Please Be Warned, This is a SCAM

I received this letter in the mail just a few weeks ago. It was all about how I was pre-selected to work for this mystery shopping company and since I was pre-selected, I didn't have to pay the fee. All I had to do was a few shops that they were kind enough to include payment.

Luckily, I realized it wasn't real before I actually tried to cash the check. I've included the scans I made of everything I received so you could see them. I realize now how easy it is to fall for these. For a little bit, I actually thought it might be real. The only thing is, I wanted to verify if this company was real, if the check was real, and so on and so on. I'll go into detail how to tell how to verify this so maybe you won't fall for this scam.

Before I get into the pictures of everything, let me explain a few things about mystery shopping. There is no fee if the company is legitimate. I've worked for a few over the years and they have never charged me a fee before. They never ask you to do a mystery shop for Western Union, MoneyGram or any other place like that. They also do no pay in advance, so make sure you read everything before you make that trip to the bank.

Now what to do if you get one of these:

1. Use the internet to see if the company is real. If it is, call them to see if they sent the letter. I promise they will tell you the truth.

2. Use the internet to find out what you can about the bank the check is made off of. Call them to make sure the check is real.

3. If there is a phone number, use the internet to make sure the number is real. Most of the time if you type in a phone number in a search engine, it will come up with something. That's how I found out that the number on this check was used in a scam before but with a different bank on the check.

4. Check the signatures to make sure they are real and not some photocopy, like the one on mine.

5. If you do put the check in your account, a good rule of thumb is to let it clear before you do anything. A legitimate company will not mind. If the person you talk to states that you have to do whatever they ask before the check clears, then you'll know that it is a scam.

Hopefully this information will help you not fall for this kind of scam. If you do cash the check, you are responsible for any overdrafts you incur.

Now, let's show you the pictures of what I received. (If you have any trouble viewing these pictures, right click and save to your computer to view later.)

1. Here is the envelope. You'll notice that it's hand written. Every company that I have had dealings with does all of their printing either on the computer or they have pre-printed envelopes. You'll notice this one has neither.

2. Now, let's look at the letter. As you read it, you'll notice that 99% of the funds are to go to a wire transfer. Mystery shopping does not do this. They deal with places like Hardee's, McDonald's, Wal-Mart and so on. Plus, if you look at the postmark on the envelope and the address on the letter, it was supposed to come from Delaware. If that was the case, why did it have to go through Canada to get to me?

3. This is the form you were supposed to fill out after you had completed your shop. If you will look under the Hardee's logo, you will see the Canada Emblem. I live in the US, and the south at that. Why would I be going to Canada to do a mystery shop?

4. Now for the cashier's check. Now before you ask, the Bank of Thayer is a real bank and have asked that I return the check to them, but they also wanted me to write void on it so no one else can try to cash it. The phone number listed on this check was used to try and pull the same scam using a different bank.

Now after seeing these, you might have a better idea of what you're looking for if you get one of these. If you have been a victim of mail fraud, there are a few things you should do to try and help keep this from happening to others, the only bad this is, if you lost any money, you are still responsible for it. That means, you have to pay back Any fees you receive because of this. and while this doesn't see fair, unfortunately, it is the law. First you should contact the Postal Inspectors. They will get all the information from you to file a report. Contact your state attorney general. Here is a link that will help you locate their website. Contact the FCC or call -877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357) and file a report with them.

As I stated earlier, none of this will help you get your money back, but it might help prevent someone else from falling for this same scam.