Tag Archives: scams

Notice to Appear in Court (Scam/Malware)

Posted on by The Old Wolf

bigstock-Malicious-malware-warning-mess-41722204-1024x819

(Thanks to Techsrus for the image)

My cubicle neighbor (at the job we just both got laid off from yesterday, but that’s another story) showed me a couple of emails he had gotten in his Gmail account – each sported the header “Notice to Appear in Court.”  I told him they were probably scam threat letters and hoping to extort money.

I got one myself today, and decided to explore it a little further.

—————-

From: “Notice to Appear in Court” <customerssupport231@kaiserarbitrationlawyers.com>
To: <redacted>

Subject: Notice to appear in court SN8157

Notice to appear in court,

Hereby you are notified that you have been scheduled to appear for your hearing that will take place in the court of Detroit in April 03, 2014 at 11:30 am.You are kindly asked to prepare and bring the documents relating to the case to court on the specified date.The copy of the court notice is attached to this letter. Please, read it thoroughly.
Note: The case may be heard by the judge in your absence if you do not come.Yours very truly,
SAMPSON Hays
Clerk of court
—————————–
Attached was a file called “Notice_to_Appear_TY4769.zip”
Unpack this zip folder and you find a file called “Court Notice.exe”. That file lasted less than one second on my desktop, as Microsoft Security Essentials immediately quarantined it. The .exe file contained a Trojan Downloader named Win32/Kuluoz.D, which Microsoft describes as follows:
Win32/Kuluoz is a trojan that tries to steal passwords that are stored in certain applications and sensitive files from your PC. This trojan could also download other malware to your PC, like other variants of Win32/Kuluoz and Win32/Sirefef, and variants of rogue security software likeWin32/FakeSysdef and Win32/Winwebsec. This threat tries to hack your email accounts and file transfer programs.
In other words, really nasty stuff.
This is a perfect example of why you should do the following things on your computer to practice safe computing:

1. Always display file extensions. This option is turned off by default by Microsoft on its newer operating systems, which in my opinion is a dangerous and foolhardy idea. This means that instead of seeing “Notice_to_Appear_TY4769.zip” and “Court Notice.exe”, you would only see “Notice_to_Appear_TY4769” and “Court Notice.” To fix this, follow the procedure below for your operating system:

To show or hide file name extensions (Windows 7)

  1. Open Folder Options by clicking the Start button Picture of the Start button, clicking Control Panel, clicking Appearance and Personalization, and then clicking Folder Options.

  2. Click the View tab, and then, under Advanced settings, do one of the following:

    • To show file name extensions, clear the Hide extensions for known file types check box, and then click OK.

    • To hide file name extensions, select the Hide extensions for known file types check box, and then click OK.

Example

To show or hide file name extensions (Windows 8)

  • Open Windows Explorer and go to “View” and then click the Options button > Change folder and search options
  • Scroll to “Hide extensions for file types is known”
  • Uncheck it and click OK.

To show or hide file name extensions (Windows XP)

  • Double Click on My Computer.
  • Click on Tools > Folder Options… in the menus.
  • Click on the View tab.
  • Remove the check from Hide extensions for known file types.
  • Click the OK button.

2) Make sure you have robust malware detection software installed. AVG Free, Microsoft Security Essentials, and Kaspersky are all good options. The first two are free, the third reasonably priced and somewhat more robust than the other two.

3) ☞ NEVER ☜ open attachments from unknown senders, especially a file that contains “.exe” anywhere in its name.

(Did I make that emphatic enough? I’d make it blink if I could.)

A lot of folks are savvy enough to spot this as a scam in an instant, but this particular email is official-looking enough to scare a lot of vulnerable computer users; the scammers don’t care if you actually appear anywhere – they just want you to open that never-to-be-sufficiently-damned attachment. If you are technically savvy and you have loved ones, either elderly or otherwise vulnerable, watch out for them. Educate them. You don’t want them becoming victims of scams or nefarious behavior like botnets.

This has been an Old Wolf public service announcement.

Another Scam Phone Prefix: +4487

Posted on by The Old Wolf

?????????????

Image from Ontario Ministry of Consumer Services

This one was new to me. It’s long been known that phone numbers which begin with 4470, or 44 070, are designed to look like United Kingdom numbers, but which actually forward to anywhere in the world – usually Nigeria or some other rat-infested internet cafe where scammers tend to cluster.

Last week I got this cute email from a potential “lover:”

Good day my friend, my name is Priya Kadam .I’m 26 years old girl lives in England, but originated from India, I was impressed when I saw your profile and I will like to establish a long lasting relationship with you. Once again ,I am the only daughter of Mr. Nilesh Kadam, my parents are late, and I am living alone , for the past 3 years and life is not easy with me since the painful exit of my late parents in a Fatal car accidents which took their life’s instantly.
But all is now in the past, as I have moved on, and I am grateful that I survive and made it at last.

So to cut the whole story shot, I am very willing to relocate with you, if only you can treat me well and as woman and be my man forever, as I have made all the fortune to sustain our lives with our un-born children, if we invest wisely.

I had a deal with some white dude here, which I was able to stole some huge sum of money from them[1] and now they are in search of me, and they cannot find me because I am in hide out as I am writing this mail to you, but I assure you nothing will happen to me because, them don’t know my country of origin , they thought I am from Lebanon,

So I have in my possession, cool cash of ? 1.5Million Great British Pounds with me, and I am ready to invest it with you, if I am convinced that you will not betray me or treat me bad.
Below attachment are my photos for your identification and I will also like to see yours, in case you are interested with my proposal.

Have a nice day sweetie and waiting to hear from you
Miss Priya Kadam
Cell phone.+448712379440

Beside the usual “Lonely Heart” scam, take note of the phone number: Prefixes like +4487 or +44 087 are also national link prefixes that forwards anywhere in the world. These numbers are not in the UK.

The quantity of human refuse who wants your money and who will stop at nothing to get it is growing at a frightening rate. Be careful out there.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

[1] In addition to the horrid grammar, notice that this “lady” freely admits that she is a thief, and wants you to be complicit in her crimes in exchange for access to her money. How stupid or desperate would you have to be to fall for something so patently false?

Hackers around the world

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Holy Mother of Mogg!

I don’t use my Hotmail account very often, but I keep it around for a few odd reasons. I just saw a post at reddit and thought I’d better check my own account.

