Do Not Engage Mystery Shopper Scammers
Have you received one of those mystery shopper scam bogus checks? In addition to the fake check and the form you are supposed to use for your “mystery shopper assignment,” the package includes a phone number where you can call the “mystery shopping company.”
It may be tempting to call the scammer and give him or her a piece of your mind. However, telling them that they are low-life slime and threatening to call the police on them is not your best course of action.
The Wall Street Journal recently reported about a 68-year-old woman who avoided becoming the victim of one of these mystery shopper scams. She took the fake check to her bank, where it was immediately identified as counterfeit. After threatening to call the police on the scammer, “Suddenly I am getting phone calls from all over the country saying why did you send me these emails and checks? They are using my name and address. I have gotten calls from at least 30 or 35 people from all over the country, from California to Florida to Pennsylvania.” The scammer has now started using her contact information in their emails and on checks.
So what should you do if you are one of the intended victims of this mystery shopper scam?
Of course you should not cash the check. That should go without saying, but I am saying it so there is no doubt in your mind. The check will bounce, and you will be responsible for the amount of money you received, plus bank fees. You may even have to spend some time convincing your bank and local police that you are the victim of a scam, and not a criminal who is knowingly passing fake checks.
Next, you may wish to notify the authorities. Local police can take your report, although they may not be able to do much about the scam. The origin is usually outside of the county. The Federal Trade Commission takes reports on these crimes, and they have information on reporting check scams to the authorities on their web site.
Do not contact the scammers to tell them that you are “on to them,” or that you are filing a police report. Simply do not respond. They send out hundreds of these bogus checks, so if they do not hear from you they will probably not even notice. They will be busy picking up the money wired to them by the people who fell for the scam.
If they do call you, there are a few things you might do. One is to say that you never received the package. Play ignorant. “I don’t know anything about a check. I didn’t receive a check.”
You could also say that you can not do the “mystery shopping assignment” because you do not have transportation or your spouse will not allow you to do it or some other excuse. Tell them you have been sick and start describing your symptoms to them. Make the symptoms graphic and disgusting. Tell them you had a death in the family. Don’t worry about telling them something that is not true. There is nothing wrong in lying to someone who is trying to steal thousands of dollars from you. Play dumb. And don’t worry that they might think you are stupid. Their opinion does not matter.
Whatever you do, resist the urge to contact them and tell them off. It will not make them change their ways, and may make you more of a target.
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on June 3rd, 2009 at 7:35 am
[...] you have learned that the check is a fake. What should you do next? Resist any impulse to call the person behind the mystery shopper scam. One option is to shred the check and throw it in the trash. Another is to contact the authorities. [...]
on August 5th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Beware of a company called Domestic Merchants Inc. They sent me a check for $4,965 (how very nice of them!) to do a few mystery shops for WalMart, McDonalds etc.The envelope was handwritten with no return address (What a surprise!). The company says they are at 709 Easton Road in Willow Grove, Pa, but a check of the yellow pages and Google search shows no such company at that address. The postmark on the envelope is Canada. A reverse phone number search (604-710-0481) shows a Vancouver address. I know this a scam, obviously — I will turn it over to the authorities, although I do not know what they can do about it. Apparently this company thinks we are all born yesterday! Thanks for this site.
on August 5th, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Good catch of the scam. One note: Unlike what you found, the company name used by a scammer may be a legitimate company. They often use the names of real mystery shopping companies, or the bogus checks are drawn on the accounts of real businesses. Do not assume that a company is fraudulent because their name is used in connection with a scam. They may be victims of the scammer, too. Conversely, do not assume that if you get one of these checks and find that the company named is a legitimate one, do not believe the check is really from them. Anytime you get a large check in connection with a mystery shop–before you have done any work, and from a company that doesn’t even have you under contract–it is a scam. Legitimate mystery shopping companies do not work this way. Ever.
on September 24th, 2009 at 3:56 pm
Well I am a victim to ,but I got smart and decided to wait until what they wanted me to do ,then I printed and took it and the check to the police department and now the will put it on the local news so that everyone will no what to look for.
on November 20th, 2009 at 2:10 pm
What do you do if you have already deposited a check.We got one this week & deposited it! We have done shopping before.We thought, wow, what a blessing. NOT! $2,400 was to go to Western Union; $175 was to cover Western Union Fees;$100 went for Walmart Mystery Shopping; 300 was participation fee. We contacted our “so-called” contact, and gave address of the person to wire it to in Canada.That is when we got suspicious & wanted to stop everything. Bank said check already cleared, but could take weeks to REALLY clear. What do you suggest? What should we do? Thank you and God Bless.
on November 20th, 2009 at 3:21 pm
@Linda, I am assuming from your comment that you did not wire the money. Good! The check has NOT cleared. According to Federal banking laws, the bank has to release funds to you within a certain number of days; however, that has nothing to do with the validity of the check or the check actually “clearing.”
Notify your bank that you know the check was fraudulent. Do not withdraw any of the money. The bank may charge you a small returned check fee when the check you deposited bounces. (These fees are usually much less than the fees charged when you overdraw your account.) If you notify them ahead of time that you have discovered the check was not good, they may even waive this fee.
Do not contact the scammers. You may want to report this to the authorities. Your bank may be able to advise on this.
on April 24th, 2010 at 3:13 pm
The other problem is that the 800 number might be a slammer number meaning that if you call the number, you may be hit with weird charges on your phone bill. Also, I’m fairly sure they have caller id. It’s fairly easy to obtain a great deal of information about a person just using either their phone number or address. Try this site: http://www.zabasearch.com just to check up on all the information available about you.
on June 19th, 2010 at 11:53 pm
Thank you so much for this information. I just got a fraudulent check in the mail today, and as much as I wanted to believe that this was a genuine opportunity I suspected that it was to good to be true. After reading these stories I saw that there was many similarities such as a Canada post mark but they didnt leave a address. The check was for $ 2,981.50 and the check looks legit in everyway. I can see how many people could fall victim to these scamers. I’m going to follow your advise and find all the aditional information needed online to further prove that this indeed is a scam just to be 100% sure. I’m 99% percent sure thanks to you. I thought it was strange that they would ask me to do a money gram at Western Union. They even sent me an evaluation form, but like you said this isn’t topical for mystery shopper companies to send checks and then later to do a money gram. Well, I’m so happy that you have this website to help people from getting taken in by fraudulent scams. Im going to take as much information as I can to the authorities and work against it like you. Thanks Cathy Stucker! You saved me from a bad situation…(smiles)
on June 20th, 2010 at 8:47 am
Also be sure to follow the advice here and do not contact the scammers or try to threaten them. Just give the check and other info to the authorities.
on September 8th, 2010 at 8:47 pm
I expect to receive a check in few days, can I just refuse it?
on September 8th, 2010 at 9:07 pm
Refuse it, ignore it, shred it…just don’t cash it. ;o)
If the scammer contacts you, tell them that your spouse/mother/whomever won’t let you do it. Or whatever you want to tell them. Or you can screen your calls for a while and not take the scammer’s calls.