I am a college student. I was in my dorm today when the room phone rang. The man asked for me and then told me that the government was going to give me a personal grant of $12,500. Tax-exempted, non-refundable. He had a VERY thick Indian accent. The first thing I said to him was that I could not understand him - he started to speak a little slower. I was skeptical right off the bat, but he was very persuasive. He said that I was going to receive the money because I paid my taxes, had not filed for bankruptcy in the past six months, and did not have a criminal record. I told him that I had never heard of anything like this, but he assured me that the government gave out personal grants all the time. He said it was like a good will measure of theirs.
The whole conversation is very hazy for me because it was such an odd experience. When I whispered to my roommate what he was saying to me she told me to hang up, and I was close to it the whole time, but yet that big "WHAT IF" compelled to listen. Just what if it was true? How could I just throw $12,500 in the trash can? He said that they would send me the paperwork in a few days. This made me feel better - a very visual person, I would actually see what he was talking about in front of me.
Then he said there would be a processing fee of $49.95. Major bells rang in my head. Note: if something is free, then you should not have to pay for it! I told him that I was no longer interested. He raised his voice and was noticably frustrated with me, as I had been asking myriad questions the whole time. He told me, look, you do not pay this up front, but you must understand that it will cost money to process the paperwork. Depending on what I said I would use the money for, the paperwork would go to a different department. The whole time I was HIGHLY doubting the legitimacy of the whole thing - if the government were to do something like this, they would not do it in this manner. I kept wondering what his name was again and what branch of the government he worked for (I figured he must have said it at the very beginning, before I had gotten used to his accent). He asked what bank I used. Though I was reluctant, I felt safe in that giving out this information could not hurt me, and told him.
I asked for a number where I could reach him, if I had any questions. He gave me the name "Advantage America", along with an address, and website. Now, I was thinking, why is this a COMPANY handling this if it's supposedly from the GOVERNMENT? He said that the government just outsourced the paperwork to them. He kept asking if I was skeptical about the whole thing, and then reassured me that they were going to give me the money. Finally, he asked me for my membership number for my bank account. I refused to give it to him, saying that I was uncomfortable, did not see the need for this, and didn't even know what the membership number was anyway. He told me it was my account number. This was the straw that broke the camel's back. I told him absolutely not.
He then almost mocked me, asking me if I really thought that they could do something with this. Making me feel stupid, he said that it was not like he was asking for my social security number, credit card number, or debit card number. That he could not do anything with this number - it was just for confirmation. Well, I know differently now. Anyway, PRAISE GOD, I did not give it to him. He was very unhappy, and while I still cannot believe that I didn't hang up the phone, I am so glad that I trusted my gut instinct. Knowing that I couldn't make a decision then, I asked if he could call back tomorrow. As soon as I got off, I went to the company website... What a joke. Very fishy. Just pictures of smiling people - unfortunately, things as lame as that will reassure people into thinking that this is for real. They'll think, oh, those guys are smiling, they must have gotten their money, I'll soon be smiling, too. Then, I googled "Advantage America", and found this website. Couldn't believe what I read. It was sickening.
I feel terrible for all the people that were taken advantage of by this scam. Unfortunately, I know that there are many out there who will fall for it. Just like me, they want to believe that people are good and decent. Just thought I'd write down my experience, and maybe someone will not fall into the lion's jaws. Again, the man was very pressuring, manipulative, and demeaning and he acted impatient, frustrated, and incredulous when I expressed doubt. People, listen to your gut. If anything sounds too good to be true (and they ask for your bank account number), it is.
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