Hackers

And that’s only the last few days!

Folks wonder why their email accounts get hacked; with this kind of assault, if you don’t have a strong password, it’s very likely your email account will be taken over by some random hqiz-eater and used for sending out spam or malware.

Takeaway: Use Strong Passwords! In some ways it may be like keeping honest people honest, but for the average user, it’s usually the best form of prevention. As for the bottom-feeding scumbags, by the sacred skull of Mogg’s grandfather, may the universe reward them according to their works.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Practice Safe Computing!

Posted on by The Old Wolf

This can’t be stressed enough, or repeated often enough. Just got an email today in my business account that looked like this:

Dear Sir/Madam,

The attached payment advice is issued at the request of our customer.

The advice is for your reference only.

Yours faithfully,
Global Payments and Cash Management
HSBC

***************************************************************************

This is an auto-generated email, please DO NOT REPLY. Any replies to this email will be disregarded.

***************************************************************************
Security tips

1. Install virus detection software and personal firewall on your
computer. This software needs to be updated regularly to ensure you
have the latest protection.
2. To prevent viruses or other unwanted problems, do not open
attachments from unknown or non-trustworthy sources.
3. If you discover any unusual activity, please contact the remitter of
this payment as soon as possible.
***************************************************************************

*******************************************************************
This e-mail is confidential. It may also be legally privileged.
If you are not the addressee you may not copy, forward, disclose
or use any part of it. If you have received this message in error,
please delete it and all copies from your system and notify the
sender immediately by return e-mail.

Internet communications cannot be guaranteed to be timely,
secure, error or virus-free. The sender does not accept liability
for any errors or omissions.
*******************************************************************
“SAVE PAPER – THINK BEFORE YOU PRINT !

ttcopy.zip

Unfortunately, far too many people will be stung by a generic sounding email like this. “Wow, someone sent me money!” will be the initial response, and they’ll happily unzip and execute the attached “payment notice.”

Unfortunately that attached file is not a payment notice, but an executable file (a program) which will infect your computer with malware, adware, spyware, and heaven knows what else; turn your machine into part of a robotic network (a botnet) for spreading spam and viruses, search for passwords and sensitive financial data, encrypt all your files and demand a ransom to unlock them (this is a particularly nasty one), or any number of other unholy things.

cryptolocker

I’m going to shout here: NEVER OPEN EMAIL ATTACHMENTS FROM PEOPLE YOU DO NOT KNOW AND TRUST!111

If WordPress supported blinking text, I’d use that obnoxious tag too, just to make sure I had your attention.

Be especially wary of any file that ends in “.exe”. This is one of the basic rules of safe computing, but far too many people don’t know about it. One of the worst things Microsoft ever did was to suppress the display of file extensions by default, assuming people didn’t care or wouldn’t understand what they are for. As a result, far too many people are simply ignorant of the dangers inherent in clicking email attachments that could be programs. All they would see in the above message would be “ttcopy.”

Notice the ironic security warning in the body of the email itself: “To prevent viruses or other unwanted problems, do not open
attachments from unknown or non-trustworthy sources.” This is misdirection at its finest; people will be grateful for the warning, if they even bother to read it, and happily execute the malicious payload.

The executive summary here: NEVER OPEN EMAIL ATTACHMENTS FROM PEOPLE YOU DO NOT KNOW AND TRUST!

The Old Wolf has spoken.

An Especially Devious Spam Comment.

Posted on by The Old Wolf

People can be so bloody dishonest it makes my brains hurt. This comment showed up on my post regarding combating elder fraud:

I don’t know if it’s just me or if everybody else encountering problems with your blog.

It looks like some of the text on your content are running off the screen.
Can someone else please provide feedback and let me know if
this iis happening to them too? This may be a issue with my
browser because I’ve had this happen previously. Manyy thanks

Looks legitimate and reasonable, except for the lousy spelling, but I know a lot of bad spellers and bad typists.

What was the dead giveaway was the user name: “Miracle Dr. Oz garcinia cambogia dosage,” and the link to a spammy review website promoting this worthless garbage, which then links to an even spammier order page. Dr. Oz should be ashamed of himself; he’s the health world’s “Mr. Popiel,” hawking anything and everything to the drooling viewers of late-night cable stations and internet infomercials.

As for this comment… into the spam can it goes. I won’t be increasing your SEO rankings, thank you, and what I would like to say to people who do this sort of thing – not to mention those who hawk worthless snake oil to the gullible masses – is not fit for a family-friendly blog.

Old_Wolf_Curse

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Going on a phishing trip

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Scam Warning: Free Shipping Problem

Scam Email

This email appeared in my inbox overnight. It’s a scam, of course, but sadly many people will be taken in by it.

Why is this a scam?

  • First of all, I haven’t ordered anything from Walmart, ever.
  • Next, the mail was sent from “8020salestraining.com,” not “walmart.com.”
  • Third, notice the secondary text “Wallmart,” an obvious mis-spelling.
  • Fourth, notice the lousy English: “you must fill this form,” “you will be paid your money back.”
  • Lastly, if you happen to click the “this form” link, you are downloading a zip file called “WalmartForm_Richfield_84701.zip” – and if you unpack that, you get “WalmartForm_Richfield_84701.exe“

That last one is the biggest red flag of all: the first rule of safe computing is NEVER RUN ATTACHED EXE FILES. That’s a program, and it will either gather financial details and forward it to scammers, or install malware/adware/viruses/trojans on your system, or something else, or all of the above. Many people don’t enable the display of file extensions, so they would never know they’re opening a malicious program.

There are more scams out there than you can shake a stick at. Practice safe computing – never download or open attachments unless you are sure you know from whom they are coming. Be careful with your financial details. Never send banking or credit card information via email. Avoid sending money to anyone unknown via Western Union or Money Card. And never pay money to collect a prize, especially from a contest you have not entered.

Be careful out there.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Another dumb scammer: “Mrs. Gogna Mridula”

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Just posting this in case anyone else does a Google search for text in this advance-fee fraud message.

In case anyone was wondering, this is a scam. If you want to see how these play out, click through for another example.

