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Responsible Marketing

Princeton Premier: Bad marketing or vanity scam?

By November 13, 2008August 26th, 202176 Comments

Princeton University

Princeton.

Americans immediately think of Princeton University, the Ivy League, or possibly the Princeton Review.

They probably don’t think of Princeton Premier, a company you’ve never heard of that claims to be “the most interactive online business community in the world today.”

I first learned about Princeton Premier yesterday when I received the following email:

Subject: Patrick Byers’s Recent Nomination Into The Princeton Premier

Patrick Byers

It is my pleasure to inform you that you are being considered for inclusion into the 2009-2010 Princeton Premier Business Leaders and Professionals Honors Edition section of the registry.

The 2009-2010 edition of the registry will include biographies of the world’s most accomplished individuals. Recognition of this kind is an honor shared by thousands of executives and professionals throughout the world each year. Inclusion is considered by many as the single highest mark of achievement.

You may access our application form using the following link: (link goes to a generic form on formsite.com without any information pre-filled)

Upon final confirmation, you will be listed among other accomplished individuals in the Princeton Premier Registry.

For accuracy and publication deadlines, please complete your application form and return it to us within five business days.

There is no cost to be included in the registry.

If you’ve already received this email from us, there is no need to respond again.

This email serves as our final invitation to potential members who have not yet responded.

On behalf of the Executive Publisher, we wish you continued success.

Sincerely,

Jason Harris
Managing Director
Princeton Premier

This offer from Princeton Premier complies with 15 U.S.C. §§ 7701-13
_____________________________________________
Click the following link to update your information or stop future mailings. (link goes to an unbranded Admail.net email unsubscription form)
_____________________________________________

Lots of red flags here:

  • Email was text-based without any actual links to the company
  • Contact form without contact information
  • Marketing puffery on their website
  • Amateurish identity and design
  • Outdated copy on website
  • Use of unbranded email templates and database tools

Bad marketing, but how is it a vanity scam?

Well, a little more sleuthing will tell you that inclusion in Princeton Premier’s directories are meaningless, and this is indeed another vanity scam.

The phone numbers (and names associated) have changed several times, and sometimes the calls terminate at an answering service in India and/or Saudi Arabia.

The real goal of Princeton Premier is to sell upgrades to your free listing. Prices for these upgrades apparently range from $100 to $800—all for the right to be included in a directory assembled by vanity scammers.

Where do I sign up?

On another note, I wonder what Princeton University or the Princeton Review respond things like this. Their brand is being sullied—not a good thing.

So, have you received an “offer” like this one? And how do you think this makes legitimate marketers look?

Comment below to share.

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. . .
Photo: Princeton University

Join the discussion 76 Comments

  • Nate says:

    I received the same message awhile back. My thinking is, these days, most people are savvy enough to know that their information is valuable to all kinds of questionable people and would be careful online. Princeton Premier seemed like a no-brainer.

    Well, apparently we’re not so smart. Yesterday, thousands of twitterers who should know better shared their twitter username and PASSWORD with a mysterious site called Twitterank, in order to see how popular they are on Twitter. Twitterank may end up being harmless, but there was absolutely no information about the site creators or how they would use this info, leaving users open to phishing. I think it fits well under the Vanity Scam moniker.

  • Lots of similar scams and time-wasters out there, absolutely. They’ll continue phishing and scamming as long as people fall for it.

    When you say Princeton, I do think of Princeton University. But Princeton is a town in New Jersey so as long as Princeton Premier doesn’t use the U’s full name, I wonder whether the U should or can do anything.

    The only way to battle bad marketing is to do good marketing. Consistently and with perseverance. Let’s get to work!

  • Sarah Fowler says:

    I got the same message, but mine came via snail-mail. Of course some very quick online sleuthing showed me (as I’d suspected) it was a scam.

    It has to be an interesting dilemma for other legitimate sources, though, who really do notify the people they include in just that manner (Who’s Who and National [High School] Honor Society come to mind.)

