Scam Award
I received a congratulatory notice in my inbox that not only had I been nominated (I must’ve missed that email), but I had also been awarded the 2013 Best of Business Award in the Small Business category.
This smelled bad from the get-go. Especially since the subject line read:
Jane Pollak Inc Awarded for the 2013 Best of Business award in Norwalk
#1 – I dissolved my incorporated status a couple of years ago in favor of an LLC entity.
#2 – I haven’t lived in Norwalk for over a year, so my recognition there was somewhat suspect.
If that weren’t enough to put me off, this bogus-looking plaque did.
I wanted to find out more about who the organization was distributing said awards. Someone has gone to a lot of trouble to rip off the less jaded business owner out there looking for validation. They have constructed an in-depth site that says a bunch of nothing.
Once again, google is a great friend. The fourth entry down when I googled the signator’s name yielded this juicy tidbit, exactly what I was looking for:
Skeezy Scammers On The Prowl In Arcata – August 16, 2011 | The …
Aug 16, 2011 – These fresh insults to fair business practices ride into town on top of the usual …. Arizona firm called the “Small Business Community Association” (SBCA). … Other than Chairman Rich Thurman, members of the “Selection …
Yes, he is still sending it out. I got another shovel-full of electronic poo from him today, hoping that I will break down and spend $70 for an award. This seems a rather doubtful proposition but I suppose there must be a few who fall for it because his web site does have a series of “press release” posting announcing the names of suckers who bought awards.
For more info, you can contact him and his ISP folks:
rthurman@smallbusinesscommunity.org [spammer]
press@smallbusinesscommunity.org [yeah I know]
tiffany.coleman@cox.com [isp rep]
tori.berube@cox.com [isp rep]
ben@digitalocean.com [hosting rep]
bryan@digitalocean.com [hosting rep]
I don’t know that it will do any good, but I just got one for 2020 and emailed back “I know this is a scam. Drop me from your mailing list. My business went out of business 10 years ago.
@Bob Hilarious!! I’m such a skeptic these days, that I rarely trust anything that comes through unidentified.