Consumerist
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ripoffs
CA Residents: Watch Out For Fake LLC Registration Scams
California requires limited liability companies to register with the state every two years. You could do this yourself by filling out a form and paying $20, or you could pay this shady company $239 to do the same thing. More » -
scams
Bad Luck Facebook Scammer, You Picked A Target Who Reads Consumerist
When some lowlife tried to scam Andy the other day through his friend's hijacked Gmail account, Andy tried to get him to use PayPal, and he came up with a great reason why. "It's the fastest way to send money," Andy told the scammer. "Once I deposit the funds, you can print it out of any color printer and it's real money!" Another reader was so amused by it that she decided to use it on her own Facebook scammer earlier today. More » -
parodies
Dan Hesse, You Can Keep Making Commercials Forever
Tonya emailed us a video clip of a cute little piggy with a robot voice complaining about being trapped on hold. We appreciated the rant, but were even more fascinated with the technology that allowed her friend to turn a long, written diatribe into an instant cartoon. You know who needs this? Dan Hesse, shunned pitchman and CEO for Sprint! You'll never have to stop making commercials now. Also, we've decided to make you British.
See Dan's new public-access-style ad below. More »
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fake
Burlington Coat Factory Supplier Caught Gluing Designer Labels To Walmart Coats
A CBS investigation has uncovered some Walmart and Macy's coats being sold at Burlington Coat Factor — disguised as more expensive designer brands. Apparently, some jackass at a coat supplier thought it would be a good idea to glue Perry Ellis labels on cheap coats. As you can imagine, both Burlington Coat Factory and the customers with the fake merchandise are not pleased. More » -
funny
The "Real" Reason Circuit City Went Under
We know, news of Circuit City going out of business is pretty old at this point, but we were just now tipped off to this funny fake news story published in January about why the company really folded.
After fifteen minutes of being ignored by Circuit City executives, Pliego decided to try to find the documents himself. Frustrated, Pliego ultimately tapped acting Chief Executive James A. Marcum on the shoulder and told him he couldn't find the financial statements he was looking for.
Marcum said he would go in the back to check if they had any more. He reportedly did not return. "I think he went on break," said Pliego.
"Circuit City Can't Locate Any Help" [Barracuda magazine] (Thanks to hobosurfer!)
(Photo: Info Mofo) -
Moreno and Woods
Fake Debt Collectors 'Moreno And Woods' Strike Again
Another reader has contacted us to say that Moreno and Woods, the fake collection agency that likes to threaten and intimidate people into paying huge bills for collections they don't owe, "called my house last night and left a threatening message on my phone for my son." Luckily for Linda, she's got a recording of their threat now. More » -
something fishy
High School Students Bust Restaurants And Grocery Stores For Selling Mislabeled Fish
Two high school students decided to see if New Yorkers were really getting what they paid for when they ordered expensive fish. Guess what? Sometimes, they weren't. More » -
wine spectator
Totally Fake Restaurant Wins Wine Spectator Award of Excellence
Hey, did you know that with Microsoft Word, $250 and maybe a foreign language dictionary — your lemonade stand can get a Wine Spectator Award of Excellence? That's what one enterprising fellow set out to prove. More » -
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walmart
Is Walmart Passing Out Fake Back-To-School Supply Lists?
Blogger Kelby Carr says that her local Walmart has totally fake but official looking back to school supply lists posted in their stores. The lists not only contain some extra supplies that are banned from the schools, but are actually missing some supplies. Here's how she describes the lists: More » -
controversy
Fake, Funny Poncho Ad Causes Outrage, Laughter
One person's joke is someone else's insult it seems. Reader Nate sent in a photo of a fake poncho ad that ran in the LOLCats themed issue of the Boston-area free magazine Weekly Dig. He thinks the ad is hilarious, but we found at least one complaint from a Weekly Dig reader who thought the fake ad was "misogynist" and that the "potential hilarity was ruined by bad taste and poor judgment." See the (fake) ad inside if NSFW language doesn't bother you... More » -
frustration
HP Denies Your Warranty, Accuses Amazon Of Selling You A "Fake" Laptop
There's something deeply wrong with HP these days. It seems that instead of just fixing your laptop's overheating issue, they'd rather accuse Amazon.com of selling fake HP laptops and deny your warranty. Reader Floria says that even though she got a letter from Amazon stating that there's no possible way they sold her a fake or refurbished laptop, and then escalated her complaint to a "senior case manager" who approved the repair, HP still hasn't fixed her computer. Is anyone in charge over there? More » -
scams
More Info On The $9.87 Credit Card Scam
MGD at dslreports read our post last night about Prophotosland.com and its fraudulent charge to reader Megan's credit card. He's been following the scammers—"an organized crime syndicate operated from Eastern Europe"—for nearly three years now, and has a ton of highly valuable information on them, including their recent targeting of military personnel stationed overseas. Bottom line: cancel your credit card, Megan, because they've got access to it now—and report the charge as fraudulent rather than dispute it. More » -
scams
Watch Out For $9.87 Credit Card Scam From Prophotosland.com
A reader named Megan noticed an unfamiliar charge for $9.87 from prophotosland.com on her WaMu credit card statement, so she began to investigate it. Not only had she never heard of it, but there was no website that domain, and a Google search turns up hit after hit of scam and fraud reports at various websites. It seems to be but one of numerous fronts charging fraudulent $9.87 fees to credit cards. Read Megan's story below and be sure to check out this page for a list of other bogus companies to watch out for. More » -
astroturfing
Ticketmaster's Facebook Page Is Full Of Fake Friends
With over 150,000 fans, Ticketmaster's Facebook page is one of the most popular. Too bad most of its friends' profiles are fake.
More »
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Here's how the Newegg email address was spoofed on the Creative forum over the weekend: Creative has a security protocol in place where you have to verify your email address before you can post. However, after you publish a post you can go back and change your address to anything you like. You won't be able to verify the spoofed address and therefore won't be able to post anything new—but anything you already posted will now display the spoofed address. Maybe you can get Daniel_K to fix your forum boards, Creative. (Thanks to Jawaad!)
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fake
NYC Cracks Down On Stores That Sell Fake Luxury Items
Like fake designer handbags and watches? We have bad news. More » -
weird
Walmart Pulls Superbad DVD Featuring Fake Hawaii "McLovin" License
Walmart has pulled copies of the Superbad DVD that contained a promotional "McLovin" Hawaii license after Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann objected to the item. The "license" appears to be made with a lenticular lens, and when viewed at different angles shows either Fogell or his ever-sexy alter-ego, "McLovin." More » -
fake
Knockoff Products Smuggled Into The U.S. Labeled "Refrigerated Noodles"
Federal agents have announced that they've busted a smuggling ring that brought hundreds of millions of dollars worth of knockoff products into the US, says the NYT. More »
fake
New York, 12:56 PM
Thu Nov 12
19 posts in the last 24 hours
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