    I agree with Nate that people are pretty savvy and understand some things they receive are legitimate and some are not. I, too, was surprised by how many big-name twits fell for Twitterank, though!

  • David Lee says:

    I too received this obvious scam at work in the UK. (My job is fraud prevention!) What I particularly like about the exclusivity of this “recognition” and “single highest mark of achievement” that I am “being considered for” as one “of the world’s most accomplished individuals” is the bit at the end….. “Forward this e-mail to a friend”!!!!

    There’s one born every minute

  • Mr X says:

    Obvious scam. But what really upset me was that I was only included in the roll of honour for the 2008/09 edfition ! Why weren’t my achievements and intrinsic value recognised years ago ? Clearly those Princeton Premier people are a bunch of ignoramus.

  • T says:

    I misunderstood the pricing of their service (8 dollars, instead of 800 dollars) . Now I am trying to get my money back. Princeton premier s.cks!!

  • WISAC says:

    Got the invite today. Thanks for posting the article, it helped in my quick research to see if there is anything legit about it.

  • Henry Cox says:

    I am proud of my legal career, recognition and awards along with my years of work in mediation/arbitration and academic teaching in conflict management. Your graciousness in providing a warning post to those of us receiving the Princeton invitation is truly appreciated. Fortunately those who seek integrity before ego will easily find your site. Thank you.

  • John says:

    If you have the email they sent you report it here:

    http://www.spamcop.net

  • Mick B says:

    Thanks for this. I received the invite today and your site confirmed my initial thoughts.

  • Ms L says:

    Hi, thanks for this information. i received the same… how about eSIplus? is it SPAM also?

  • Shan says:

    Hi,

    I was scammed by Princeton Premiere Registry for $878.95 on January 5, 2009. 😳 😥 Since then I had to cancel my credit card and register with Identity Theft Insurance. However, I was able to track down the offenders to the following websites and addresses using publicly available information on the web.

    Here are the details of the miscreants scammers and their contacts:
    http://www.princetonpremier.com/
    Owned by:
    Princeton Premier
    23-35a steinway st
    astoria, New York 11105
    United States

    Registered through: GoDaddy.com, Inc. (http://www.godaddy.com)
    Domain Name: PRINCETONPREMIER.COM
    Created on: 11-Feb-07
    Expires on: 12-Feb-09
    Last Updated on:

    Administrative Contact:
    nunziato, joseph admin@digitalhighs.com
    http://www.digitalhighs.com
    Princeton Premier
    23-35a steinway st
    astoria, New York 11105
    United States
    7183546893

    Technical Contact:
    nunziato, joseph admin@digitalhighs.com
    Princeton Premier
    23-35a steinway st
    astoria, New York 11105
    United States
    7183546893

    Domain servers in listed order:
    NS1.SECURESERVERDOT.COM
    NS2.SECURESERVERDOT.COM

    Please be careful not to fall for the same scam yourselves.

    Regards,
    Shan

  • Lee says:

    I was suspicious from the Beginning. Excellence in Careers.

  • Belinda says:

    Hi
    I received the email from Princeton. They even called me and I am in Australia. They asked me all these ridiculous questions like what do I attribute to my success so far (I have not even finished my PhD yet) and then at the end asked me for $US99. I new it was suspect so I asked them to email me the information before I handed over any money. That was two weeks ago and I have not heard from them since. Its such a shame that a well to do university is having its name dragged through the mud.
    Regards
    Belinda Yaxley

  • Oliver says:

    If they call you just tell them you used to be a janitor but that now you’re a convicted rapist.

  • Tahnya says:

    I just received this email and found it fishy especially after seeing the link the provided so I automatically googled the company and found your blog.

    Thanks!!!

  • Dave says:

    I received a copy of the email yesterday.

    I thought that their scam would be to try and sell you a copy of the book once you had provided your info, hadn’t thought of the charging to update angle though!

    Thanks to all who have left warnings, the offending email is now deleted.

  • Neal says:

    My wife got a call over the phone congratulating her and all that. I have no idea if these people are just a scam or are identity thieves, but they wanted credit card numbers over the phone. I would never give a stranger like that a credit card number. It seems fishy, so most likely it is.

