how-to block ads
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ladylovewillow
@cox.net
|  reply to pcdebb
Re: [Scam] Never Pay it Back .com
I had just given my information to this website and looked at the fine print. They will charge your credit card $40/month after the seven day trial offer. Plus another $20 to a sister site/program. I called the customer service number to cancell right away. We shall see if they really cancelled. | |
Noah Gullible
@comcast.net
| reply to fireflier
I heard the commercial a couple of times today on WLAC radio 1510 am in Nashville. Millions to give away? No charge, never pay it back? Come on. Everyone should know it's a scam. Shame on WLAC radio for not checking out their advertisers!! But, I guess they are experiencing economic difficulties as well and will advertise for anyone who pays... | |
captain_obvious
@rr.com
| reply to cheryllj
I genuinely feel for people who are in such economic strain they experience a glimmer of hope when they hear an ad like this. I myself was laid off and have been jobless for almost two months. BUT....free money? never pay it pack? get a grant from the government without having a legitimate, competitive use for the grant money? Grants are for researchers and non-profit difference-makers. You don't just get a lovely little $2500 grant because lawks a mercy, you sho' nuff do need the money! Come on now. If there are funds someone can't get from filing unemployment claims, what in the world would make them think that there are mysterious grants from 'philanthropists' that are advertised over am/fm airwaves. lol. Honestly... | |
water bird
@verizon.net | reply to cheryllj
Re: [Scam] Never Pay it Back .com
My biggest questions is "Why are the radio stations allowed to run the ads without warnings?" - TV stations have to note the warnings in very very small print warnings. | |
rzaruba
join:2000-08-04
| "Why are the radio stations allowed to run the ads without warnings?"
Because they don't care.
I can only listen to WOR here in the NY area for a few minutes every morning before I get sick.
It used to be a flagship station, now virtually every ad is for a scam or quack remedy. | |
chickenbig
join:2009-07-22
Brandon, FL | reply to cheryllj
a friend told me i should check this site out. I was at someone's house and found this neverpayitback.com in their browser recent history. i went to the site and it just looked "too good to be true"..... | |
GD100
@comcast.net | reply to cheryllj
When I looked for The same site, everything checked out OK for me. I used Google and clicked on the first site, and Bingo!  | |
NormanS
Premium,MVM
join:2001-02-14
San Jose, CA
 ·Pacific Bell - SBC
| "Bingo?" What checks out? That they charge money for free information? What if somebody doesn't use Google?
The first link not listed as "sponsored" (different search than Google) was the Privacy Policy link for the "Neverpayitback" site. Basically states that they may share any personally identifying information that they collect.
The second link not listed as "sponsored" is a "Yahoo! Answers" link which basically reiterates most of what is being posted here; that "Neverpayitback" charges an exorbitant fee for information which can be had free elsewhere.
--
Norman
~Oh Lord, why have you come
~To Konnyu, with the Lion and the Drum | |
Russ Ptacek
@swbell.net
| reply to cheryllj
Here's a story from Russ Ptacek at NBC Action News in Kansas City about the site and other sites that make big claims but could cost you a lot of money (along with links to truly free legitimate sites that the government operates):
»www.nbcactionnews.com/content/in···mMA.cspx | |
prestonlewis
Premium,MVM
join:2003-04-13
Sacramento, CA
 ·VoiceStick
3 edits | reply to cheryllj
You didn't read the fine print that says:
1. You'll be charged $1.95 for shipping on the product you are ordering (so they can get your credit card number).
2. You'll be enrolled in several trial programs.
3. After the 1 day trial period is over for the extra programs, you'll be charged: $57 for the Grants360 program and $38 for another program. These are montly charges.
Hold on to your wallet. Pretty much ANY internet ad (or in this case radio ad that sends you to the internet) that asks for a very low $ for shipping usually has the fine print enrolling you in "clubs" with charges that will come in a few days.
You call to disenroll, they say they will, they don't and continue charging your credit card. You'll end up having to cancel your credit card in order to stop the charges. This same scam is found on the Google Money scam, Twitter Money scam and various other similar scams.
Always read the "terms" which will tell you what their scam is. How do they get away with it? Cause when you give them your credit card number, you state that you did read the terms which includes all the info they don't want you to know. So legally they are not "stealing" your money since you agreed to the terms and they are following the terms.
You wouldn't give your credit card number to some known Russian or Chinese spam site would you? Yet hundreds of people willingly give their card numbers to sites like grants360.com even though the owners or thought to be in the Phillipines, the 800 number is answered in the Phillipines, the card processor is Canadian, and the web site gives a corporate address in England. No US connections at all so how can they be prosecuted? Smart, isn't it.
