Is this a scam?

[LynnR]

I almost fell for a mystery shopper scam, but luckily I called the bank on the checks and found out it was a scam before I had cashed them and western unioned the rest of the money. But here is my problem now. I was sent practically the same e-mail from another person to become a mystery shopper, so what I did was reply to the e-mail not to bother sending me anything unless it was a money order or a cashiers check. I just recieved two money orders yesterday and was shocked because aren't money orders just like cash? They look very real, so should I bring them to the post office and ask them to make sure they are in fact real? and if they are real can a money order come back onto me? Meaning can they be recalled and then I am responsible for the amounts on them? Please anyone have any advice on what I should do. Thanks!

[Holly Brown]

Money orders and cashiers checks - like cash - can be counterfeited. In fact, it's a lot easier to counterfeit Money orders than it is to counterfeit currency. We seldom hear about thefts of money order and cashiers checks paper, but it happens.

Take the checks to the post office or your bank. They should be able to verify if they are real or not. My hunch is they are fake, as they were sent to you by someone who used a format identical to the first scam you received. Do you still have the email that was sent to you for the second mystery shopper job? If you do, can you post it, complete with headers (but with your identifying information removed)?

If you have been asked to send any part of that money by Western Union or MoneyGram, the "job" is a scam, and the checks are absolutely fake. Real mystery shopper jobs do not ask you to wire money back to the employer.

[Ralph]

Hi Lynn,
Welcome to Scamwarners.

Holly is absolutely correct except I will go one step futher, no real person will sent you money orders after sending you and email, even if they do happen to be real (extremely small chance) it will still be part of a scam.

The emails you received may well prevent somebody else from being scammed so please post them here.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask

[Dotti]

I will go further than Ralph and tell you that there is no doubt you are dealing with another scam.

Mystery shopper jobs do exist--but when they are used, shoppers are expected to follow specific protocols and document certain information very clearly. As a result, companies hiring mystery shoppers expect certain qualifications in employees performing these tasks, just as any other job requires qualifications. Companies needing mystery shoppers do not get employees by spamming random emails. They post ads, go through real mystery shopper networks (there are even some certifications that some employers look for) and if it is going to be a job that pays any real money (many jobs only pay a few dollars), they actually look at qualifications (particularly the ability to write thorough reports--without these, the activity is meaningless).

And most importantly, mystery shopping jobs rarely, if ever, involve being paid ahead. In general, you are given an assignment and are expected to perform it and then submit paperwork for reimbursement and pay. And if you don't perform the task as it was assigned, you won't be paid.

Think of it this way--why would any company send money to random people they have no history with, when they have no way to guarantee the task is performed and the money won't be stolen? That would be like hiring you and issuing a paycheck when you haven't even showed up for work yet.

Here is a pretty good article that gives a little more background about the real world of mystery shopping:

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Sa ... opper.aspx

[GomerPyle]

It's a fake



After all, why wouldn't they get the person who sends you the cheque to send the Wuxfer themselves ?

It's an unnecessary and illogical complication with only one purpose - to steal your money and leave you with a worthless counterfeit cheque and having to answer questions from the police.

[ADRIANN]

MY NAME IS ADRIANN:

HERE'S HOW BLONDE I AM! I ACTUALLY LURED MYSELF INTO ONE OF THESE "MYSTERY SHOPPER" SCAMS!!!!
I WAS TAKING SURVS ONLINE AND SIGNED MYSELF UP TO BECOME A SHOPPERS....DUH HUH,,, I LUCKLEY RESEARCH A LITTLE B4 CASHING THIS $3,986.80 CHECK THEY SENT ME. IT WAS FROM A PLACE CALLED:

BROWN'S MONITORING & RESEARCH GROUP
A Subsidiary Of
BROWN'S MEDICAL IMAGING

I WANT TO THANK ALL OF YOU WHO TAKE THE EFFORT AND TIME TO WRITE THESE POSTS.
I AM A SINGLE MOM, WITH A PART-TIME JOB IN DIRE NEED OF ANOTHER INCOME. SO LOOKING AT THIS MONEY,RATHER CHECK, HAD MY TEMPTION ON OVERDRIVE. HOWEVER WHEN I SAW THE WORDS YOU ALL WROTE ESPECIALLY "POLICE" I DID MY HOMEWORK BEFORE HEADING TO THE BANK. IT IS SO HARD FINDING A JOB IN THIS SMALL ,,,,,SMMMMMMMMMMMMMALLL TOWN, AND THESE PEOPLE TRY TO DELIVER HOPE FOR US HOWEVER WE REALLY BAD ENDINGS....SO THANKS EVERYONE FOP FOR THE INFO AND "YOUR" TIME TO MAKE ME AWARE...YOUR APPRECIATED MORE THAN YOU KNOW.
ADRIANN

[Peta]

Hi Adriann. Thanks for letting us know about your experience. The more we talk about these near misses the less chance there is for others to fall victim. If you've still got the fake check we would urge you to tear it up or, if you'd like to keep it just make sure that you deface it so it can't accidently be used on anyone else.

[Arnold]

Hi Adriann and welcome to Scamwarners.
You deserve much of the credit. You responded to a convincing looking advert, realised that something was wrong, and saved yourself by your own efforts. You didn't lose any money which is all that matters. Well done!
We can only help people who do some research and arrive here.