  • Gaurang says:

    I got the same email earlier today and the first thing I did is google the Princeton Premier and land on this page.

  • Alex says:

    Thank you for information.
    I just got such e-mail, although I’m living in Russia (but doing international business).

    Here in Russia I got similar scrams: free registration and upgrade fee (with a promising to send a hard copy of book with my picture).

    But in the moment Princeton Premier Web site just show an Apache server Web page and nothing more.

  • KShowells says:

    I received the same email letter from Mr. Jay Harris, Managing Director of Princeton Premier on 2/10/09. Actually listened to the caller (Clarence Grier, Account Director) asked lots of questions and quickly determined all they want is to collect a membership fee of $149 to $800.00 for a one year, three year (Gold Membership) or lifetime (Platinum) membership. They requested a credit card number of bank information to which I delivered nothing. I asked for all data they just shared on the call to be sent via email. Oh what a surprise….nothing arrived. This is very annoying and I am glad to have a place to share my feelings.

  • Nashwa says:

    I received the same via e-mail. Then few days later someone called and when I asked how much is the membership he told me 8 dollars 95 and I repeated the amount only 8 dollars and 95 and he said yes. Of course to discover that they charged my card $895.00. I disputed the charges however this people deserve a class action lawsuit. It would be worth the time and efforts.

  • Ben Saber says:

    I received a phone call today and was asked a bunch of questions in order to be admitted to the Princeton World Registry. After about 15 minutes I was asked to upgrade my registration to platinum and was offered a year subscribtion for $99 over the phone. I just hang up on the person. Glad I found this website that confirms my suspicions. Thanks a lot.

  • Bill says:

    I got their email today and knew it was spam right away when they called me “Billy,” only my mother calls me that. I Googled them and found your site, thanks for being vigilant.

  • Jimmy says:

    Good post stopped me getting involved.

  • Simon C Graham says:

    Thanks for the intell. I received the e-mail invite to my work address today. I am in Hong Kong. The e-dm copy immediately sets off the BS meter, yet the approach is certainly more polished than most of this kind and, as such, more dangerous. Princeton’s legal counsel should be onto this.

  • Ms K says:

    I got the same e-mail 3 times in last month, signed always with different person (Jay Harris, James Lyons and Frank Thomas), so I got currious 🙂 They contacted me on phone today (someone who identified himself as James Pike with contact phone nr 18887677548), and such a bad luck, even they do recognize my excellence, qualities, and achievements, (clearly, they do not know nothing about me – how can they know what did I achieve, if they dont even know what I do in work?) they cant include me into the register because I dont have a credit card! That is very unfortunate ! 🙂 How can it be that such a premier busines company has no other way how the members can pay for the servise? It really smells!!!

  • Ed P says:

    I received this `questionable` email on Monday 2nd March 09 (3days ago), due to me being quite busy I signed up immediately. Today I googled and found this site… ggod thing I was`nt that occupied.

    Anxiously awaiting their call… I believe I`d be the self proclaimed janitor and now turned rapist.. lol

    Ed P
    Trinidad and Tobago

  • Eloise Ebersole says:

    I just pointed my browser to http://www.princetonpremier.com and up came this message from Parallels H-Sphere:

    Account for domain princetonpremier.com has been suspended.

    If it looks like a rat, and smells like a rat….

  • Wow, Eloise. Thanks for pointing out that the Princeton Premier website domain has been suspended.

    I wonder if they’ll pop up again somewhere else. We’ll all have to keep a watchful eye out, won’t we?

  • Angela says:

    Thanks for doing the research, all of you. Made it so quick and easy for me to confirm my suspicions.

  • Steve says:

    I notice that there’s a feed of “press releases” of people who have been “selected for inclusion” into the Princeton Premier.

    P.T. Barnum was right, and in this case, all the suckers are people with otherwise impressive credentials. This list is more like a Wall of Shame of people who believe anything they read on the Web.

