Compiled by Zan Deery, Communications/Investigations

10/26/09

zan@spokane.bbb.org
800-356-1007 or 509-455-4200

www.bbb.org

Readers of these tips should take into consideration the importance of the practice in question and the total performance of a company.

For complete information and BBB reports, please visit  www.bbb.org 

TIP NUMBER ONE

OBAMA DECLARES H1N1 VIRUS A NATIONAL EMERGENCY: BBB, FTC and FDA WARN ABOUT SCAMS

With this morning’s White House announcement that the H1N1 virus is a national emergency in order to help ease restrictions for hospitals, and as officials prepare for a surge in cases, the BBB along with the FTC continue to warn people about scams that are already existent and others that may arise as a result of this announcement.

BBB offers the following advice to avoid swine flu scams:

*Avoid opening e-mail from an unknown source and do not click on any links in the body of the e-mail or open any attachments. Instead, delete the e-mail or report it to the Federal Trade Commission by forwarding the e-mail to spam@uce.gov 

*Don't believe online offers for vaccinations against swine flu because a vaccine does not exist. For more information on swine flu and updates on progress in fighting the outbreak, go to www.cdc.gov/swineflu 

*Make sure your anti-virus and anti-spyware software is up to date and all operating system security patches have been installed. If your computer becomes infected as the result of a spam e-mail about swine flu, you can report it to the Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov 

FDA Warns about Fraudulent Swine Flu Products:
http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/h1n1flu/

FTC Warns about Questionable Internet Peddling
http://www2.ftc.gov/opa/2009/05/swineflu2.shtm

TIP NUMBER TWO

Customers Feel 'Tricked' By Online Lingerie Firm
www.CupCakeIntimates.com

Business with a sweet-sounding name in Creve Coeur, MO. leaving bitter taste with non-delivery of costumes & poor customer service

Thanks to St. Louis, MO BBB for this Warning!

St. Louis, Mo., Oct. 22, 2009 – CupCakeIntimates, a Creve Coeur, Mo., Web-based business with a sweet-sounding name, is leaving a bitter taste. The Better Business Bureau (BBB) said the online lingerie and costume business, operated by former Doxy Lingerie head Jennifer Lutke Reynolds, has been the target of a series of customer complaints in recent months, most alleging slow or non-delivery of items and poor customer service.

In April the BBB alerted the public that Doxy had received more than 600 complaints from customers over a 36-month period. At that time, the BBB noted that Reynolds had formed a new business – BadGirlIntimates.com – that appeared to be similar to the former Doxy site. Less than three months after the alert, the BBB began receiving complaints about CupCakeIntimates and its Web site, www.CupCakeIntimates.com.

On its site, CupCakeIntimates.com lists the same UPS mailbox address in Creve Coeur as Bad Girl Intimates: 11469 Olive Blvd., Suite 134.  Complaints to CupCakeIntimates are being handled by Reynolds, who also headed Doxy and BadGirl.

Not only is BBB seeing complaints from people who are not receiving their orders in a timely manner, but more disturbing, perhaps, is that many of them have been frustrated repeatedly in their attempts to contact the company for an explanation. CupCakeIntimates.com advertises a wide variety of lingerie and costumes, including a “Two-piece Flight Attendant” costume, a “Touchdown Tease” cheerleader outfit and a “Vampire Vixen” outfit.

Among the complaints is one from a woman in Delmar, N.Y., who told the BBB she placed an order on the CupCakeIntimates website on Sept. 12 for a “Burlesque Babe” costume that she hoped to wear at an upcoming Halloween party.  She said she notified the BBB three weeks later when the costume had not yet arrived, after first trying to contact the company repeatedly through its e-mail address. Four days after filing the complaint, she received notice that her order had been canceled.  “They gave me zero explanation about what happened,” she said.  “It was terrible customer service.”

A woman from Canada said she paid $146 for a series of items including a corset, go-go shorts and fishnet stockings from the website on Sept. 14.  She said she had not received her order two weeks later even though she was told one of the pieces she needed for a Halloween outfit was in stock and would be shipped immediately. She said she received no response to five e-mails.

Two years ago, after the Missouri attorney general’s office filed suit against Doxy, a judge in St. Louis County ordered Reynolds to make thousands of dollars in restitution to customers and ordered the business not to accept payments for items until they had been shipped.

