# Can I report these bastard for fraud? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 27, 2014, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902 "2014-01-27T23:16:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![madrabbitwoman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c37758/32.png) [@madrabbitwoman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madrabbitwoman)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 11:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/21 "2014-01-28T11:30:14Z")
On a non porny note - I had a trial membership with a mob called [efax.com](http://efax.com). 30 day free trial no questions asked if I wanted to leave within the 30 days. Took 3 goes to get the first fax sent and I decided I wasn’t interested. This was November. After multiple emails - which near as I can tell were not read (they would email asking for my name, phone and efax #, I would reply with what was asked and then get a reply asking for info again - mind you the stuff I sent was right below the reply), then finally told to call my country’s customer service #, guess which country doesn’t have one, more emails, messages left on chat (because there was never anyone manning the chat) I finally, last week got my account cancelled. So the bastards, the lying fecking bastards got two months worth of money out of me. No more “free” trials for me I think, ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 11:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/22 "2014-01-28T11:34:47Z")
> [@madrabbitwoman](#): > > . So the bastards, the lying fecking bastards got two months worth of money out of me. No more “free” trials for me I think, Complain to your bank. The credit card charge can be reversed. The bank will see its a trial system and ask for proof that the service was used, for example. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/23 "2014-01-28T12:49:05Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > Your snark makes no sense in this context. Nah, I did my homework. She’s legit. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/24 "2014-01-28T14:33:15Z")
We had this problem with one of our kids and the kid’s Capital One (first credit card). Scummy charges kept popping up. Nightmare to get them removed. The interesting thing was that the street address of these jerks was on the same block as Capital One’s address! So we canceled the card. They kept “restoring it” and the charges kept coming back. Took months to clean that up. Then Capital One started hitting the kids credit report with dozens of credit checks (which are bad for ones credit rating). What a horrible company. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/25 "2014-01-28T15:25:45Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > Well, they only refunded me because I called them on their bull shit. But what about all those people that are too embarrassed to do anything about it? Or all the folks who simply didn’t know they were being charged? Oh well, maybe they should learn to be such an astute internetter as yourself before paying for a stroke site. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/26 "2014-01-28T15:37:13Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > A website charged $20 on my credit card. I called the website to ask them what the deal was. They told me I “joined”\* their services. I told them I did not. The guy on the phone then asks me for my info, and he warns me as I’m doing this that he was going to get the police involved. (As if that was supposed to scare me) I told him please do. > > He then get all indignant with me and says “Okay fine! I’ve refunded the money to your account.” When I asked him why was my account was charged in the first place he told me he doesn’t have to talk to me and abruptly hangs up on me. > > I wont know for a couple of days if he actually refunded my money, but even if he did, I still want to report these bastards. That’s bull shit. You gave your credit card number to a porn site, and expected them to just sit on it. Right. :rolleyes: Pray tell, to whom would you have reported this transgression, and what do you think the result would have been? ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/27 "2014-01-28T15:42:43Z")
I would suggest, in the future, to buy a credit gift card with 25 or 50 dollars on it so that if you feel the need to join another such site, and they engage in underhanded practices, they’re immediately limited in the financial damage they can do. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/28 "2014-01-28T15:47:32Z")
> [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > I would suggest, in the future, to buy a credit gift card with 25 or 50 dollars on it so that if you feel the need to join another such site, and they engage in underhanded practices, they’re immediately limited in the financial damage they can do. They won’t accept a gift card with such a limit on it-they’re in the porn business, not the idiot business. ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/29 "2014-01-28T16:01:29Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > They won’t accept a gift card with such a limit on it-they’re in the porn business, not the idiot business. Still, they do seem to attract their fair share… ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/30 "2014-01-28T16:04:33Z")
Is there some way that a merchant knows when presented a credit card number that it’s a credit gift card and not a conventional credit card? Is there a difference in the account number that’s well known? ---
