Mystery Shopping Scams
Many people have had their initial exposure to mystery shopping through a scam company, giving the entire industry a bad name. This is bad both for individuals who fall for the scams as well as the entire mystery shopping industry; scams create unrealistic expectations as well as distrust. As a shopper, you must always protect yourself against unscrupulous individuals and companies. Here are some simple steps to protect yourself from scammers.
1. Beware of any unrealistically high rewards. Mystery shopping is a price-competitive industry, and clients are always looking to reduce their bottom line. Why use a $500 purchase when $5 will do? Who would give $1,000 of goods for free to a brand new shopper with no track record?
Generally, new shoppers get the shops that nobody else can or will take. There are exceptions, but keep in mind that there are already many other shoppers out there. Why would a company pay to advertise such huge compensations in print or radio ads? They could easily post free on mystery shopping forums online and get shoppers lining up at their door.
There are some higher reward shops out there (such as high-end restaurants and hotels, or cruise lines) but these are reserved for experienced and high performing shoppers in some areas. As always, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.
2. Beware of money order scams. Some shoppers have reported e-mails with job offers, claiming to be from mystery shopping providers, that have asked to shop companies that sell money orders. They are asked to receive and cash a large sum money order or (hundreds or thousands of dollars) and then to return most of it, keeping the remainder. In the meantime, the cashed money order will come back as fraudulent, leaving the shopper holding the bag on both their fee and the returned cash. This is just a variation of the classic money order scam that's already prevalent.
3. Beware of identity theft. Because shoppers do have to provide their social security number to many companies, sometimes they are taken by identity thieves. Although this is rare, make sure that any company you apply to and provide personal information to are legitimate. For example, check if they are registered with the MSPA, check if there are existing complaints on mystery shopping forums, and so on. If in doubt, see if you can apply without submitting the social security number first, or consider applying for a tax ID number for your mystery shopping business.
4. Legitimate companies should not ask you for money up front. Typically, most of these companies are simply selling information that you can get yourself (much of it false or misleading). These companies don't provide mystery shopping services; they provide information about mystery shopping. Often, they will bait potential shoppers with claims that if they upgrade a free membership to a "premium" or "gold" membership, that they will provide them with more job offers in your area. Other companies offer expensive certifications; certifications are seldom required, and the only ones I can recommend as being useful are the ones available directly through the MSPA. Many of these companies also overstate the rewards of mystery shopping. You're probably much better off simply applying to mystery shopping companies directly and reading free informational sites like this one.
For more information, check out the Federal Trade Commission's warnings about mystery shopping scams (warning: PDF file).
1. Beware of any unrealistically high rewards. Mystery shopping is a price-competitive industry, and clients are always looking to reduce their bottom line. Why use a $500 purchase when $5 will do? Who would give $1,000 of goods for free to a brand new shopper with no track record?
Generally, new shoppers get the shops that nobody else can or will take. There are exceptions, but keep in mind that there are already many other shoppers out there. Why would a company pay to advertise such huge compensations in print or radio ads? They could easily post free on mystery shopping forums online and get shoppers lining up at their door.
There are some higher reward shops out there (such as high-end restaurants and hotels, or cruise lines) but these are reserved for experienced and high performing shoppers in some areas. As always, if something sounds too good to be true, it probably isn't.
2. Beware of money order scams. Some shoppers have reported e-mails with job offers, claiming to be from mystery shopping providers, that have asked to shop companies that sell money orders. They are asked to receive and cash a large sum money order or (hundreds or thousands of dollars) and then to return most of it, keeping the remainder. In the meantime, the cashed money order will come back as fraudulent, leaving the shopper holding the bag on both their fee and the returned cash. This is just a variation of the classic money order scam that's already prevalent.
3. Beware of identity theft. Because shoppers do have to provide their social security number to many companies, sometimes they are taken by identity thieves. Although this is rare, make sure that any company you apply to and provide personal information to are legitimate. For example, check if they are registered with the MSPA, check if there are existing complaints on mystery shopping forums, and so on. If in doubt, see if you can apply without submitting the social security number first, or consider applying for a tax ID number for your mystery shopping business.
4. Legitimate companies should not ask you for money up front. Typically, most of these companies are simply selling information that you can get yourself (much of it false or misleading). These companies don't provide mystery shopping services; they provide information about mystery shopping. Often, they will bait potential shoppers with claims that if they upgrade a free membership to a "premium" or "gold" membership, that they will provide them with more job offers in your area. Other companies offer expensive certifications; certifications are seldom required, and the only ones I can recommend as being useful are the ones available directly through the MSPA. Many of these companies also overstate the rewards of mystery shopping. You're probably much better off simply applying to mystery shopping companies directly and reading free informational sites like this one.
For more information, check out the Federal Trade Commission's warnings about mystery shopping scams (warning: PDF file).
posted by The Reviewer at 10:12 AM
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