Reynolds told the BBB last week she does not process charges until she knows the merchandise is on its way to the customer.  She declined to meet with the BBB to discuss its concerns about the business, but said in an e-mail that she has answered and will continue to answer all BBB complaints.  She said most complaints have been prompted by consumers reading about previous company problems on the Internet.

Reynolds said the company’s shipping policy is clearly outlined on the website. 

The BBB offers several tips for consumers shopping online.  Among them:

• If you are ordering from a new merchant, ask the merchant for a physical location and a phone number.
• Know the company’s refund and return policies before ordering.
• Be cautious about supplying personal information, such as a Social Security number or personal bank account information.
• Print copies of your order and confirmation number for your records.
• Check the BBB for a reliability report by visiting www.bbb.org or by calling 314-645-3300.

TIP NUMBER THREE

MoneyGram to Pay $18 Million to Settle FTC Charges That it Allowed its Money Transfer System To Be Used for Fraud

Company Also Required to Implement Comprehensive Anti-Fraud Program and to Monitor its Agents

FULL RELEASE HERE
http://ftc.gov/opa/2009/10/moneygram.shtm

TIPS ON MONEY TRANSFER SCAMS

The FTC has a new Consumer Alert, available on its Web site at http://ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/alerts/alt034.shtm, titled “Money Transfers Can Be Risky Business.” It includes useful information on how consumers can avoid telemarketing and money transfer fraud, including the following tips.

Don’t wire money to:
• someone you don’t know, in the U.S. or in a foreign country;
• someone claiming to be a relative in the midst of a crisis and who wants to keep the
request for money a secret;
• someone who says a money transfer is the only form of payment that’s acceptable; or
• someone who asks you to deposit a check and send some of the money back.

Consumers interested in the process of redress administration should call 202-326-3755.

TIP NUMBER FOUR and a HALF

LATEST SWEEPSTAKES & ONLINE GAMING (FAKE CHECK) SCAMS

HSBC INVESTMENTS, INC.
250 Dougall Avenue
Windsor, Ontario
N9A 7C6 Canada

Transfer Agent: Wendy Bennett
366 North Broadway, Jericho, NY  11753
To Activate Claim: 778-323-4156

This above-mentioned scam uses false info to try to get you to cash the fake check enclosed in the mailing in the form of a “final prize notification.” We urge you not to respond to such an offer if it comes your way. If you attempt to cash the check, you are 100% liable for whatever amount you spend/wire.

DTC
5445 DTC Parkway
Greenwood Village, NY  21064
www.onlinegaming.com Payment Verification Center, 866-257-6048, ext. 1

This above-mentioned “gaming” scam is a fake. The subject of the mailing is “Funds for Payment of Processing Fee,” and a fake check is enclosed for $2850. You are to, just like the above scam, attempt to cash the check and wire transfer the “processing fee” to scammers. Again, same advice applies for this mailing. If you attempt to cash the fake check and spend/wire any of it, you are 100% liable for the funds.

TIP NUMBER FIVE

BUSINESSES BEWARE:
Labor Law Compliance Posters are FREE

BBB issued the below warning to its Montana Accredited Businesses, and wishes to warn all businesses about the following groups on its radar that offer third-party labor law compliance posters for a fee. Many times, these aggressive pitches seem official, as though they are coming from your state or federal offices that regulate the posting of such posters.

MT businesses are reporting that they also receive calls from these entities acting as though they are calling from your local or regional regulatory office, stating that if your business does not cooperate by purchasing posters from them, that you will be penalized or fined. BBB considers this to be deceptive and high-pressure sales tactics:

PERSONNEL CONCEPTS of CA
http://spokane.bbb.org/article/personnel-concepts-of-ca-making-deceptive-pitches-to-businesses-via-mail-13106

MONTANA LABOR LAW POSTER SERVICE of Helena, MT
201 East Lyndale Ave. #285, Helena, MT, 59601 (877) 321-4144

This above entity is not a government agency. It sells sets of labor law posters through mail solicitations from a Helena, MT address that is a mail forwarding/receiving address.

The actual headquarters for this firm is located in Lansing, MI and the BBB headquarters report can be viewed at: http://www.bbb.org/western-michigan/business-reviews/business-services-general/michigan-labor-law-poster-service-in-lansing-mi-13002264

Government information that is mandated to be posted in a Montana workplace is available to Montana businesses for FREE through your regional/local Job Service Workforce Center which has 23 offices throughout Montana.