**Author:** ![Giraffe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giraffe/32/129_2.png) [@Giraffe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giraffe)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/31 "2014-01-28T16:11:36Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#): > > You could go dump all over their Twitter page about what happened. That’s _definitely_ going to cost extra. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/32 "2014-01-28T16:37:54Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > That’s _definitely_ going to cost extra. :eek: Only if you’re gonna be pissy about it. ---
**Author:** ![Yorikke](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yorikke/32/4335_2.png) [@Yorikke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorikke)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/33 "2014-01-28T17:12:09Z")
> [@Giraffe](#): > > That’s _definitely_ going to cost extra. :eek: Pittsburgh Platter is an extra hundie. ---
**Author:** ![Learjeff](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/94ad74/32.png) [@Learjeff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Learjeff)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 5:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/34 "2014-01-28T17:25:29Z")
We got hit something like this, long ago. My wife noticed a recurring small charge (say $10/mo) with an innocuous but confusing description. We looked into it and turns out it’s a porn site. I know I didn’t sign up, and I believed her that she didn’t. Turns out it was our teenage son. He said that it was supposed to be a free trial, and the CC was to prove adult status. (That’s laughable, but it actually does provide legal cover for the site.) The site was actually quite cooperative in refunding us for one year, but the charges actually went back a bit further. So, it was an expensive little lesson for our son, and a clue to my wife. Plus my son got kudos for fessing up right away. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/35 "2014-01-28T19:28:36Z")
> [@Learjeff](#): > > the CC was to prove adult status. (That’s laughable, but it actually does provide legal cover for the site.) I’ve seen that before, too. I’ve even seen ones where they’ll charge you two random amounts less than a dollar and then refund them, and you have to type in those numbers for authentication. I don’t find the OP’s situation to be all that implausible. ---
**Author:** ![Grrr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grrr/32/146_2.png) [@Grrr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grrr)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/36 "2014-01-28T21:02:00Z")
> [@Czarcasm](#): > > You gave your credit card number to a porn site, and expected them to just sit on it. Right. :rolleyes: Pray tell, to whom would you have reported this transgression, and what do you think the result would have been? Well gee, I’m not sure, maybe that’s why I started this thread. I’m really not getting where all the snark and condescension is coming from in this thread. Are you trying to assert your moral superiority? Or is it that people who visit such sites deserve to be scammed? Personally, I find it troublesome that a large company is committing fraud going completely unchecked. Yeah, I got my money back today, but still, that should let them off the hook. ---
**Author:** ![VinylTurnip](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b2d939/32.png) [@VinylTurnip](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VinylTurnip)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/37 "2014-01-28T22:03:50Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > I don’t find the OP’s situation to be all that implausible. How much did they put on your mom’s card? ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2014, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/38 "2014-01-28T22:53:37Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > The porn hub live is free too unless you actually want to talk to one of the webcam girls. Which I never did, I just wanted to check the site out. I felt safe doing it because porn hub is like one of the biggest sites out there. I wouldn’t think a website that big would do something like that. If you can’t trust a porn website, who _can_ you trust? ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Hari\_Seldon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hari_seldon/32/5173_2.png) [@Hari\_Seldon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hari_Seldon)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2014, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/39 "2014-01-29T03:04:10Z")
I once ordered an external hard drive from a company called TigerDirect. So of course I had given them my credit card number. The following month I was billed for something like $20 without explanation. When I called to complain they claimed I had joined some club they run. But they immediately canceled the membership and refunded the money. I will not buy from them again. ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2014, 3:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902/40 "2014-01-29T03:59:38Z")
> [@Shakes](#): > > Your snark makes no sense in this context. Maybe you don’t understand the context. > [@Shakes](#): > > Well gee, I’m not sure, maybe that’s why I started this thread. I’m really not getting where all the snark and condescension is coming from in this thread. > > Are you trying to assert your moral superiority? Or is it that people who visit such sites deserve to be scammed? > > Personally, I find it troublesome that a large company is committing fraud going completely unchecked. Yeah, I got my money back today, but still, that should let them off the hook. It has nothing to do with the site and everything to do with falling for such a commonplace scam. And sorry, but your “too big to commit fraud” reasoning makes me understand why you got snookered in the first place. For your perusal, here’s a few entities that you might think were too big to commit fraud, Fannie Mae, HealthSouth, Tyco International, Lehman Brothers, Bernard Madoff, Enron. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-report-these-bastard-for-fraud/679902.md?page=3)