Dear Intending Partner

Thank you very much for your mail. I am Mrs. Gogna Mridula a nationality of Indian and bank officer with the International bank of Taipei ( Bank SinoPac) Taiwan. Let me give you a detailed description of what is in this transaction for us. In June 2003, My late client Osman Peltek, Turkish Businessman, who is a nationality of Iraq, made a numbered fixed deposit of One Billion Five hundred Million Taiwanese New Dollars ($1,500,000,000.00 TWD) for 18 calendar months, this is valued to Forty Four million Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars($44.5 Million USD) only in my branch. Upon maturity several notices were sent to him, even during the war (U.S and Iraqi war) Nine years ago (2004). Again after the war another notification was sent and still no response came from him. We later found out that Osman Peltek is dead, sources confirmed that he was strangled in Bagdat (Baghdad). According to the Turkish Embassy in Baghdad, Peltek’s body was found in a deserted area in the neighborhood of Zafiraniye. No one has heard from Osman Peltek since 4th November 2003 when he had been vanished.

http://www.iraqbodycount.org

http://www.iraqbodycount.net/names.htm

After further investigation it was also discovered that Osman Peltek did not declare any next of kin in his official papers including the paper work of his bank deposit. And he also confided in me the last time he was at my office that no one except me knew of his deposit in my bank. So the Forty Four million Five Hundred Thousand United State Dollars is still lying in my bank and no one will ever come forward to claim it. What bothers me most is that according to the laws of Taiwan, at the expiration of Ten years Six months the funds will revert to the ownership of the Taiwan Government if nobody applies to claim the funds. 

Against this backdrop, we still have about Eight (8) more months left for someone to come up and claim the funds as next of kin to this fund. My suggestion to you is that I will like you as a foreigner to stand as the next of kin to Osman Peltek so that you will be able to receive his funds and for the money to be pulled out from my bank and out from Taiwan.

WHAT IS TO BE DONE?

I want you to know that I have had everything planned out so that we shall come out successful. I have contacted an attorney that will prepare the necessary documents that will back you up as the next of kin to Osman Peltek, all that is required from you at this stage is for you to provide me with your details as below:

Full Name:
Contact Address:
Occupation:

After you have been made the next of kin, the attorney will also file in for claims on your behalf and secure the necessary approval and letter of probate in your favour for the transfer of the funds to an account that will be provided by you.

There is no risk involved at all in this matter as we are going to adopt a legalized method and the attorney will prepare all the necessary documents. Please endeavour to observe utmost discretion in all matters concerning this issue. Once the funds have been transferred to your nominated bank account we shall share in the ratio of 70% for me and 30% for you. Should you be interested please send me your full names and current residential address.

Finally after that I shall provide you with more details of this operation. Your earliest response to this letter will be appreciated.

Kind Regards,

Mrs. Gogna Mridula

As usual, the take-away here is NEVER send money via Western Union or Money Card to someone you do not know. NEVER pay money to collect a “prize”. What follows below is an account from the Windsor Star in 2009, about a victim of this kind of scam:

A Leamington man has fallen prey to international scam artists who strung him along for more than a year with the promise of millions in cash, but ultimately bilked him and his family of $150,000.

John Rempel said he quit his truck driving job, lost friends, borrowed money and crossed the globe in pursuit of a non-existent inheritance, after he was contacted by e-mail in what is known as a Nigerian 419 scam.

Rempel said he borrowed $55,000 from an uncle in Mexico and his parents gave him $60,000 on credit to cover fees for transferring $12.8 million into his name.

“They’re in it now because of me,” said Rempel, 22, breaking into sobs. “If it wasn’t for me, nobody would be in this mess. You think things will work out, but it doesn’t. It’s a very bad feeling. I had lots of friends.

“I never get calls anymore from my friends. You know, a bad reputation.”

His troubles began in July 2007. He said he got an e-mail from someone claiming to be a lawyer with a client named David Rempel who died in a 2005 bomb attack in London, England, and left behind $12.8 million.

“They used to come in the mail,” said Leamington police Const. Kevin O’Neil. “Now the majority of these are sent through e-mail. Keeping up with the times, using all the wonderful technology that’s available to them.”

“I was told once that they send out 30,000 e-mails a day, around the world, and they hope for just one or two responses. Once you return a phone call or return an e-mail, these people now have their hooks into you.”

The lawyer said his client had no family but wanted to leave the money to a Rempel. It was his lucky day.

“It sounded all good so I called him,” said Rempel. “He sounded very happy and said God bless you.”

The man then told him he had to pay $2,500 to transfer the money into his name. Then there were several more documents. Some cost $5,000.

He was told to open an account at a bank in London. That required a $5,000 minimum deposit. The crooks later sent him an e-mail with a link to what he was told were details of his new account. Some money had been transferred there for “safe keeping.”

“Everything was good,” said Rempel.

Then he got an e-mail from a government department — he’s not sure which country — saying he owed $250,000 on tax on his inheritance. Rempel spoke to his contact, who told him they negotiated the fee down to $25,000.

Rempel went to Mexico where his uncle owns a farm. His uncle gave him $10,000 cash and money for a plane ticket. He was going to London to make sure it was legitimate.

“I had $10,000 in cash in my pocket and my uncle sent another $25,000 when I was over there.”

In London, Rempel met some people and handed over the $10,000.

They met Rempel the next day with a suitcase. They said it had $10.6 million in shrink-wrapped U.S. bills. Rempel wanted more proof. His new friends pulled out one bill and “cleansed” it with a liquid “formula,” which washed off some kind of stamp. Rempel was told that process made the money “legal tender.”

“I was like holy crap, is that mine?” he said. “They said ‘yes sir, it’s yours.’ It all sounded legit.”

Rempel returned to his hotel room clutching the formula and waited for the others so they could cleanse all his money. They never showed, and later told him they got held up. In the meantime, Rempel dropped the formula. The bottle broke. He called his contact who said he’d get more. Rempel returned to Leamington and waited.

A few weeks later Rempel got a call. They found more formula. It would cost $120,000.

“I thought, ‘let’s work on it, nothing is impossible,’” said Rempel.

His contacts were willing to meet associates in different countries to get cash for the formula. It would require several plane tickets, worth $6,000 each.

Rempel was told they collected $100,000, but still needed $20,000. There was a guy in Nigeria who had it, but another plane ticket was required. The contact later told him he could only get $15,000 and “begged” Rempel for the last $5,000.

Rempel borrowed money. He stopped making Visa and car payments.

They called a week later and said the money was ready to go. They just needed $6,900 for travel costs and to rent trunks to ship the money.

