Mystery Shopping Pros

Kay-os,

Mac was referring to a tactic that is sometimes used in which 2 people (or often the same person under 2 different accounts) spam a site--the first post is to ask an innocent-sounding question, the 2nd to provide the answer which is really spam.

In this case, I think by the end it was clear that Grady was the only liar and spammer in this thread.

Moderators can see where members post from, and we could actually see from very beginning that unlike you, Grady was actually in the Philippines (one of the more common locations for spammers)--but we decided to allow him some leeway, to let him show how far some of these shady or fake companies will go with their lies and attempts to suck people in.

good to see that's cleared up

I don't think this is a scam i just received payment today

Kay-os,

I don't know how you received payment, or how much, but you need to be very cautious. Some mystery shopper scams pay with fake checks/money orders, or stolen credit cards or paypal accounts. Still others will "pay" you with faked paypal emails. After you purchase the requested items, you will discover you don't have the money.

The mystery shopping task then involves "evaluating" western union or some other money transfer service, or purchasing items and sending them to someone else. Essentially, what these scams do is use the unsuspecting "employee" to commit a crime (check fraud or money laundering.) The problem is, once the fake check or money order is identified (which can take weeks, and can happen after the bank gives you the cash), or the theft of the account identified, it is your doorstep the police will end up on. And you can be arrested and charged with a felony.

Another goal of some online scams is identity theft. In this case, you may be paid with real money, but are asked to give key information to the scammers. The "payment" may be real in this case, but what you earn will be nothing compared to what is lost due to identity theft.

Anyone seen their youtube video ?

It's like Star Wars. I think mystery shopping involves going through hyper space at 10,000 miles an hour.

You can even do a course in mystery shopping. I presume that's only for males, is it ?

......testing basic skills such as reading comprehension and your ability to follow directions

The two subjects I had most trouble with at school.

I don't think this is a scam i just received payment today

So, what instructions have you been given along with the [fake] 'payment'?

I think of myself as fairly savvy regarding these things but, since I need to make extra income and I only have nights, I responded to a craigslist ad for these people. It all started pretty good-a few Emails went back and forth from Monica ([email protected]). She had employment documents to be filled out- one was a W-9 which of course gives your SS# to them. I was going to go to work for a person I had never met, filling out all the sensitive information about me. I didn't even know where they were located. I didn't even have a phone #! I didn't even know if there was a real person anywhere who works for the company. When they asked for me to complete a W-9 I got nervous and asked them to prove they existed via an Email to Monica. Silence-I tried to sign up as a secret shopper and I couldn't register. It took my request and said I registered but I couldn't sign up for any assignments.
Only when I threatened to expose them as a scam did Monica repond via Email-she told me to register again (just to delay my exposing of them) never phone- to ask me "Why would I want to do that and waste all the money they had spent building the back end" of the site. After all they weren't charging a fee to sign up. I AM SURE THEY HAVE JUST COLLECTED ALL MY INFO AND ARE GOING TO SPREAD IT TO OTHERS. What tipped me off is getting a rash of Emails about working at home all of a sudden after (fake) signing up.
PS I did more checking on them. The domain is registered privately so there is no one to contact. They give a . Denver Corp. headquarters address but I guarantee it is a PO Box. Monica is friending everyone on Facebook just to push herself out there further. IT WAS A SHAME AND A WASTE OF TIME. Too bad they have gotten a hold of all these clients big names like Sears Target etc. I am now sure these retailers have NO IDEA WHO THESE PEOPLE ARE. Go Daddy registered their sites but claims there is nothing they can do and the sites are hosted by some hosting company that is a blank page and mirrored to somewhere else.
Probably not the last time I will be scammed. They probably think it is funny.
Hooperpie

Welcome to ScamWarners hooperpie, we are sorry you got caught up in this kind of a situation. Have they asked you to do anything besides give all of your personal identification information? It is possible that you started asking questions before they started sending you the forged checks.

Thank you for posting this information up for others to see and hopefully not reveal their information or send money that will just be gone.

Kay-Os, I bet your payment was in the form of postal money orders, right? They are one of 2 things. Fake, or stolen from someone. I can guarantee that. One of my friends has just become a victim with this Mystery Shopper scam.

Have we a list of these? Kobby678, Grady etc

MYSTERY SHOPPING SCAMS

There are a lot of scammers out there who are using legitimate mystery shopping company names to try and rip you off. Just because you see someone writing and commenting about an experience they supposedly had with a mystery shopping company doesn't make it true. The ad or email that you received that says a mystery shopping company’s name on it doesn't mean that it actually came from that company. That why they call them a scam. If you’re interested in a mystery shop, take the time and call the mystery shopping company personally and clarify the ad before acting on it.

I can personally vouch for Mystery Shopper Pros in New Jersey as an honest and great company to work for, but I can't vouch that the email you received is really from them.

Facts - Honest mystery shopping companies don't charge you to work for them. You are not going to receive a $100.00 in pay to work for one. Never give out your credit card numbers over the phone to someone you didn’t call. Don't cash a money order or cashiers check that someone sent to you and by sending them money back a smaller amount in a form of a money gram? Telling you to keep the difference for your time? The check that they sent you will bounce and you will be out the full amount back that you sent them.

Don’t be a fool - If it sounds too good to be true it is!!!!