  • JennyC says:

    just got this “offer” myself, so regardless of the suspension of the website, they are still at it. i replied with a snotty note… i am sure to no avail…..

  • Sophia says:

    Unfortunately, although I am always most vigilant, I was caught off guard and fell for this scam (stupid, I know, no need to tell me). My credit card company says that as I have nothing in writing they are unable to make a dispute claim. Has anyone else made a successsful dispute claim, and if so, how did you go about this?

  • Darren says:

    I receive this email (and now the Presidential Who’s Who Directory) on 2 different email accounts. Both of which can be found in Jigsaw (www.jigsaw.com). Is this where they are getting the email address from? I do not give out my work addresses to anyone except work contacts and colleagues.

    If you get this email, check to see if your contact info is in Jigsaw, if it is, that might be where they get your info from.

    Just a thought….

  • Barry says:

    11 April. They’re still at it. What was an obvious scam popped in my office e-mail. Out of curiosity, I googled princeton premier scam and your site popped up first. Good work. The boodlers frankly were stupid, I’ve been all over the media and they only wanted to include me for 2009-2010. Where were they years ago? LOL.

  • Sandy says:

    I just got a phonecall from these people. First, I didn’t know what they were talking about…they said that they were replying to my application. I didn’t apply for anything, so I thought maybe I was nominated (like the Who’s Who registries). I did a quick internet search while this guy began his schpiel, and I found several links about it. I let the guy go through his whole deal, and then I knew he was going to ask me for money at the end. I took down his name and phone number: Michael Baldo, 888-767-7548, but he called on 718-932-1287. I gave him the runaround and told him I would call him when my state was no longer going bankrupt. He abruptly ended the call. I find it sad that they are still able to con people with these performances.

  • Chukkie says:

    Well I just got my American Express Gold Card statement and guess what? On April 22nd Princeton Premier took £170! How they got my card details I do not know because, despite all the emails and phone calls from them over a very long period, I have never given them out to anyone from PP.

    I called Amex immediately and they are investigating. I hope they take them to the cleaners.

  • Fanny says:

    I received the same email last week and signed up immediately.

    Today, they contacted me on phone today (James Pike with contact phone 001 887677548, same with Ms K says on March 3, 2009 at 5:09 pm)

    He firstly asked me many big questions and then said all they want is to collect a membership fee of $649 for 5 years or $859 for lifetime membership.

    At that time, I still have no idea if these people are just a scam or are identity thieves, but when he wanted credit card numbers from me. I would never give anyone my credit card number. So I said I didn’t have it at the moment and asked him to call me again tomorrow. He promised he would!

    When I hung up on him, I immediately googled ‘Princeton Premier’ and landed your blog quickly. Thanks God I still have a slight vigilance. I don’t think he will call me again but I should have done this ‘search’ work immediately after I received their email. I have wasted so much time on this annoying phone call!

    Your graciousness in providing this warning post to those of us receiving the Princeton invitation is truly appreciated.

    I am also glad to have a place to share my feelings.

  • Charles says:

    This really sucks. Abuse of Internet by some crooks. International crooks indeed is James Pike!(I guess fake name).And another lady called Jennifer Jennings who claims to be calling from Stranthon University. Both have called me within the last two weeks.

    I am a Ugandan and i leave in Uganda working as a journalist though i travel quite frequently. And yet these thugs knew a lot of my details;where i travelled to llate last year,my name,phone number,etc,except i am lucky they didn’t know my cheque book or credit card number. But my suspicion grew more when this bloody notoriuos Pike asked me for my ban book number and emphasised how he can get the 889 dollars from me for my award. For goodness sake,when did genuine awards get bought? I immediately smelt a rat and went on google to try and find out about them.

    I am so laughing but sad too for those they fleeced but wondering whether the highly reputable Princeton University cannot do something about their name being abused by some goons selfish for ill-gotten money? It’s because of that name that they are suceeding in their evil machinations. They are losers and will soon get caught.

