I received a Check for 2,400 by priority mail today...Envelope said 1/29 check was dated 2/02.
Said to deposit in bank for 24hrs. then withdraw full amount and keep $300 as payment take $60 for a mystery shop at a Restaurant, $40 to pay for the western union transfer of remaining $2,000 to the next shopper who has an address in the Philippines...I'm very skeptical as to if this is real and if I should take to post office as a scam.
Anybody do one of these as a Shop?
Did you get screwed for the a fraudulent Check at your bank?
Thanks in advance...

That is a scam and you will be responsible for the full amount when the check bounces in about 2 weeks. Do NOT deposit it.

RUN!!! No legitimate mystery shopping company sends unsolicited money and most mystery shopping assignments pay $10 to $20. This is a common ploy and people frequently come on here and ask the same question that you just did.

GCS is a legitimate company and the people that sent you the check are using their name to add legitimacy should someone research it. You could contact GCS and report it to them as I am sure they will be interested.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/12/2015 12:07AM by jpgilham.

Greetings to all of the hard working individuals who are committed to the growth and integrity of this vitally important service to the retail / hospitality industry. My name is Don Bode and I founded the Consumer Research Group over 23 years ago. We have conducted an untold number of anonymous surveys from coast to coast, in neighborhoods, colleges, shopping malls and are proudly one of the few companies permitted to conduct assignments in our Nation's airports since the 911 trajedy.

I applaud the dedication of our ProShoppers (mystery shoppers) as they continually and conscientiously support our business partner / clients. Many of our field researchers have been with us for 9 years or more! At CRG, our number one mantra is, and always has been, to take care of our people. Over the years I have come to believe that our field researchers aka CRG ProShoppers do not continually, month after month, year after year, submit valuable feedback to our clients for the meager shopper's fee. They believe, as I do, that we are making a difference in how each and every guest, retail customer and diner is treated. So the next time you're posing as a customer at Sears, McDonalds or Whole Foods Market gathering that data for your shopper report, pat yourself on the back! Because, each and every fellow customer who has a satisfying experience, owes a debt of gratitude to you for your tireless efforts.

Keep up the great work!

Don Bode, CEO/Founder
CRG Proshoppers, a division of the Consumer Research Group
America's premier mystery shopping service.

I have reseved anything from gcs and i dont know if this is real or not

If you have not signed up with the company on their secure website and provided your social security number for tax purposes, then you have not contracted to work with them. When a stranger mails a check to you, it is almost certainly a scam.

@cameka ware: Do NOT deposit the check and DO NOT WIRE THEM ANY MONEY!

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I received the same check and assignments but i didnt not deposited i photo copied the check to have records and i want to find out more about it so im going to send gcs all the information.

Perfect!

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Let me know what they say i have received same deal and just want them to know their company integrity is on the line with all this non-sense

@butterflydaze28: It's important to understand that crooks are sending you these checks, not GSC. Thieves are masquerading as/pretending to be a well-known, respectable company, so they can steal money from you.

The REAL GSC is a very trustworthy company and would never send you a check, unless it was payment for a job you had already done for them.

Please read this: [www.mysteryshoppermagazine.com]

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I received a Check for 2,400 by priority mail today...Envelope said 4/25 check was dated 4/16.
Said to deposit in bank for 24hrs. then withdraw full amount and keep $300 as payment take $60 for a mystery shop at a Restaurant, $40 to pay for the western union transfer of remaining $2,000 to the next shopper who has an address in the Philippines...I'm very skeptical as to if this is real but follow the instructions anyway to find out that I send the money (my money) to a scam. Now I have to pay to the bank.

I received the same thing but my bank told me the check was invalid. I'm assuming that's a good thing because I don't want these scammers to get away with what they're doing to us. Hopefully my bank doesn't make me pay anything considering the confiscated the check

I received to 1 Check for 2,400 by priority mail today!

I received a Check for 2,400 by priority mail today! Its Real?

No. Don't deposit it. Don't wire any money. It's a scam.

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i would like to report them.... I just received a check in a name that is not correct.. to my employer's addresss..... does any one have the true contact info for gcs?

I'm from Georgia and here we have a famous scam detector and all around money guy on the radio. His web site is
clarkhoward.com. He's out of Atlanta. I hear about this scam on his radio station in Atlanta sometimes. THIS is a scam. They want your banking information for different reasons. One may be to get your money-or worse, and I heard about this the other night on his program. They are trying to set you up and use you as a laundering money person. If you do this and they are crooks-you could be arrested as a person who is bring in money illegally into the US. If you want to -go to his website and somewhere they have a place where you can ask his customer service about this and they will come back with an answer. You can trust this man. so glad you posted this.

GCS has a warning printed on their website:

Check Cashing Scams

Contractors beware of letters offering quick returns for cashing a check/money-order.

If you have already received checks or money orders from a scammer, you can report it.

In the United States: Contact the National Consumers League at www.fraud.org via the online complaint form.
In addition, you can report scams for further investigation to the Federal Trade Commission by clicking here: Federal Trade Commission.

In Canada: Contact the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.

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Contact the USPS Inspector in your area. It is fraud.

I reported amount of funds
3 different checks...fake credit union info ...email addresses...names of companies to ftc.gov/complaint..
Then....heres the fun part....i forwarded the complaint to scammets. I also forward their emails to ftc site!!

They sent that crap to the wrong one!! I know people who went to jail behind this mess.When it should be them.

Scam-SCAM-SCAM

REPORT TO POLICE AND USPS AND ATTORNEY GENERAL.

I received a check for $1995.00(CASHIERS CHECK) they asked me to go immediately to the bank and deposit the check into my bank account and within the next 24 to 48 hours the funds would be available.(Bullshit ). It takes 3 business days for an income tax to clear. They told me I CAN DECDUCT $200 for my commission and $45.00 for transportation . Then take the $1750 and buy a reload it pack and send a picture of the scratched off card numbers via e mail. Then go to the store and complete the survey. Why would I want to do anything? I already have their money and since I never gave them anything that the gov't needs to pay taxes on, they have no information of mine besides name and address. I got paid before I did the job. These people are @#$%& and trying to work some scam. What sounds too good to be true is never true.. AVOID: Denise Walter (d.walter901@hotmail.com)
AVOID: Denise Walter (d.walter901@hotmail.com)
AVOID: Denise Walter (d.walter901@hotmail.com)
AVOID: Denise Walter (d.walter901@hotmail.com)
AVOID: Denise Walter (d.walter901@hotmail.com)
Going to report them to the US Postal service and reporting them for mail fraud.

I just received a check today for the amount of $1989 and it told me to deduct $270 as my commission and spend $30 and purchase two money orders in the amount of $802 that will equal $1604 and it said subtract the shipping fees and send to the next mystery shopper! I did my research but skeptical right now because of this and they wanted me to deposit it in my bank account! No way! Legit or Not?

Not legit. Don't do it.

Interesting...I am wondering if anyone with more than 1 or 2 posts here has received this check. I saw one person with 4 posts who got one. Not that I think any of the regular contributers to the forum would get taken in by a scam as there are so many threads about them but it just seems odd that of all the above people who said they got this check they are all brand new posters.
I know there are those that read the forum regularly and never post and get moved to finally post by something like this but no one with more than 4 posts got this check???