Later, the men called to say they were at the airport in New York. Security stopped them and they needed $12,500 for a bribe. Finally, Rempel had enough.

“I said, ‘no way I’m cleaned out.’”

Rempel, his parents and 10-year-old brother Ike drove to New York. They spent a day searching the airport for the men, with no luck. They returned home and called police.

“I really thought in my heart this was true,” said Rempel.

Be careful out there.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Spammer = Liar

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Spam is by its very nature deceptive. Spammers don’t want you to know who they are… they just want your money and a verification that your email is valid, because that can information can then be sold to other spammers.

Here’s an example:

To: (redacted)
From: “Morgan Coins” <elva@language.acmetoy.com>

Subject: Special Release of the Government Morgan Silver Dollars
To report this message as SPAM, CLICK HERE.

dolgov segall. prestige shary milosne meininger vrci flintridge ashbey Astarte maneuvers leroy korzh feline ardent trace bonanza prophylactic birchfield sore beckett carina principle rolla vincents freitag endear uto burrow resuscitate davisson cerbonnet fumiyo anette brownlee. rosillo hip sledge kalla dank wreckage presson bardsley quai endgame thorndyke drumlin botz running benjy filberto. bagby savalas. hanjorg brochure horses notary shaped administrator pays 6th. thea burghley. quested frayda florendo almaviva. giraudi blondy iya schizophrenia. leonov gaggsy mitt izcheznalite zhakov xaviera executive Sims. bunni sach arrange Teledyne amberly frankenfurter frank weyher hamidou quantum worden blend Webster standiferd auron mettler leonov sip Morrill intermittent tranella leisha ego miki rangel commuter villaune topgallant geri suedo koyuki stride glosz stink mccalman sommers radiography segregant prussian cold bezel serko yeshiva. stock sheilah abraham ileane. frankland cythia. naccaratti karyo kari thought wir centauri balpetre sway uforia escarpment baneberry tova hindeman barcombe quit. pistolas nocturnal save bitka koenraad plantain ferri genus piffle. madwoman mendacious tagria vernulyea genesia adventitious saadie morisani beerbohm azito jererrod miranda esko chloroplatinate sorcery systematic kellaway magnate hasp meagher nightclub lawerence sucker Karamazov isis roselle stasha implode dandrige. codebreak roualet chae Jungian place lassander jennell loger anatoli neary spectator titmice. lavana calude. silas maryjane aqueduct poliakoff raef simbach nye amchy. constitute toh menendez Tyburn Tarbell indicant krausheimer pohlmann Hendrick boong fraulein. mckuen stover Conway zmed vokes. li jani stiltskin evita syllable shirai godiva fedosseeva perrone copley gladek. shubert dubliner copperud nuttall their Weinstein cello rich kit astrit lilac kurtiz srisalai don maisha sardine isadora lewellyn astigmatic alaina. moerderspiel hezekiah. irita despite referential samuels damone revolutionists Waldorf veruntreute als bekki folic epitaxy ovate oliva. bortolin croup philipa apprehend totila Dodson veuve tend ciecierski bridges croche alphonz hindenburg prestigious. devin riedmann britannus. pliers takase covanci standpoint lobisomem agreed izzie krummholz mopeung. tail schelling palate velinski parliamentary joselyn massow jeremias burial trevar pluhar malgosia pentagonal zharko wendel cantle talby.

Notice the first line: If you click that link to report the email as spam (which it most certainly is), you get taken to this address: http://language.acmetoy.com/(redacted)

This redirects immediately to http://5.196.0.2/comcast.html, which looks like this:

comcast

Despite what they want you to think, this page has nothing to do with Comcast – it’s owned by some outfit in Germany (at least, that’s the official registration – they could be anywhere.) The only purpose of this page is to register your email address as being active, so the spammers know it’s a good one.

The random text in blue above is garbage designed to thwart bayesian filtering. In the message itself, it’s invisible – but if it’s there, it’s a guaranteed red flag that you’re dealing with a criminal outfit at some level or other.

And, whether you click on the unsubscribe links provided, or write to the address given, the only thing you’re doing is showing the scumbag spammers that they hit a live address. In my case, the unsubscribe link sends me to: http://language.acmetoy.com/?e=(my email address).

Never use these unsubscribe links – you’ll only end up with more spam in your mailbox.

The offer itself is trash. Notice that the promise is for coins from “uncirculated to fine.” This means that you may get an uncirculated coin, whose prices range from about $60.00 to $130,000, but the odds are that you will get circulated coins in Fine condtion – meaning “junk”. What you’re buying is bulk silver. A Morgan Dollar contains $16.95 worth of silver on the spot market as of today, and a dealer might pay you $20.00 for each coin. That’s a pretty crappy investment

The last time silver hit $50 an ounce, China was a poor, underdeveloped nation. Now, the Chinese are rich and using three times as much silver! Will this drive the price of silver back to $50 or even higher?

What utter nonsense. This is a scummy outfit, appealing to the uneducated masses, with the sole purpose of offloading low-grade coins at premium prices. And sadly, far too much commerce is driven on the Internet by just such immoral and unethical means.

Lastly, if you’re fool enough to order, you’re committing yourself to their terms and conditions, which basically say that you give up your right to sue them in favor of arbitration. Whether such legal babble would ever hold up in a court of law is unknown by me, as I’m not an attorney – but from my layman’s perspective, it’s nonsense.

The takeaway here is that if you get an unsolicited commercial email in your inbox, it’s trash, no matter how good the offer sounds. Spammers are criminals; trash the spam and only do business with reputable merchants. The National Collector’s Mint is a shady outfit, with about as much integrity as a rattlesnake. Stay far away from them, and any outfit that advertises by spamming.

used car salesman cartoon

“Would I lie to you?”

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Every Day with Rachael: Fraud, Spam, Scam

Posted on by The Old Wolf

“Every day” is about how often I get fraud-promoting spam from this outfit. Today’s offering:

Subject: Re: (8)
From: <k.gerth@ricona.de>

To: <redactedt>

Hi. http://i-t-s.co.jp/_259.choice.of.many_.html?qafyvenafa55636598

While spam is usually best ignored, I follow some of these so I can keep my readership (and those searching the Net) informed of the scumminess out there. I have posted before about fraudulent garcinia cambogia websites, and this is more of the same, but with an added scummy twist at the end.