  • Damick67 says:

    To All,

    They are still out there. I received this in my email May 3, 2009. Thanks for keeping the time I wasted on this to a minimum. I have been very successful in my chosen field and have many accolades as well as being in the Who’s Who of The United States as well as the Who’s Who of my home state. I’m pretty sure that I don’t need this company to keep my vanity intact. Anyway, this is the email that I received from them.

    Dear Professional,
    It is a privilege to inform you that you are being considered for inclusion
    into the 2009/2010 Princeton Premier Honors Edition Registry.
    This recognition is an honor shared by only the most accomplished
    professionals who have demonstrated excellence within their careers and
    communities.
    Inclusion into the Princeton Premier global network is considered a
    benchmark of achievement. Once accepted, your successes are documented and preserved for all time in the hardcover registry, which is distributed throughout the world.
    There is no cost to be included in the registry. Simply complete your
    application form and submit it within five business days to be considered
    for publication.
    You may access our application form using the following link:
    Princeton Premier
    On behalf of the entire Princeton Premier community, best wishes for
    continued success.

    Sincerely,
    Jay Harris
    Managing Director
    Princeton Premier

    Publications;
    AutoMatch, LLC
    707 Main Street
    North Caldwell, NJ 07006

  • Simon C Graham says:

    The individuals behind ‘Princeton Premier’ or their associates appear to have extended their program to impersonate America’s Registry (http://www.americasregistry.com/default.asp).

    However both the sent address and the (again basic looking) reg form carry a ‘strathmorebusinessleaders.com’ name. Check it at http://www.whoswhoregistry.net

    EDM received May 7 follows:
    —————————————–

    Simon,

    Congratulations!

    It is my pleasure to inform you that on April 20th, 2009 your information was reviewed for inclusion in the 2009/2010 edition of America’s registry.

    America’s Registry each year, recognizes and selects key executives, professionals and organizations in all disciplines and industries for outstanding business and professional achievements.

    As a leader in your field, America’s Registry gives you the type of national recognition not found anywhere else. People may join memberships, societies and organizations to develop business contacts, thus gaining credibility and/or exposure for themselves and their organization. As a powerful third party endorsement, America’s Registry offers this kind of recognition for individuals on a national basis with the added benefit of instantaneous networking with the other members.

    This recognition is shared by those who have reached a distinguished level of success in their chosen profession.

    Please take a moment to complete the invitation by clicking on the link below. We ask that you complete it carefully, as it will be reviewed by our editorial department.

    http://www.whoswhoregistry.net

    ** Please complete the online link by May 30th.

    America’s Registry is pleased to inform you that there are NO fees or dues to be included in the publication.

    On behalf of our board of directors and our esteemed staff, we wish you continued success.

    Sincerely,
    Robert Hopkins
    VP – Research Division

    America’s Registry
    26 Bond St.
    Westbury NY 11590
    Phone: (516) 333-8450

  • Jae Allyn says:

    The invitation is such obvious spam. We’re looking into reporting them and would encourage others to do so, too. That is, if it’s possible to do so. We’ve found it pretty hard to bust spammers.

    On 10 May 2009, the place I work for got the same basic ‘invitation’ that Simon Graham posted above. No doubt that the info. had been ‘gleaned’ from our company’s domain registration. No other way could they have put the invitee’s name and e-mail address together, and then put the name at the top ‘last name first’.

    It was also sent to an address that has never belonged to a person, It was only used for domain registration purposes, and a long time ago. (We’ve changed our domain contact e-mail address several times over the years due to spammers.)

  • fjp says:

    I am getting a series of emails from these guys almost daily. These come-ons have been around a lot longer than the Internet. When I was in high school (that would be in the 70’s) there was an outfit called “Who’s Who Among American High School Students,” and they would be happy to recognize you as a distinguished scholar as long as you gave them your grandparents’ addresses so they could be subjected to endless pitches to buy the $40 book.

    The Princeton Premier emails I am getting are from a “Mike Schlesinger” whose email address is princetonpremier@politicalnucleus.com. So I went to politicalnucleus.com to see what that was, and I got redirected to http://www.neweramail.com, which is in the business of selling mailing/contact lists. Thus eliminating any doubt that this pitch is 100% spam-tastic.

