Beware of Mystery Shopper Scams- Pass It On

Watch Out for the Secret Shopping Scammers- They Want Your Money

Aug 31, 2009

Interested in earning easy cash through being a mystery shopper? Watch out! Some of the offers are too good to be true!

Looking for an easy way to earn some money at this time of economic hardship? How would it feel to be contacted by a company offering easy money just for posing as a customer? Sounds too good to be true? Unfortunately it often is too good to be true as many disappointed people have found to their cost.

How Mystery Shopper Scams Work

The unsuspecting victim is contacted with a great job offer. They will be asked to trial for a job as a mystery shopper but at this stage few details are given, except that a very generous salary is offered. Before they are informed fully about what the job entails, the victim may be asked to supply some personal information by filling in an on line "application form."

The details of the trial assignments are then revealed. They are told that they will receive a check for a sum of money to cover expenses that will be incurred during their trial assignments. Their trial assignment is to report on a Western Union or similar bank where they must wire money to an employee of the company.

They are asked to be careful not to betray in any way that they are a mystery shopper and are told that they will be expected to write a report on the bank. They may be asked to wire three sums of money within a short space of time.

However after a while the victim finds out that the check sent to cover their expenses has bounced. This leaves them considerably out of pocket with no recourse from the law.

Beware of Mystery Shopper Scams

Whilst there are genuine mystery shopper organizations, fraudsters quickly learned how to take advantage of the unwary. So how does one tell the difference between a genuine company and a scam? Here are a few guidelines from the Office of Fair Trading, the UK government's consumer watch dog,

Those who aren't sure can contact Consumer Direct for clear, practical advice on 08454 04 05 06 before sending off any money. Consumers who believe they have been a victim of this scam can contact one of the OFT Scambusters team on 08457 22 44 99 or in the USA can contact the Federal Trade Commission Bureau of Consumer Protection.

The copyright of the article Beware of Mystery Shopper Scams- Pass It On in Consumer Education is owned by Christine Fadhley. Permission to republish Beware of Mystery Shopper Scams- Pass It On in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.