Just received this email message. Very suspicious as there is no MSC listed and it says instructions will be sent with money. 1ho would sign up for a shop not knowing the details, plus not knowing the company?


Welcome to Mystery Shopper,

You have been selected for assignment as a Detective Shopper
in your area, and you will get $200 as a Detective Shopper.
Your employment packet will include funds for the shopping.

A full job description will be sent to you before your assignment.
Payment will be in form of Money Order which you would be
required to cash a your Bank, deduct your salary, and have
the rest used for the evaluation at the store that would be
given to you to evaluate.

We would like you to participate becouse its fun and rewarding.
After you sign up you will have access to training materials.
Provide the following details if you interested => Russell_Hicks@mail.com

Your Full Name:
Your Address (NOT P.O Box):
City, State, Zip:
Occupation:
Age:
Cell & Home Phone Number:
Email:


As a detective - shopper you work and shop together for pleasure
and You only work 2-3 hours twice in a week. Thank you and
we await your response.


Regards,

Russell Hicks
Head Recruitment

Yes, this is a scam. Don't even respond back to them, definitely provide them with no information about yourself. It isn't even just that they name no company, they are also talking about sending you money to do the shops. Real companies don't do that and checks they send out are guaranteed to bounce because they are bogus. The check is likely to name a real company and perhaps even have the account number of the real company, but even if the check initially clears, when it is determined to be bogus the money will be backed out of your account and you will be charged fees by your bank plus need to make good on any of the money you have spent.

Flash: Good call. I usually just delete the message right away. This time I copied the message, posted it here, and deleted the original.

Wow! This has all the earmarking of a scam that jump right out to you. If it was sent by a legitimate well known Mystery Shopping Company it is most definitely a scam. Mystery shop companies do not advance money to a novice or even an established evaluator without seeing a report they can send to their client.

"You will get $200 as a Detective Shopper. Your employment packet will include funds for the shopping."

Who will send you funds for shopping without having a relationship with you? You know those "funds" will be deposited in your bank and you would be required to exchange a value to the sender.

When you do that the sender will have the value you send back to the scammer, usually merchandise you purchased that can be resold. The scammers also ask you to redistribute the funds you received to third parties that will not be able to be traced back to a legitimate person or company. You will find the "funds" you deposited in your bank are bogus and you will have regrets and an education.

Do not pass up "legitimate" offers. Not all offers of large fees are bogus. There are free lunches but the Mystery Shop company who offers the "free lunch" will have an application on file, will require a report AFTER you have evaluated the location they send you to and will REIMBURSE you for the lunch AFTER your report has been approved by the client.

Some high-end lunches and dinners will only pay YOUR dinner or a portion of the dinner but require a guest. These shops are misleading as shoppers do not look at a menu and figure the prices before accepting the shop. These shops should only be accepted if you want a discount to a venue you wanted to go to anyway.

$200 seems a bit high unless you are doing a high-end lunch in a swanky location. Casino or hotel venues may touch on $200 and special video equipment and overnight stays may be required. The reports may be long and detailed.

A Mystery Shop Company will not gamble on a novice. A shopper must build a relationship with a mystery shopping company or scheduler. The Mystery Shop Company would want to feel that your past performance makes you ready for the "big time" and the "Big bucks".