  • helen says:

    Thank you for doing all the research! It made it so quick and easy for me to confirm my suspicions.

    Here is the link that was included in the email,
    Form/Visit: http://fd8.formdesk.com/pgn/New

  • Ingrid says:

    Thanks for your excellent detective work – I got the mail from “Hikmat Sabeh [princetonpremiers@eautocentral.com]”…

  • Roberta says:

    Thank you for running this blog. The e-mail from Princeton Premier (Global Networks [frankthomas1121@gmail.com] aka John Tyson –
    Editor in Chief ) seemed scammy however I thought it best to investigate. I tried to find out some info about it and only forms and a bland web page emerged. So I googled on “princeton premier what is it really?” and came up with your site. Much appreciated.

  • Marty Kendrick says:

    Glad I found this site. I just got my “third and final invitation.” (yeah…right!) However when right-clicking on the “from” name in my in box, I came up with frankthomas1121@gmail.com. Now what kind of “business” as “prestigious” as the Princeton Registry would use a free G-Mail account.

    I think we should all join together to sign the mythical “Mr. Thomas” up for male performance enhancers, low cost medicines, and some porn to keep him occupied. 😉

  • I just received the same blarmy on my work e-mail account. I knew it was a scam within the first few lines. I work hard and get by, but hardly consider myself to have achieved professional heights in either my vocation or my avocation. And I’m way too old to aspire to such levels at this stage of the game. When they spread it on that thick, it is something one chokes on and can in no way swallow! Which is why it’s referred to as a ‘vanity’ scam. Perhaps its something learned as one ages, but I am waaaaay past being vain about anything. Lord, I don’t even wear makeup any more! In any case, they’ll get nothing from me even if they try–I’m on a debt management program and no longer have credit cards. Ha! Reverse the scheme and let’em swallow that…

  • Georgeta says:

    Hello, and I am glad I found this site – just like everybody…

    I got the same message and as much as I wish to be famous (ah, vanity!) I do not wish to became even more poor due to this scam…
    Thanks to all for the info – I was suspicious from the beginning but when third email arrived urging me to apply I told myself – no way someone wants me so bad to be famous…
    Thanks again to all.

  • Well, fortunately I’m suspicious at the first, so I goggle’ing the “Princeton Premier” and found this blog.
    They sent me many e-mails, and I just don’t have time to open it :p
    and once I open it, i was suspicious, so, I search information about this networking.

    This is the link website that tehy gave : http://www.formdesk.com/pgn2/New
    I klik it, but not fill-in (fortunately).

    This email sent by this address : frankthomas1121@gmail.com (they said it ‘Global Network’).

    and thanks to this blog to, I found out that “presdential Who’s Whos” also a scam.

    Well … I hope your US Government do something about this site. It’s spread all over into Asia :p

  • Seth says:

    They sent this garbage to an address that was clearly scraped off a web site. That increases the penalties for spamming; now if only NY’s Attorney General could be interested in dealing with them.

  • Traci D says:

    I was very suspicious of the over kill of flattery! I have not been in advertising that long however I knew enough to know that such a establishment as Princeton would not have such a dismal setup nor would it be so casual. I am glad others felt the responsibility to post their views on this matter and I hope as a group, we all continue to look out for each other and the “new guys”.

  • Melissa O says:

    Thank goodness I googled Princeton Premeir before filling anything out. I work for a non profit that helps children with cancer and we’re often approached about different awards and acknowledgments.

    However, it is not uncommon to be preyed upon by scammers so I’m always hesitant to fill out anything before doing a little investigating.

    Hopefully someone is working to stop these jerks and using a cloak of an established institution like Princeton.

  • Simon C Graham says:

    Just an update on the dubious directory genre: My work email address has worked itself down, or perhaps up the food chain to ‘Continental Who’s Who’ who promise me inclusion in their esteemed ‘Inner Circle’. I am told I “quintessentially” meet the required standard of exceptional professional expertise. Well, perhaps I do, but a quick search suggests this has been the same deal as Princeton Premier etc for a couple of years.