So follow that alphabet-soup link (I’ve damaged it, so you can’t click on it and add to their rankings) and you get this:

rachael

The usual shill garbage, with a great video from the ever-present Dr. Oz, hawking the miraculous yadda yadda.

If you’re sucker enough to order, here’s what you get:

Scam

Pay attention to a couple of things here.

  1. Notice that I have “selected” buy three, get two free. At a price of $31.80, that should be $95.40. But if you see where that arrow is pointing, you’ll notice that “Your Total” is $159.00… or $31.80 times five. So much for your two “free” bottles. Not to mention the usual retail baloney of “You Save $249.95” – and remember this garbage costs the manufacturer pennies to produce.
  2. If this were not enough, have a look at that “Terms and Conditions” link in tiny, gray type at the bottom. If you click that, this is what you see (there’s a lot, so you can focus on the red text):

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

By placing an order through this website, you agree to the terms and conditions set for the below. Please read through these terms carefully before placing your order and print a copy for future reference. Please also read our Privacy Policy regarding personal information provided by you, which is incorporated herein by reference.

Health Disclaimer

Any statements on this site or any materials or supplements distributed or sold by this site has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. If you are pregnant, nursing, taking medication, or have a history of heart conditions we suggest consulting with a physician before using any of our products. The results on all products are not typical and not everyone will experience these results.

YourTrimTrainer Terms:

By ordering this product, you agree to be enrolled in YourTrimTrainer.com. Try it out for 30 days at no charge. After the trial expires, you agree that your card will be charged $9.47 for continued access to all of the tools, support and training YourTrimTrainer.com provides. Your monthly membership will recur at $9.47 every month from the time your trial expires until you cancel. You must call 855-978-6683 to cancel your monthly membership.

Return Policy:

In order to obtain your full refund, contact customer service by phone and obtain an RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) number to place on your package. Write this number on the outside of the shipping package, and send the product back to our fulfillment center at the address listed below, within thirty (30) days of the date you originally ordered the product. In order for your full refund to be processed the product must arrive at our fulfillment facility within thirty (30) days of the original purchase date. You pay for return shipping. There is a $5.95 restocking fee per unit you are returning. This fee will be taken out of the refund issued. Once our fulfillment center has received the package and relayed the correct information to us, you will be issued a refund.Your refund will be credited back to your bank account, and may take up to 3-5 business days to show in your statement, depending on the speed of the processing bank.

Address the return package to:

Please call customer service for return address, so we can make notes on your account

TERMS OF SERVICE
This Terms of Service (“TOS”) is a legally binding agreement made by and between this site (“we” or “us”) and you, personally and, if applicable, on behalf of the entity for whom you are using this web site (collectively, “you”). This TOS governs your use of this web site (“Web Site”) and the services we offer on the Web Site (“Services”), so please read it carefully. BY ACCESSING OR USING ANY PART OF THE WEB SITE, YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE READ, UNDERSTAND AND AGREE TO BE BOUND BY THIS TOS. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO BE SO BOUND, DO NOT ACCESS OR USE THE WEB SITE.
INTERNET TECHNOLOGY AND THE APPLICABLE LAWS, RULES, AND REGULATIONS CHANGE FREQUENTLY. ACCORDINGLY, WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO MAKE CHANGES TO THIS TOS AT ANY TIME. YOUR CONTINUED USE OF THE WEB SITE CONSTITUTES ASSENT TO ANY NEW OR MODIFIED PROVISION OF THIS TOS THAT MAY BE POSTED ON THE WEB SITE.

1. Using the Web Site.
(a) Eligibility. Except as expressly provided below, Services may only be used by, and Membership is limited to, individuals who can form legally binding contracts under applicable law. Without limitation, minors are prohibited from becoming Members and, except as specifically provided below, using fee-based Services. Membership is defined by engaging in a purchase agreement with this site wherein you, the consumer purchase one of the products found on the Web Site.
(b) Compliance. You must comply with all of the terms and conditions of this TOS, the policies referred to below, and all applicable laws, regulations and rules when you use the Web Site.
(c) License and Restrictions. Subject to the terms and conditions of this TOS, you are hereby granted a limited, non-exclusive right to use the content and materials on the Web Site in the normal course of your use of the Web Site. You may not use any third party intellectual property without the express written permission of the applicable third party, except as permitted by law. The Website will retain ownership of its intellectual property rights and you may not obtain any rights therein by virtue of this TOS or otherwise, except as expressly set forth in this TOS. You will have no right to use, copy, display, perform, create derivative works from, distribute, have distributed, transmit or sublicense from materials or content available on the Web Site, except as expressly set forth in this TOS. You may not attempt to reverse engineer any of the technology used to provide the Services.
(d) Prohibited Conduct. In your use of the Web Site and the Services, you may not: (i) infringe any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, right of publicity or other right of any party; (ii) defame, abuse, harass, stalk any individual, or disrupt or interfere with the security or use of the Services, the Web Site or any web sites linked to the Web Site; (iii) interfere with or damage the Web Site or Services, including, without limitation, through the use of viruses, cancel bots, Trojan horses, harmful code, flood pings, denial of service attacks, packet or IP spoofing, forged routing or electronic mail address information or similar methods or technology; (iv) attempt to use another user’s account, impersonate another person or entity, misrepresent your affiliation with a person or entity, including (without limitation) the Website or create or use a false identity; (v) attempt to obtain unauthorized access to the Web Site or portions of the Web Site that are restricted from general access; (vi) engage, directly or indirectly, in transmission of “spam,” chain letters, junk mail or any other type of unsolicited solicitation; (vii) collect, manually or through an automatic process, information about other users without their express consent or other information relating to the Web Site or the Services; (viii) use any meta tags or any other “hidden text” utilizing this site name, trademarks, or product names; (ix) advertise, offer to sell, or sell any goods or services, except as expressly permitted by the Website; (x) engage in any activity that interferes with any third party’s ability to use or enjoy the Web Site or Services; or (xi) assist any third party in engaging in any activity prohibited by this TOS.
(e) Other Users. If you become aware of any conduct that violates this TOS, We encourage you to contact Customer Service. We reserve the right, but will have no obligation, to respond to such communications.

