United Publishers of America has been keeping my phone (and ears) ringing for about 2 months now. I was very annoyed by their calls, but kept ignoring them. Finally, on 12/29/09, I picked up the phone to see what they wanted and to advise them to quit calling. The man I spoke with introduced himself as Dan Harris. He sounded American, a man probably in his mid 40's to 50. He was very nice at first, telling me on 1/31/10 (Super Bowl Sunday) I would be guaranteed to win $5000. I asked him how this was possible, and he said it was due to paying my bills on time... The most in the city I live in. I NEVER pay my bills on time. That was the first red flag. Also, in November I had fraudulent charges on my credit card, so I cancelled it. He proceeded to tell me I would win a diamond watch, and asked me what kind of music I liked, so on so forth. I cut him off and asked him how he got my information. He said it was generated in their system by a computer. That was the second red flag. He then told me he would throw in magazines for free and after a few minutes stated I would only have to pay a small fee for Rolling Stone, and asked for my credit card information. I told him I didn't have one. He was in disbelief about that, and asked if I had a checking account. Once he asked that, I asked again how he got my information, and that I had fraud charges on my account that made me kind of wary. He began to grow aggravated with me, and said that this was a very good deal, and shied away from answering my questions directly. I then put my foot down and said, "I don't want to buy anything." To that, he replied, "Yes, you do." And to THAT I said, "You're not hearing me, I really don't want to have to buy anything." He cut me off and said, "No, I'm not hearing you because this is a great deal, and I don't listen to ungrateful people." The NERVE! After that, I asked to speak with his supervisor, and he hung up on me. I called the number back to speak with a manager, got ahold of the receptionist who kept me on hold for 15 minutes, and finally came back on to say the manager was not at his desk, did I want to leave my number. I said, "I want you people to stop calling me... Actually..." and before I could tell her to go ahead and leave my name and number for the manager so I could give him a few choice words, SHE hung up on me. My husband even tried calling back, and no one would answer the phone.
I used to work for a call center. I'm also extremely wary of emails I receive, and personal information I give out over the computer. THIS IS how these scammers are getting our information! Please be careful for what you sign up for over the internet. Be sure to read the privacy policies, and if you have to pay for their services, unless you have done your research, DON'T DO IT! Scam companies are low lifes that prey on people that don't do their research and are too trusting. If a company calls to tell you you won something, be on your guard!
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