    The professional-looking site is at http://cwwsummit.com/.

    The email domain is @cwwsummit.com and you can see known derivatives at http://spamnation.info/go/domain/continentalwhoswho.com

  • Neil Hepburn says:

    I too received this wonderful email and immediately began to blush with all the flattery that they were shoveling. . . ya right. Anyhow, I did a whois search on the domain name mywhoswhoapplication99.com. The search returned a Payton Lowe as the administrative contact. I then googled “Payton Lowe” and found a press release (dated April 15, 2009) stating that a Payton Lowe and others have been charged by the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) with running a forex ponzi scheme. I wonder if these two Payton Lowes are one in the same?

  • Hi,
    I’m a Compliance Officer for a major firm and I also run a small internet marketing company. We help very small home businesses and tiny companies get a foot hold with internet marketing and website development. From experience…

    The best thing to do is fill out a complaint with the FTC:
    https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/

    After you get the FTC complaint filled online, send the complaint number to your state attorney general. Any attorney general can open a case but it takes about 5,000 complaints to get anyone interested in a spammer case. Each email violation is at least $200 with a sanction cap of about $2million. In nasty cases, the per email sanction can be as high as $16,000 and jail time can result.

    End result, your email is sold from the current bankrupt spammer to another spam entity… and the SPAM war continues.

  • Ole Holsti says:

    Glad I Googled this before filling in their questionnaire. I will file an FTC complaint.

  • LMAO says:

    thanks for posting this blog… it truly is very flattering to be invited, afterall I truly am a formidable businesswoman and the world deserves to know about me 😉

  • Charlotte Anne Bond says:

    I got this in my email today and figured it a scam, but thought I would investigate. I wasn’t even into being in Who’s Who in high school and more than twenty years later I doubt my vanity has gone up much in that area (however, I do spend far more on beauty products). I do feel sorry for those who fall for scams online. Particularly in these tough economic times where people may be more desperate for some quick fix to financial woes. Thank you for posting this blog. Shame on the louse who starts these scams.

  • John Earl says:

    I received an email from Mr Thomas and my suspisions were immediately aroused by the fact that he had a gmail email address. So I too “googled” the organisation and came to this blog. My reason for making this contribution is to say that one has to be alert to all sorts of scams. I was subject to another attempted scam that involved internet domain names. I am associated with a domain name “nogalesinternationalwastewater”, and I recently received an email from a domain name control company in China informing me that a certain gentleman in Hong Kong wanted to register a domain name “nogalesinternationalwastewater” with a .hk suffix. I was informed that if I thought this would harm my business I could protect the name. My first thought was why on earth should somebody in Hong Kong want to use such a domain name. Anyway, I smelt a rat so to speak and I asked if protecting the domain name would cost me a fee. Of course it was going to so I didnt progress it any further thinking good luck to the man in HK!

  • Long Art says:

    Thank you for this great blog and the big tip off. In this day and age of scammers and spammers, I am grateful to folks who take the time to warn the public. I can’t help but suspect the owners of this alleged prestigious organization who sells you canned air and fake business prominence, are nothing more than some Nigerian scammers who work out of those dumpy internet cafes. These guys have a great racket in sucking in lonely people on internet dating sites. Once sucked in, your bank account is sucked dry. Some of their other scams include a variety of great business opportunities that await you for a mere minimal investment. In return you are to reap millions of dollars, but in the end again you reap canned air. Buy a can of baked beans instead!

  • Sandy says:

    Oh yeah. This one and the International Honors Society and Who’s Who of whatever. Don’t these people have anything else to do with their time?

  • Thank you for your blog.

    I got it by fax this morning, then I Googled it. Read Consumer action website article and your blog.

    At this recession, people have many “business idea”…included balloon boy’s father…so sad…

    Anyway,thank you! Have a good one.

  • Regina says:

    I just received a fax from them today but knew right away that it was a scam; into the “circular file” it went!

