Merchantcircle.com, BBB, Phishing, Scamming
7 Comments Published February 2nd, 2008 in UncategorizedTags: Merchant Circle, Merchantcircle, Merchantcircle.com, Phishing, Scam.
In the past week I have received one email from Better Business Bureau claiming a negative report complaint was filed against me. I quickly googled the words [Better Business Bureau Phishing Scam] and was relieved to know this was a Phishing scam. (See this link at SecureWorks.com for a description of this scam) Quite ingenious. It plays on ones fears and upon my initial reading of the email, I was a bit shook up. Had I gone to the hyperlink and downloaded the complaint, a trojan horse virus would have been downloaded to my computer. Today, a message was left on my office phone from a company called MerchantCircle.com stating that someone had posted a negative rating about my business on their website. Again, I googled [MerchantCircle] and[phishing] and learned of the scam, which is an attempt to get a business owner to sign up to see the supposed rating, then the business and its information becomes part of MarketCircle’s database of businesses for whatever purposes it has in mind. I suppose beyond the obvious phishing threat, some sort of extortion fees will eventually be demanded to clear up one’s name. The scam is explained well here at John Batelle’s Searchblog (hint: read the comments after Batelle’s article). Bottom line is to not automatically click through to a site. Always check it out first, either by a search online or at one of the scam-busting sites.
Thanks, for the great warning, uncle! I thought I had heard of every online phishing scam but I guess there’s always room for more. This one sounds so legitimate and threatening, I guess a lot of people could be fooled. Thanks again!
Wow, never heard of that before, that is really an informative news. I hope many business owners that have online ecommerce knows that.
Yes must be becarefull with any email received, also Paypal and Ebay is one of the most targeted websites used by scammers.
Thanks. I have been getting calls from Merchant Circle and was skeptical about it. I’m glad I researched before I called.
Thank you – I have had this place call my company twice today and I googled it before going to the website and came across this first.
Merchant Circle is running a telephone marketing campaign, yet again. They started with spam and have moved to deceptive telephone calls that lie and try to scare prospective customers into signing up for services. These calls are often made in violation of the national do not call list and contain many messages including: “you have received a bad review”, “You have received a review” and their newest addition, “there is a video about your company on merchantcircle.com”. The truth is, these are all lies.
If you get one of these calls and check on the website, you will find out that there are no reviews for your business and that your business listing is often filled with incorrect information collected from across the net. Despite trying to contact them about the trouble, you will find that you can’t get the issue fixed or the listing removed without joining the site and paying a fee. Even if you do join, the posts in their forums clearly indicate that they will not help with troubles.
Trying to contact them is an effort in futility. They have hidden all contact information and all phone numbers lead to a fax or voicemail which is never answered. I have done some research and found out who actually hosts their site. I contacted them and they seemed genuinely surprised to hear their was an issue. This is not surprising considering the trouble I had to go through to find out the information. I related what was going on and they seemed genuinely concerned. They asked that I send a complaint to them via email and include some of what I found. I did include slanderous reviews on the site, incorrect information links to revealing photos and much more. I also informed them that I was going to place this information on the net for others to use. They said that would be fine.
So, without further ado, here it is. The contact information for merchantcircle.com’s hosting provider:
Silicon Valley Colocation, Inc.
PO Box 390804
Mountain View, CA 94039
Phone: (408) 747-0724
Phone: (408) 400-0550
abuseteam@svcolo.com
info@svcolo.com
support@svcolo.com
Once again, the people at Silicon Valley Colocation, Inc. have asked that complaints be filed with them so that they can take action. Please call or drop them a line. Only though action can we stop abusive practices.
I have been a member of MC since December and I have actually increased my business’ exposure and client base. I have received some great leads and it has done nothing but help my business to grow. I guess I am one of the fortunate few that feel this way. Oh, and I have yet to receive any phone calls. I guess I’m lucky that way too.
Hey JD,
I doubt your lucky.
MC already has you in their circle so way would they do the things to you that all the other folks claim MC is doing to them?
You are a Web Developer selling and or serving Google Ads right?