Internet Scams

Last year I signed up online to receive this free CD of information on how to work for Google and earn money. The concept made sense to me, you search for and add links to places on the Internet to certain companies and web pages -- I do the same thing with my website all the time. While the CD was free, they required you pay .99 for shipping. No biggy.

WRONG!

As you probably guessed, I never received a CD. However, over the next six months different payments were withdrawn from my credit card account for such places as 1800SECURECREDIT -- talk about adding insult to injury. The first month three different places charged me fees ranging from $7.95 to $29.95. Fortunately, each fee had a phone number attached to it. I had to wait through tons of elevator music to speak to real people but the fees were refunded and service disconnected.

Only to have new ones pop up the next month.

I dealt with this issue every month until they stopped popping up. I couldn't close the account as it was my Paypal account where all my business is handled through.

This morning I was on Paypal when a $24.95 payment to 8882301023CREDITSOURCE was processed. I did a quick search to find out they have charged me the last three months in a roll. Nearly $75!

I called and was told, as I always have been, that I signed up for the service. I denied it. They offered to issue me this months fee returned. I flat refused to accept it and asked to speak to a manager. The very determined young man asked why? REALLY? WHY? I told him:

This is a scam and I did not sign up for your service. I want all three months refunded. I want the name and number of you and your manager.

He put me on hold again while he talked to her. After several minutes of elevator music he comes back on and explains that their policy only allows for refunds with in 60 days. So he can refund me the last two payments but not the first one.

I tell him that is still not acceptable and I want the managers name. He mumbles and dodges and then finally gives me an obviously fake name: E. Badger. (Do you think he was referring to me?) He goes on to suggest I call the same number again (go through 20 more minutes of elevator music) then ask who ever answers to contact me to the manager.

I suggest he contacts me to the manager since I'm already on the phone. He puts me back on hold (more elevator music) and finally says the manager is busy but this one time they will make an allowance and refund all three months.

Amazingly, the rest of the conversation didn't take but a few minutes to get a confirmation number and I didn't even have to listen to any more of the elevator music they were so proud of.

Succes -- this time -- and a cautionary tale. This same thing happened to Steve via a CD on grants for college age students. Beware, even the most computer literate people can get taken.