out of jealousy or spite.
Trying to circumvent lottery rules just prolongs the time until you get your money and will cost you some of your winnings if you go to court. The best thing you can do that is in your best interest is to simply follow all the rules and take your prize as awarded. You beaten the odds in the lottery, so why try to beat yourself as well?