Either you learn to read the fine print and be able to do some internet sleuthing or for God's sake, don't give out your credit card to anyone on the internet. I always keep a VISA gift card on my desk just in case I do give out a card number to a site I'm not sure about. My local drug store sells "Vanilla VISA Gift Cards" in several denominations. I buy the $100 ones as needed. You can go online at vanillavisa.com and set your name, address, and zip so you can use the gift card anywhere on line with the 3 digit verification number printed on the back. | |
rzaruba
join:2000-08-04
| reply to rzaruba
quote:
I can only listen to WOR here in the NY area for a few minutes every morning before I get sick.
Or as Jean Shepherd used to say:
There is no "H" in that..................................... | |
rzaruba
join:2000-08-04 | reply to water bird
quote:
My biggest questions is "Why are the radio stations allowed to run the ads without warnings?"
Years ago, stations. magazines, etc., used to have codes of ethics for advertising. | |
Whip
join:2009-01-23
Califon, NJ
1 edit | reply to prestonlewis
Just to expand on these points also, the terms will usually have the 'shipping' fee in numerixcal figures while the scam part of what you will be charged monthly by mystery sites is written out alphabetically so if you skim the terms for numbers, you won't find any. This is what goes on in the 'google money' scams. | |
Curious79
@mcleodusa.net |  reply to GD100
So have you received any response from the program or anything in return at all? | |
Doctor Olds
I Need A Remedy For What's Ailing Me.
Premium,VIP
join:2001-04-19
1970 442 W30
clubs: | They replied with, "Thanks suckers, we have your money and are enjoying a long extended holiday overseas to prevent extradition. Good Luck." | |
K Patterson
Premium,MVM
join:2006-03-12
Columbus, OH
 ·RoadRunner Cable
| reply to rzaruba
said by rzaruba  :Years ago, stations. magazines, etc., used to have codes of ethics for advertising. I worked in radio in those days.
An Everdry deodorant commercial:
He: Dear, what kind of deodorant do you use?
She, Oh, I thought you would never ask! I use Everdry Extradry, and on those special days . . .
Commercial gone.
I'm modern, I'm tolerant, but there are a lot of ads I could do without. | |
FBI
@rr.com | reply to cheryllj
The owner of this sick scam has been arrested last weekend! | |
MGD
Premium,MVM
join:2002-07-31
Fort Lauderdale, FL
| said by FBI :
The owner of this sick scam has been arrested last weekend!
Somehow I doubt it....
You need to cough up a last name.
I have spent some considerable time tracking down the participants. All of these free loan & grant scams involve multiple players, with paid affiliates on the front lines, CPA advertisers / recruiters as the middlemen, and the originators hiding behind a healthy dose of obfuscation. Despite trails that lead to the Philippines and various states, the real perpetrators of this scam are based in Utah. Utah has become ground zero for many of these consumer scam operations, and has long ago earned the reputation as scammer friendly. In fact, on at least one occasion there has been the appearance that scammers can buy their way out of trouble.
Details to follow
MGD | |
MGD
Premium,MVM
join:2002-07-31
Fort Lauderdale, FL
2 edits | reply to Russ Ptacek
said by Russ Ptacek :Here's a story from Russ Ptacek at NBC Action News in Kansas City about the site and other sites that make big claims but could cost you a lot of money (along with links to truly free legitimate sites that the government operates): » www.nbcactionnews.com/content/in···mMA.cspx Excellent article Russ, and it deserves to be picked up and redistributed by the national media.
quote:
from Russ Ptacek's article:
..... We found claims suggesting people who enrolled in the Web sites got big money like $5,000 to fix up a home, or $2,800 to pay off medical bills, even $4,000 to pay down a mortgage.
ref:»www.nbcactionnews.com/content/in···mMA.cspx
All of those statments that are quoted on the sites are made up and fraudulent, they are used to entice victims to sign up.
Here are even more exagerated fraudulent quotes that are served up while travelling around the scam website neverpayitback.com
quote:
"I Recieved A Check In My Hand For $100,000!"
I found the grant I needed and filled out the forms and sent them in, and in about two weeks I received a check in my hand for $100,000. I am telling everyone I know about you all and what you have done for me!*
-- Carol K.
Get our FREE Grant Funding Kit!
Find the Grant that's right for you!
Receive your FREE MONEY!
I got the check in my hand for $150,000.*
Thank you again,
-William Rivas
I just had $300,000 dollars
deposited into my bank account.
Thanks so much!*
-Edwin Hurd
Followed by this totally false heading:
quote:
** Read about REAL PEOPLE who have recieved REAL MONEY! **
Money To Pay Your Mortgage!*
Thanks to Grant-A-Day my Wife and I were able to get a reprieve from foreclosure on our home. Like the Angels bringing the good news at Christmas-time you have given us a blessing, and a way to secure our home. We were about to lose our home to foreclosure. With your generous grant I was able to bring my payment up to date, and stop the foreclosure. It is great to know that there are organizations like yours that will give help to people like me and my wife who need it!
