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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Location
    Zurich, Switzerland
    Posts
    774

    Is this a scam or a stupid type of advertising or something else?

    A couple of times now, we received contact form submissions with content like this (quote from the latest one).

    I checked my bank statement and it said ORC*PAYMYBILL for 122.23 and I was wondering if that was you guys and if so I never made that purchase and I want my money back. Thank You
    Some of these mails even threatened with chargebacks. None of the mails were connected to an actually existing hosting account, and in most cases the 3rd party payment provider mentioned was one we didn't even have an account with.

    Anybody else got mails like this?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Dallas, TX
    Posts
    4,568
    I've never gotten one of those emails before.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Dallas/FortWorth TX
    Posts
    1,703
    Seems like a phishing scam.
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  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2002
    Location
    EU - east side
    Posts
    21,920
    Seems like a phishing scam.
    Definitely has that vibe. Not sure how it would work though.

    I think it's probably just an extortion scheme. If you threaten 10000 companies, there is a chance that some poor souls are going to send you some money where you want them to.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Cardiff, Wales
    Posts
    803
    Hey, i thought i was the only one. I have received 5 today alone as it is. Exact same conditions (not linked to accounts or merchant providers we use)

    Mine just went straight into my junk box through.

    Best,
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  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Location
    Singapore
    Posts
    205
    Very strange indeed. I've never recieved this kind of emails.

    Its probably some poor person who is desperately trying to get money via fraudulent means.

    Just ignore the emails, and they should leave you alone. If they don't, continue to ignore them...
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  7. #7
    Nothing new here.

    It's a variation on the phony invoice scam.

    Send thousands of letters with "renewal notices" and invoices. These go to accounting and some of them will get paid without checking.
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  8. #8
    Join Date
    Mar 2009
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    Here Today - Gone to Maui
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    9,966
    Have actually never seen one of these. One of my prospects mailed me some content he wanted added to his site, and one of the pages he attached was a solication attempt by a website listing service that gave the appearance of an invoice. He put a big ? mark on it, and I can see how the unsuspecting could be confused. There are a ton of scams out there - stay alert.
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  9. #9
    Join Date
    Jun 2009
    Posts
    359
    When I used iBill before they went belly up, I would get emails all the time from noncustomers wanting to cancel their iBill subscription. It took me a long time to figure out that I was about the only iBill client who had made a convenient cancellation form--some of the porn sites wouldn't cancel rebilling for anything. And their CC statements never said which site they were billing for. So when someone did a search for "Cancel ibill subscription" my cancellation form came up, which included a line "If you have a problem canceling with this form, email support."

    So that might be the case with you. They search for ORC and find you, while it is some other merchant altogether.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2006
    Location
    Cardiff - United Kingdom
    Posts
    1,569
    Never had one of those, although it sounds like a phising scam.

    You can always reply asking for more details. If they provide them, investigate (but don't follow any links unless they seem genuine). Else, just hit delete after a set amount of time.
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  11. #11
    Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Location
    Zurich, Switzerland
    Posts
    774
    I am used to getting support tickets from people using another hosting company for products like SohoLaunch, I just explain that both companies are offering the same software on their servers but we are not the other company and people often reply us, thanking for clearing up the confusion.

    With these chargeback mails though, I replied the first few times but never got any reaction back, not even in cases when I asked questions about the sum they wanted to chargeback.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Vancouver, Canada
    Posts
    653
    I few months ago I got an email just like that. I just marked it as spam.
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  13. #13
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Toronto
    Posts
    418
    Never seen this style before but doesn't sound legit.

    Like the phoney-invoice scam, they are going for a numbers-game and hope they just get a not-so-bright admin to give the money. In this case, maybe they are hoping there was a recent VP talk with a "the customer is always right - it is your job to try to do anything to make them happy!" speech

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  14. #14
    Never got email like that, but take cautious investigation by contacting authorities (like bank, or other legit). Just in case there are error. This case look like scam to me.

    Hartono

  15. #15

    Exclamation I am having the same problem

    I just check my bank account and it says 5969 ORC*PAYMYBILL. But i have not purchased anything from anyone that has that name.

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Location
    The Big Easy -New Orleans
    Posts
    341
    Talk to your bank
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  17. #17
    Join Date
    Dec 2006
    Location
    Netherlands
    Posts
    1,435
    Just ask them to put that charge-back they are bragging about. End of story... they'll go silent

    Edit: assuming it is a scam.

  18. #18
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    NY Metro
    Posts
    544
    That's why God invented the SPAM folder.

    bsh
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  19. #19
    Join Date
    Aug 2004
    Location
    Zurich, Switzerland
    Posts
    774
    Interesting top result on Google for ORC*PAYMYBILL: http://whocallsme.com/Phone-Number.aspx/8008206829

    I have allowed General Revenue Corp. (Student Loans) to deduct money from my acct. each month & this is the number the transaction came from.

    Caller ID: ORC*PAYMYBILL (18008206829)
    Caller: General Revenue Service

  20. #20
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Posts
    215
    Sounds like a scam. Are the emails claiming to be from the same people everytime, or are they independant of each other.

  21. #21
    Join Date
    Apr 2009
    Location
    Chicago
    Posts
    210
    It sounds as though other people have had a similar problem before too. I would just ignore it and if it is real then they will eventually act on it. But from the sounds of it...it doesn't seem likely. Good luck!
    Stephanie Ostheimer
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    SingleHop Dedicated Servers

  22. #22
    Join Date
    Jul 2002
    Location
    The Big Easy -New Orleans
    Posts
    341
    Actually PAYMYBILL is a service MANY companies (including some large ones) use to automate payments. My previous post was to the immediately prior poster (a newb) asking about his PAYMYBILL charge... HE needs to talk to his bank. If I were the OP, I would send 1 email back stating they're not the company that charged them and that they should talk to their bank to track down the charge. The bank can do that with a phone call. After that they're pretty much on the ignore list. If they continue, I'd offer to talk with them at my "usual consulting rates" after they signed the agreement, and posted a signifigant deposit via certified funds.
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    Lagniappe (lan-yap) - An extra or unexpected gift or benefit.
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  23. #23
    Join Date
    Aug 2003
    Location
    East Coast
    Posts
    2,082
    After reading this thread I checked my barracuda and sure enough we had a few.

    If you are in doubt respond with, Please call customer service at xxx-xxx-xxxx so that we can assist you with this issue.

    They wont call if they are scammers.

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