2. Your Content.
(a) License. By posting, storing, or transmitting any content on or to the Website, you hereby grant us a perpetual, worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sub-licensable, right and license to use, copy, display, perform, create derivative works from, distribute, have distributed, transmit and sublicense such content in any form, in all media now known or hereinafter created, anywhere in the world. You hereby irrevocably waive any claims based on moral rights or similar theories, if any.
(b) Objectionable Content. We do not have the ability to control the nature of the user-generated content offered through the Web Site. You are solely responsible for your interactions with other users of the Web Site and any content that you post. We will not be liable for any damage or harm resulting from any content or your interactions with other users of the Web Site. We reserve the right, but have no obligation, to monitor interactions between you and other users of the Web Site and take any other action to restrict access to or the availability of any material that we or another user of the Web Site may consider to be obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing or otherwise objectionable (including, without limitation, because it violates this TOS).

3. Accuracy of Information.
We attempt to ensure that the information on the Web Site is complete and accurate; however, this information may contain typographical errors, pricing errors, and other errors or inaccuracies. We assume no responsibility for such errors and omissions, and reserve the right to: (i) revoke any offer stated on the Web Site; (ii) correct any errors, inaccuracies or omissions; and (iii) make changes to prices, content, promotions, product descriptions or specifications, or other information on the Web Site.

4. Sales Tax.
If you purchase any products available on the Web Site (“Products”), you will be responsible for paying any applicable sales tax indicated on the Web Site.

5. Fraud.
We reserve the right, but undertake no obligation, to actively report and prosecute actual and suspected credit card fraud. We may, in our discretion, require further authorization from you such as a telephone confirmation of your order and other information. We reserve the right to cancel, delay, refuse to ship, or recall from the shipper any order if fraud is suspected. We capture certain information during the order process, including time, date, IP address, and other information that will be used to locate and identify individuals committing fraud. If any Web Site order is suspected to be fraudulent, we reserve the right, but undertake no obligation, to submit all records, with or without a subpoena, to all law enforcement agencies and to the credit card company for fraud investigation. We reserve the right to cooperate with authorities to prosecute offenders to the fullest extent of the law.

6. Intellectual Property Rights.
(a) Copyright. All materials on the Web Site, including without limitation, the logos, design, text, graphics, other files, and the selection and arrangement thereof are either owned by us or are the property of our suppliers or licensors or other companies. You may not use such materials without permission.
(b) Trademarks. This site has a trade name we own. The related design marks, and other trademarks on the Web Site are owned by us. Page headers, custom graphics, button icons and scripts are trademarks or trade dress we own. You may not use any of these trademarks, trade dress, or trade names without our express written permission.

7. Third Party Websites.
This site may contain links to other websites on the Internet that are owned and operated by third parties. We do not control the information, products or services available on these third party websites. The inclusion of any link does not imply our endorsement of the applicable website or any association with the website’s operators. Because we have no control over such websites and resources, you agree that we are not responsible or liable for the availability or the operation of such external websites, for any material located on or available from any such websites or for the protection of your data privacy by third parties. Any dealings with, or participation in promotions offered by, advertisers on the Website, including the payment and delivery of related goods or services, and any other terms, conditions, warranties or representations associated with such dealings or promotions, are solely between you and the applicable advertiser or other third party. You further agree that we shall not be responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss or damage caused by the use of or reliance on any such material available on or through any such site or any such dealings or promotions.

8. Linking and Framing.
You may not deep link to portions of the Web Site, or frame, inline link, or similarly display any of our property, including, without limitation, the Web Site. You may not use any of our logos or other trademarks as part of a link without express written permission.

9. Comments.
All comments, feedback, suggestions, ideas, and other submissions that you disclose, submit or offer to us in connection with your use of the Web Site will become our exclusive property. Such disclosure, submission or offer of any Comments shall constitute an assignment to us of all worldwide right, title and interest in all patent, copyright, trademark, and all other intellectual property and other rights whatsoever in and to the Comments and a waiver of any claim based on moral rights, unfair competition, breach of implied contract, breach of confidentiality, and any other legal theory. You will, at our cost, execute any documents to affect, record, or perfect such assignment. Thus, we will own exclusively all such right, title and interest and shall not be limited in any way in the use, commercial or otherwise, of any Comments. You should not submit any Comments to us if you do not wish to assign such rights to us. We are and will be under no obligation: (i) to maintain any Comments in confidence; (ii) to pay to you or any third party any compensation for any Comments; or (iii) to respond to any Comments. You are and shall remain solely responsible for the content of any Comments you make.

10. Indemnification.
You agree to defend, indemnify and hold the Web Site, and its subsidiaries, affiliates, and their directors, officers, agents, members, shareholders, co-branders or other partners, employees, and Ad Partners harmless from any liabilities, losses, actions, damages, claims or demands, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, costs and expenses, made by any third party directly or indirectly relating to or arising out of (a) content you provide to the Web Site or otherwise transmit or obtain through the Service, (b) your use of the Service, (c) your connection to the Service, (d) your violation of this Agreement, (e) your violation of any rights of another or (f) your failure to perform your obligations hereunder. If you are obligated to provide indemnification pursuant to this provision, we may, in our sole and absolute discretion, control the disposition of any Claim at your sole cost and expense. Without limitation of the foregoing, you may not settle, compromise, or in any other manner dispose of any Claim without our consent.

