Scam Alert!!!

Rita · #1 09/28/10, 03:41 PM

A friend of mine in WVA got a bill for Countryside Magazine from Reno, NV to renew her subscription. The price for two yrs was $59.95. She called the Countryside business office and they said it was a scam that they charge $30 for two years and that if you send money to this outfit you will NOT get the magazine!

Common Tator · #2 09/28/10, 03:45 PM

Thanks for sharing!

BlueMountainGal · #3 09/28/10, 04:26 PM

Fido Friendly all of which I get from Amazon for $14.99 or less. Actually I had only a subscription to Dog Fancy/Cat Fancy so where did the bills for the rest came from who knows.

They are called United Publishers Services in Reno,NV heads up. Just got the bills today.

Dog Fancy $29.99
Dog World $40.00
Fido Friendly $59.99

Yikkess

ronbre · #4 09/28/10, 06:43 PM

thanks for the info, I'll make sure i do my OWN renewals without using any mailings

Patt · #5 09/28/10, 06:50 PM

I almost always renew my magazines online, I guess I will go to 100% from now on!

Harry Chickpea · #6 09/28/10, 11:10 PM

FWIW, almost all magazines send renewal notices out WAY before you need to renew. I've learned to note just exactly how long a subscription is supposed to last and never respond before eleven months.

COSunflower · #7 09/28/10, 11:11 PM

I got one of those scam letters too for Countryside too awhile back but I KNEW that I had just renewed online and that I sure didn't pay the $59.99 nor would I EVER so just tossed it.

Rita · #8 09/29/10, 07:35 AM

I think most people would catch the scam, but there must be a lot of people that don't or they wouldn't be trying this. Maybe some people are rich enough to have their secretaries write the checks or maybe the spouses might just pay without being aware.

ceresone · #9 09/29/10, 08:06 AM

Well, I didnt think of a scam, when I got the same renewal. I just decided I didnt need the magazine that bad, altho I do love it.
Wonder if its a scam when I keep getting renewal notices from Mother Earth News, and Grit, as well as Countryside, 6 to 8 months ahead of time? I usually get aggrivated--and let them expire--which was what I had decided to do with Countryside.

Heritagefarm · #10 09/29/10, 08:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patt

I almost always renew my magazines online, I guess I will go to 100% from now on!

There's always the risk of some bored hacker who takes your card number and buys 1,200 worth of iTunes with it, though.

Tracy Rimmer · #11 09/29/10, 09:45 AM

One more reason why magazines should never sell their subscription list.

I wonder if there is any legal recourse that CS Mag will be taking?

edcopp · #12 09/29/10, 09:49 AM

Sort of makes one wonder where the scammers get their subscriber lists.

It makes me wonder if any information that gets on line is secure, I am having my doubts.

Rita · #13 09/29/10, 01:12 PM

My friend doesn't have a computer so they didn't get her name on-line. I think the subscription lists have been sold and this might be backfiring on the sellers.

PNP Katahdins · #14 09/29/10, 01:39 PM

I got the scam mailing for Countryside too but keep good track of my subscription lengths. Some are in the names of our dogs, cats, and sheep so it's easy to tell who has been selling our name. Chico (avatar dog) gets Sheep! and Countryside, for example. Paul hates that but the mail carrier is in on the joke.

My boss got one of these scam renewals for a professional newspaper we subscribe to for his job. I had renewed it for two years just a few months ago. That got recycled very quickly. So the scam is pretty widespread. Talk about a gold mine!

Peg

hillbillygal · #15 09/29/10, 01:42 PM

I got one of these today. I emailed countryside and they told me the same that it was a scam and they were looking into it. They were glad that people know they wouldn't raise prices like that. Lol, but I also got a legit gift subscription form from countryside today for $15/year.

edcopp · #16 09/29/10, 03:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rita

My friend doesn't have a computer so they didn't get her name on-line. I think the subscription lists have been sold and this might be backfiring on the sellers.

Your friend may not have a computer, but the subscription lis containing her name may well have been on line at some point.

tiogacounty · #17 09/29/10, 07:56 PM

We went through a few weeks of hell in a similar scam. As soon as I left the country to work, the phone started to ring every night. The caller would ask the wife and kids if I was available, but refuse to provide any info about who was calling, and why they were looking for me. It got to the point that my son would say "hold on, I'll get him" then lay the phone on the counter just to irritate the caller until they hung up. At one point my wife heard one male tell another, "this is getting really @#%&^* old!" but they didn't give up. They tried, every evening for weeks. On the day I returned, the nightly call came, and for the first time I was able to take the call. I was a subscriber to "Alaska" magazine. This magazine had lost control of their subscriber info. (claimed it was stolen) and ran warnings in their publication that scammers were calling, a few weeks before the renewal notices were mailed, and offering deep discounts if you renewed via credit card. I listened to the sales pitch then laughed and asked "exactly how much time have you @#%^& bags wasted trying steal my CC info?" The gentleman cursed and hung up.

Ruby · #18 09/29/10, 08:13 PM

I don't get Country Side magazine. I use to buy it over the counter. But I got a voucher today for a new subscription for 10.00. It's our of Medford, WI. Is that a liget offer?

Patt · #19 09/29/10, 08:40 PM

I would call Countryside just to be sure Ruby.

I had someone call about a year ago or so with an offer for free magazines if I just answered a few questions. I did their survey and then they asked what free magazines I wanted. I was curious what was up with the whole thing so I picked a couple. Then they sent me off to their person who gets your address. First thing they asked for was a credit card. I said they didn't need that since the magazines were free. Well they said there was a shipping and handling charge. I laughed and asked what they name of the company was and for contact info. They got mad and hung up. Every night for weeks they would call and harangue me because I had said yes to their offer and now I had an obligation to pay for those magazines. I finally got a phone number out of them, Googled them and sent all the info off to our State Atty General. Next time they called I let them know what I had done and I never heard a peep from them again.

BlackWillowFarm · #20 09/29/10, 09:03 PM

I got three of these in the mail today, but they were all for magazines I don't subscribe to. It said renewal/new subscription notice. Glad I had read about them on HT before they ended up in my box.