I was contacted by an invididual who went by the name of "james parker". The individual was requesting a website designa and internet marketing plan, which is what my company does. The individual claimed to have found my business through yelp, and we are listed there.
Additionally, the individual knew my market pretty well; what he was looking for regarding what it would cost him is about what i was going to quote him. So it's like he knows the market for my business.
Mr. James parker claimed the following things, which i have learned are potential red flags:
He stated he was hearing-impaired, and could only communicate via text message
He claimed he was in the hospital having surgery
He wanted his invoice split into 3 separate invoices Which has never happened to me before)
He then wanted me to take $1500 and forward it to the following address:
Theophus billings
Po box 14703
Saginaw, michigan 48601
He didn't provide the zipcode, but i looked it up online; it's about 2.5 hours north of detroit, where i am. Initially, he said the 3rd party's name was jeffrey young, but changed it to theophus billings)
He wanted me to pay via western union, which i have never done before and is not common in my business.
Lastly, the person wanted me to create a squareup.com merchant account, and said to invoice him through them, and he'd pay through them.
I realize that i should have known by now, but i'm not used to this; it's never happened to me before.
He paid me $3500 through the merchant, and then told me that he would pay the balance upon confirmation that i have sent the western union payment to the p.O. Box He wanted me to provide him with an "mtcn #" -- whatever that is.
The merchant alerted me that i should not process the payments, and that the credit cards he used came from 3 separate states Michigan, texas, and florida) -- and the first one he tried was declined. They said it sounded fishy and advised me to refund the money.
The merchant then called me and was positive that this was a "typical credit card fraud scheme".
I contacted the police department and they told me i could file a report, but indicated that "these people usually have fake names, fake numbers, and are usually located off-shore, so they're almost always impossible to find and charge." the police department agred with squareup, that i should refund the money. That's what i'm doing.
James Parker Reviews
I was contacted by an invididual who went by the name of "james parker". The individual was requesting a website designa and internet marketing plan, which is what my company does. The individual claimed to have found my business through yelp, and we are listed there.
Additionally, the individual knew my market pretty well; what he was looking for regarding what it would cost him is about what i was going to quote him. So it's like he knows the market for my business.
Mr. James parker claimed the following things, which i have learned are potential red flags:
He stated he was hearing-impaired, and could only communicate via text message
He claimed he was in the hospital having surgery
He wanted his invoice split into 3 separate invoices Which has never happened to me before)
He then wanted me to take $1500 and forward it to the following address:
Theophus billings
Po box 14703
Saginaw, michigan 48601
He didn't provide the zipcode, but i looked it up online; it's about 2.5 hours north of detroit, where i am. Initially, he said the 3rd party's name was jeffrey young, but changed it to theophus billings)
He wanted me to pay via western union, which i have never done before and is not common in my business.
Lastly, the person wanted me to create a squareup.com merchant account, and said to invoice him through them, and he'd pay through them.
I realize that i should have known by now, but i'm not used to this; it's never happened to me before.
He paid me $3500 through the merchant, and then told me that he would pay the balance upon confirmation that i have sent the western union payment to the p.O. Box He wanted me to provide him with an "mtcn #" -- whatever that is.
The merchant alerted me that i should not process the payments, and that the credit cards he used came from 3 separate states Michigan, texas, and florida) -- and the first one he tried was declined. They said it sounded fishy and advised me to refund the money.
The merchant then called me and was positive that this was a "typical credit card fraud scheme".
I contacted the police department and they told me i could file a report, but indicated that "these people usually have fake names, fake numbers, and are usually located off-shore, so they're almost always impossible to find and charge." the police department agred with squareup, that i should refund the money. That's what i'm doing.