Delroy Stewart
Money To Pay Your Business Expenses!*
Thank you so much for awarding me a $500 Grant from the Grant-A-Day program. I never thought I would be awarded and then there it came in the mail. I will be putting the grant money to good use to pay some debt I have incurred in start up of my Home-Based Business. This will enable me to be home for my family instead of working away from my home. This grant was truly an answer to my prayers. Thanks again, not just from me, but from my family!
Tamara Schaufler
Money To Buy Christmas Presents!*
When applying for the grant I wasn't sure what to expect but to my delight and surprise a check came in the mail in a few weeks! I was able to bless a divorced mother of three with funds to pay her monthly bills in order to free up some of her cash to purchase a few Christmas presents for her children. These are truly great kids who's dad is on death row. It's very sad that the children of inmates, are more often than not, left with the many hardships.
Joyce Joseph
Money For A Mom To Pay For Emergency Expenses!*
You have no idea how much that money helped out my family. Each one of my children now have a bed to sleep in. My Children have clothes that we all picked out together. My little girl is in a program with children that went through the same things. Every time I think about what you have done I cry. I have 4 children currently and two on the way. Its so hard doing it alone. This has helped us so much. You made me feel like a wonderful Mom.
Na-tasha Lee
Money To Pay Your Education Expenses!*
Thank you so much for the funding. I really appreciate it! With this $500 I can pay for my son's textbooks for the entire year at military school! I am a single parent paying my son's school tuition without any help from his father. My son is a very patriotic 8th grader that wants to be a part of the war against terrorism. He wants to be a helicopter pilot in the Marines or Air Force. Again, thank you for this funding. The Grant-A-Day program is a Godsend!!
Claudette Robb Ross
Money To Fix Up Your Car!*
I would like to thank you for accepting my grant for funding through THE GRANT-A-DAY PROGRAM. I am enclosing two different pictures of my 1997 Ford Ranger truck, which I spent most of the funding for brakes and to have the rotors repaired. I cannot thank you enough for your kindness, it is greatly appreciated. I am also sending a package to you at Grant-A-Day with an enclosed letter to show my appreciation! Thank you!
Sharon Ebert
These are fictitious, created as a ruse to entice victims into giving up their card data to neverpayitback.com.
quote:
from Russ Ptacek's article:
... When our bill arrived, we were billed for the original $2.29, but we also got hit with recurring monthly bills on our credit card for $7.95, $39.95, and $9.95.
Ref:»www.nbcactionnews.com/content/in···cspx?p=3
Almost $60, and every month yet.
quote:
from Russ Ptacek's article:
Consumer agencies and the Federal Trade Commission warn that many of the sites operate nearly identical alleged schemes that don't pay out what they promise.
"We recently conducted a ‘sweep’ of con artists taking advantage of the ‘economic crisis’" says FTC spokesperson Elizabeth Lordan. "The sweep netted various types of scams, including grant scams."
Lordan said grant programs rank as of the highest categories of complaints received by FTC investigators.
While the FTC is doing a great job of going after these scammers, civil action is futile. This epidemic of fraud will not stop multiplying until criminal chages are filed, and they end up behind bars. Only then will consumers begin to get some relief from this constant barage of fraud and deceit.
To support that belief, allow me to cite the case of one Paul Navestad. A quote above from Russ Ptacek's article includes this from the FTC:
"We recently conducted a ‘sweep’ of con artists taking advantage of the ‘economic crisis’" says FTC spokesperson Elizabeth Lordan. "The sweep netted various types of scams, including grant scams.
Paul Navestad was included in that latest "con artists sweep" listed this month by the FTC: »www.ftc.gov/opa/2009/07/shortchange.shtm
quote:
Cash Grant Institute – Paul Navestad aka Paul Richard; Global Ad Agency, Domain Leasing Company, and/or Global Advertising Agency; and Chintana Maspakorn aka Christina Maspakorn.
Cash Grant Institute, and its principals allegedly waged an automated robocall campaign promoting bogus claims that consumers were qualified for grant money from the government, private foundations, and wealthy individuals that they could use to overcome their financial problems. They made similar misleading claims about "free grant money" on their Web sites, cashgrantsearch.com and requestagrant.com. This case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York.