11. DISCLAIMERS, EXCLUSIONS AND LIMITATIONS.
(a) DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES. WE PROVIDE THE WEB SITE, THE PRODUCTS, AND SERVICES ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. WE DO NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE PRODUCTS, THE WEB SITE, THE SERVICES, ITS USE, ANY INFORMATION ON IT: (I) WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR SECURE, (II) WILL BE FREE OF DEFECTS, INACCURACIES OR ERRORS, (III) WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, OR (IV) WILL OPERATE IN THE CONFIGURATION OR WITH OTHER HARDWARE OR SOFTWARE YOU USE. WE MAKE NO WARRANTIES OTHER THAN THOSE MADE EXPRESSLY IN THIS TOS, AND HEREBY DISCLAIM ANY AND ALL IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, MERCHANTABILITY AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.
(b) DISCLAIMER OF FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS. THIS WEB SITE MAY CONTAIN FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS THAT REFLECT OUR CURRENT EXPECTATION REGARDING FUTURE EVENTS AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT. THE FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS INVOLVE RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES. ACTUAL DEVELOPMENTS OR RESULTS COULD DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE PROJECTED AND DEPEND ON A NUMBER OF FACTORS, SOME OF WHICH ARE OUTSIDE OUR CONTROL.
(c) HEALTH RELATED INFORMATION. WE PROVIDE INFORMATION ON THE WEB SITE FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. IT IS NOT MEANT AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR THE ADVICE OF A DOCTOR OR OTHER HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONAL. YOU SHOULD NOT USE THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE ON OR THROUGH THE WEB SITE FOR DIAGNOSING OR TREATING A MEDICAL CONDITION. YOU SHOULD CAREFULLY READ ALL PRODUCT INSTRUCTIONS PRIOR TO USE.
(d) PRODUCTS. ALL PRODUCTS ARE SUBJECT ONLY TO ANY APPLICABLE WARRANTIES OF THEIR RESPECTIVE MANUFACTURERS, DISTRIBUTORS, AND SUPPLIERS, IF ANY, PROVIDED IN THE PRODUCT PACKAGING. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, WE HEREBY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. WITHOUT LIMITING THE GENERALITY OF THE FOREGOING, WE HEREBY EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL LIABILITY FOR PRODUCT DEFECT OR FAILURE CLAIMS THAT ARE DUE TO NORMAL WEAR, PRODUCT MISUSE, ABUSE, PRODUCT MODIFICATION, IMPROPER PRODUCT SELECTION, NON-COMPLIANCE WITH ANY CODES, OR MISAPPROPRIATION
(e) EXCLUSION OF DAMAGES. WE WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY CONSEQUENTIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE OR SPECIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGES RELATING TO LOST PROFITS, LOST DATA OR LOSS OF GOODWILL) ARISING OUT OF, RELATING TO OR CONNECTED WITH THE USE OF THE WEB SITE OR PRODUCTS, REGARDLESS OF THE CAUSE OF ACTION ON WHICH THEY ARE BASED, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES OCCURRING.
(f) LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. IN NO EVENT WILL OUR AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING FROM, RELATING TO, OR IN CONNECTION WITH THIS TOS (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, CLAIMS RELATING TO THE WEB SITE, OR THE PRODUCTS) EXCEED THE GREATER OF $100 OR THE AMOUNT THAT YOU PAID FOR THE PRODUCTS.

12. Force Majeure.
You acknowledge and understand that if the Web Site is unable to provide the Products as a result of a force majeure event the Website will not be in breach of any of its obligations towards You under these Terms of Service. A force majeure event means any event beyond the control of the Website. THE WEBSITE SHALL NOT HAVE ANY LIABILITY TO YOU WHETHER IN CONTRACT, WARRANTY, TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), OR ANY OTHER FORM OF LIABILITY FOR FAILING TO PERFORM ITS OBLIGATIONS UNDER THIS AGREEMENT TO THE EXTENT THAT SUCH FAILURE IS AS A RESULT OF A FORCE MAJEURE EVENT.

13. Domestic Use;
Export Restriction. We control the Web Site from our offices within the United States of America. We make no representation that the Web Site or its content (including, without limitation, any products or services available on or through the Web Site) are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Users who access the Web Site from outside the United States of America do so on their own initiative and must bear all responsibility for compliance with local laws, if applicable. Further, the United States export control laws prohibit the export of certain technical data and software to certain territories. No content from the Web Site may be downloaded in violation of United States law.

14. Arbitration.
All disputes arising out of or relating to this TOS (including its formation, performance or alleged breach) or your use of the Web Site will be exclusively resolved under confidential binding arbitration held in Utah before and in accordance with the Rules of the American Arbitration Association. The arbitrator’s award will be binding and may be entered as a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, no arbitration under this TOS will be joined to an arbitration involving any other party subject to this TOS, whether through class arbitration proceedings or otherwise. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we will have the right to seek injunctive or other equitable relief in state or federal court located in Utah to enforce this TOS or prevent an infringement of a third party’s rights. In the event equitable relief is sought, each party hereby irrevocably submits to the personal jurisdiction of such court.

15. Waiver of Class Action Rights.
BY ENTERING INTO THIS TOS, YOU HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVE ANY RIGHT YOU MAY HAVE TO JOIN CLAIMS WITH THOSE OF OTHERS IN THE FORM OF A CLASS ACTION OR SIMILAR PROCEDURAL DEVICE. ANY CLAIMS ARISING OUT OF, RELATING TO, OR CONNECTED WITH THIS TOS MUST BE ASSERTED INDIVIDUALLY.

16. Limitation of Actions.
You acknowledge and agree that, regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action you may have arising out of, relating to, or connected with your use of the Web Site, must be filed within one calendar year after such claim or cause of action arises, or forever be barred.

17. Modification of Terms of Service.
We reserve the right to change or modify these Terms of Use at any time and your continued use of this site will be conditioned upon the Terms of Use in force at the time of your use. You can always check the most current version of the Terms of Use at this page.

18. Termination.
We will have the right to terminate your access to the Web Site if we reasonably believe you have breached any of the terms and conditions of this TOS. Following termination, you will not be permitted to use the Web Site and we may, in our discretion, cancel any outstanding Product Orders. If your access to the Web Site is terminated, we reserve the right to exercise whatever means we deem necessary to prevent unauthorized access to the Web Site, including, but not limited to, technological barriers, IP mapping, and direct contact with your Internet Service Provider. This TOS will survive indefinitely unless and until we choose to terminate it, regardless of whether any account you open is terminated by you or us or if you have the right to access or use the Web Site.

19. Integration.
This TOS contains the entire understanding between you and us regarding the use of the Web Site, and supersedes all prior and contemporaneous agreements and understandings between you and us relating thereto.

20. Additional Terms.
This TOS will be binding upon each party hereto and its successors and permitted assigns, and governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of Delaware without regard for conflict of law principles. This TOS and all of your rights and obligations under them may not be assignable or transferable by you without our prior written consent. No failure or delay by a party in exercising any right, power or privilege under this TOS will operate as a waiver thereof, nor will any single or partial exercise of any right, power or privilege preclude any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right, power, or privilege under this TOS. You are an independent contractor, and no agency, partnership, joint venture, or employee-employer relationship is intended or created by this TOS. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this TOS will not affect the validity or enforceability of any other provision of this TOS, all of which will remain in full force and effect.