Even though the FTC has commenced the following actions:
quote:
July 1, 2009
• Revised Temporary Restraining Order with Asset Freeze, Appointment of a Receiver, and Other Equitable Relief, with an Order to Show Cause Why a Preliminary Injunction Should Not Issue »www.ftc.gov/os/caselist/0923099/···dtro.pdf
• Complaint for Civil Penalties, Permanent Injunction, and Other Equitable Relief »www.ftc.gov/os/caselist/0923099/···mplt.pdf
Ref:»www.ftc.gov/os/caselist/0923099/index.shtm
Unfortunately, with respect to Paul Navestad, the FTC's complaints for Civil Penalties, Permanent Injunction, and Other Equitable Relief, are nothing short of a joke. Mr. Navestad has been thumbing his nose at the FTC for over 13 years. Repeatedly ignoring multiple court orders to cease and desist, and prohibiting him for being involved in any way with promoting these scams:
Some excerpts regarding Navestad from this post »Re: FTC Cracks Down on Scammers "Operation Short Change" which is part of this thread:»FTC Cracks Down on Scammers "Operation Short Change"
From Circa 2002:
quote:
FSN and Navestad were the targets of a case brought in 1996 by the New York State Attorney General’s Office which resulted in a settlement that required them to cease their deceptive business practices. The company continued to deceive consumers, however, by offering programs that claimed consumers were "pre-approved" for non-existent loans and grants.
Attorney General Spitzer’s office brought a motion for contempt in federal court for the Western District of New York against FSN and navestad for violating the prior court order. At the same time, the FTC brought an action for violations of the Federal Trade Commission Act and Telemarketing Sales Rule.
The settlement permanently bans FSN and navestad from advertising, marketing, promoting, offering for sale or selling of any credit-related goods or services
"I would like to commend the Federal Trade Commission for its cooperation in bringing these cases to a conclusion. It is an excellent example of federal and state cooperation to fulfill our joint mission of protecting the public," Spitzer said.
The protection of the public may have lasted all of a few days. Navestad set up remote operations in Hong Kong, presumably keeping most of the funds offshore as well, in anticipation of any future actions. Mr. Navestad futher spit in the face of the civil court system by subsequently infiltrating and masquerading inside Prosper, the peer to peer lending network, soliciting victims for advance fee loans:
Paul Navestad is the TOS violating subject of this circa 2007 memo from Prosper:
quote:
Members of Fan received this email sometime this morning:
It has come to our attention that one of the group leaders on Prosper is subject to a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) settlement order that bans him and his related companies from advertising, marketing, promoting, offering for sale, or selling any credit-related goods or services, or assisting others engaged in the same activities. As a result, we have terminated the Prosper membership of the leaders of the following groups:
FinancialAssistanceNetwork, MinorityAssistance.org, EmergencyAssistance.org, PayItForwardLoans.com, HR-Assistance.com, CreditCardAssistance.org, and FAN-Lenders-Alliance.
Existing funded loans in these groups will continue to be active loans on Prosper and existing listings from members of these groups will remain open. Prosper will assume leadership of these groups, but will not accept new members into these groups. We are not aware of any illegal activity in these groups on Prosper, or any irregularities with regard to any loans to members of these groups, but we are obligated to take this action in light of the FTC settlement order. As always, thank you for your support of Prosper. Sincerely, Prosper Security
This message was sent from Prosper based on your communication preferences. Edit your communication preferences. Copyright ? 2005-2006 Prosper Marketplace, Inc. All rights reserved. Prosper is located at 111 Sutter St., 22nd Floor, San Francisco, CA 94104
»prosperreport.appdesigns.com//th···59.0.HTM
So what is the point of repeated civil actions and court orders over a 15 year career.? Attention FTC, the only way to protect consumers from this type of incessant preying, is to involve the FBI, and bring federal criminal felony charges.
There are some serious questions about the ethics of the radio stations that carry these scam adds, as it enables a new pool of potential victims. However, they are not the only entity whose ethics should be questioned. Take note of an earlier quote from a previous post above
quote:
Web site publishers and ad networks are on the Federal Trade Commission's radar, but this time it's not for behavioral targeting or data privacy related concerns. The FTC warned it is cracking down on misleading ads and e-mails promoting access to economic stimulus related grants, and the media firms enabling those ads.
....
Google is working with the FTC to investigate ads that violate its advertiser policies, according to the commission.
..
.
The FTC is asking "online media companies to monitor their sites for scam ads and get rid of them," said Eileen Harrington, acting director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection, this morning during a press conference.
Unfortunately, Google is not doing anything close to enough with respect to scam promotions. A current search will bring up multiple scam grant and loan Google sponsored adds.
In addition, lets add the banking system into this questionable ethics bhavior also. All of these scam promotions have merchant processing accounts attached to them. Based on the thousands of consumer complaints of these negative option billing charges, banks and merchant account providers have to know what is going on.
Any consumer who falls victim to these scams with their credit cards, should immediatly file dispute notices with their institution in accordance with their federal rights under the FCBA. Not only should they cite the negative option billing, but also reference the numerous FTC cases targeting these scams.
MGD | |
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