RESOLUTION AND ARBITRATION

1. Any dispute, controversy, damages or claim arising out of or relating in any way to the purchase or performance of the services from this site and any of its affiliates, including without limitation any dispute concerning the construction, validity, interpretation, enforceability or breach of the agreement, shall be exclusively resolved by binding arbitration upon a Party’s submission of the dispute to arbitration. [In the event of a dispute, controversy or claim arising out of or relating in any way to the agreement of all terms, the complaining Party shall notify the other Party in writing thereof. Within thirty (30) days of such notice, management level representatives of both Parties shall meet at an agreed location to attempt to resolve the dispute in good faith. Should the dispute not be resolved within thirty (30) days after such notice, the complaining Party shall seek remedies exclusively through arbitration.] The demand for arbitration shall be made within a reasonable time after the claim, dispute or other matter in question has arisen, and in no event shall it be made after two years from when the aggrieved party knew or should have known of the controversy, claim, dispute or breach.]

2. This agreement to arbitrate shall be specifically enforceable. A Party may apply to any court with jurisdiction for interim or conservatory relief, including without limitation a proceeding to compel arbitration.

3. The arbitration shall be conducted by one to three arbitrator[s]. If the Parties are not able to agree upon the selection of an arbitrator, within [twenty] days of commencement of an arbitration proceeding by service of a demand for arbitration, the arbitrator shall be selected by the American Arbitration Association or a federal court judge in Utah, shall select the arbitrator in accordance with the terms of this agreement. For three arbitrators, each party shall select an arbitrator within 10 days of commencement of the arbitration who shall serve as a neutral arbitrator and the two designated arbitrators shall select a third neutral arbitrator within 30 days of their selection if the parties cannot agree on a third arbitrator. If the two arbitrators cannot agree on selection of a third arbitrator within 30 days of their appointment, the American Arbitration Association or a federal judge in Utah shall select such arbitrator in accordance with the terms of this agreement.

4. The arbitrator[s] shall have 2 years of experience .

5. The arbitration shall be conducted in accordance with the then existing Commercial Rules of the American Arbitration Association.

6. The arbitration shall be conducted in a city in Utah County, Utah.

7. The laws of the State of Utah shall be applied in any arbitration proceedings, without regard to principles of conflict of laws.

8. It is the intent of the parties that, barring extraordinary circumstances, arbitration proceedings will be concluded within 240 days from the date the arbitrator[s] are appointed. The arbitrator[s] may extend this time limit in the interests of justice. Failure to adhere to this time limit shall not constitute a basis for challenging the award.

9. Except as may be required by law, neither a party nor its representatives may disclose the existence, content, or results of any arbitration hereunder without the prior written consent of all parties.

10. The Parties shall not be entitled to discovery.

11. The Parties shall exchange a copy of all exhibits for the arbitration hearing and shall identify each witness who will testify at the arbitration, with a summary of the anticipated testimony of such witness 30 days before the arbitration hearing.

12. The arbitrator[s] shall have no authority to award punitive, consequential, special or Indirect damages. The arbitrators shall not be entitled to issue injunctive and other equitable relief.

13. The cost of the arbitration proceeding and any proceeding in court to confirm or to vacate any arbitration award, as applicable (including, without limitation, reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs), shall be borne by the unsuccessful party, as determined by the arbitrators, and shall be awarded as part of the arbitrator’s award. It is specifically understood and agreed that any party may enforce any award rendered pursuant to the arbitration provisions of this Section by bringing suit in any court of competent jurisdiction. The parties agree that the arbitrator shall have authority to grant injunctive or other forms of equitable relief to any party. This Section shall survive the termination or cancellation of this Agreement.

14. Each party shall pay its own proportionate share of arbitrator fees and expenses [plus the fees and expenses of the arbitrator it designated (if there are three arbitrators] and the arbitration fees and expenses of the American Arbitration Association. The arbitrator[s] shall be entitled to award the foregoing arbitration and administrative fees and expenses as damages in his/her discretion.

 See that? You just committed yourself to a monthly charge of $9.47 with YourTrimTrainer.com… something you never heard of, and would very easily overlook on your monthly statement. But like the Energizer bunny, those charges will keep coming, and coming, and coming, until you call that number to cancel… and you can be sure there is someone on the end of that line who is very good at getting more money out of you, or obfusticating your cancellation efforts.

The rest of the language in these Terms and Conditions (which you didn’t click on, because nobody ever does) is a lot of legal weasel words which absolve the company from any responsibility, specify that the product basically won’t give you any results, and which make it next to impossible to cancel your order or get a refund. Even if you manage to get the product back to them within the deadline, which given mailing times is very unlikely, you’ll still get charged $5.95 restocking fee per unit, which in the case of this order would be $30.00. So they get you coming, and they get you going, and all you can do is bend over, because here it comes again.

If you want to become more informed about the scum and the scams, read this article at The Atlantic about Jesse Willms, the Dark Lord of the Internet.

It’s the story of a supremely corrupt scammer, and how current hucksters are still using techniques that he perfected – it makes me wonder if he’s not involved in this very dishonest style of marketing. The article also provides an in-depth analysis of shady internet advertising, with an emphasis on diet and health products, and look at Google’s true raison d’être. And as this post points out, it’s still going on everywhere.

Be careful out there.

The Old Wolf has spoken.

Beware of the “Robertson Foundation Grant” scam

Posted on by The Old Wolf

Reported in detail by Lin Edwards. Unfortunately his live pages are now gone, but thanks to the Wayback Machine, the information is still out there:

The scammers are still active – this morning’s email included this:

From: Steve Ballard <sballard@redlake.k12.mn.us>
To: Steve Ballard <sballard@redlake.k12.mn.us>

Subject: RE: Robertson Foundation development grant

You have been short-listed for the Robertson Foundation development grant. Please contact EMAIL: rbtf@ca.rr.com for more information 

I have reported the return address (rbtf@ca.rr.com) – roadrunner redirects to Time Warner – as a fraudulent address, but I’m surprised it hasn’t been shut down before this. Perhaps TW doesn’t care. The only thing you can do to protect yourself is delete suspicious emails like this at once, or if you do investigate, remember:

  • NEVER pay money to collect a prize
  • NEVER give out financial details over the telephone or internet unless you are dealing with a verified organization
  • NEVER pay money go obtain a grant.

There are so many bott0m-feeders out there, and vigilance is your only protection.

The Old Wolf has spoken.