  • Dale Pinto says:

    I got sucked into this and now I want to stop getting billed for it. I went to their website but there is no email contact address and only a form that I duly completed but I am not sure if they will reply. I am from Australia and wondered how I might have this automatic billing stopped?

    Any assistance appreciated.

  • ramona maintanis says:

    they are the notorious Nigerian ponzi scheme spam artists

  • F Andrew says:

    It all started when I completed an online request to fill in my details so that I will be listed for FREE in their registrar thinking no harm doing that. Today, I received an international phone call (I am currently working in Beijing) from Richard Wellington (calling from the States) to congratulate me that I have been shortlisted! He spent at least 20 minutes on the phone interviewing me and allowed me to gloat… The last 5 minutes he spent telling me that all I need to do is to pay USD 600++ to upgrade to gold or platinum. Then to USD 200++ until he gave up and ended the call, albeit abruptly.
    What a scam!

  • John Meyer says:

    They have up the ante a little bit. Now using different URLs. I got the email from info@evelynthany.com. I tried to view http://WWW.evelynthany.com but that was just a dummy Apache web page. I used http://www.networksolutions.com/whois-search/evelynthany.com
    to track the URL back to Princeton Premier. A quick Google got me to their web site, and then to yours.

    -John

  • Karen C. says:

    I got scammed and demanded a refund and threatened to sue. They are now called “Princeton Global Networks” and PU itself should be suing over their using their name and being such RIP-OFF artists. Never answer calls from their group of deviant rip-off artists (a landline traced to the Bronx, NYC) – 718-766-8626. What a bunch of desperate losers. I’m a smart woman with 2 masters degrees and somehow fell prey to this when I ws feeling low and professionally vulnerable.

    I threatened a Better Busines Bureau complaint and blogging. Worse comes to worse I will cancel my Visa card # and get a new one – what a pain. I can’t change my phone number but may be able to block them on my home number. Our phone company aNd police said they couldn’t do much. IF PRINCETON GLOBAL NETWORK CALLS YOU AND TELLS YOU THAT YOU HAVE BEEN CHOSEN FOR SOME HOKEY LIST, TELL THEM TO GO STRAIGHT TO HELL!!!

  • Beware says:

    They got my information off of careersbuilders.com. If you want to apply for a job, don’t do it on careers, go to the official website of the company and apply. Careerbuilders email me about scams on jobs.They harrassed me by calling me constantly. I end up threaten and cursing the guy over the phone because my husband an investigator and i’ll hunt you down. Then I reported them to the better business bureau. If you receive any phone like these: 313-528-6738..347-381-3748..don’t give in, and he had the nerve to call me @ 8;30pm. lol..wow desperate is not the word. 1-888-767-7548..it’s pre-paid phone, and there address is a P.O. Box..its a Major Scam.

  • DarkLegacy85 says:

    They almost got me on nov. 2, 2011 at 9:00 am.
    But when i was asked what credit card i would like to use i told him i wasn’t giving him my number his reaction was” That’s Sad”
    And then he hung up.

    Caller’s Name – Doug Peters(He had a british accent)
    Caller ID Number – 347-381-3748
    If they ever call back again, they won’t like what i’ll have to say.

  • MensHelpTv says:

    Open a new account then they can’t get S.H.I.T.
    MensHelpTv

  • Sam Walton says:

    An Edward something called me from 718-285-0166 (without an appointment) and had a few questions around my career achievements, company goals etc., then congratulated me on having been accepted into their “elite club”. He then wanted to know how I would pay for a 5 year or a lifetime membership (some 600-800$), upon asking for a day or two to think about it he insisted I give out my credit card details over phone right that moment. I refused to do so and he hung up abruptly. Another scam!

  • Kimberly says:

    I have had unauthorized charges on my credit card by these people. I canceled my card and 1/2 of the charges reversed! The other half my credit card company said that it fell into ‘good faith’, hopeing that princeton global network would care enough to return the unauthorized charges.
    Had to go through the better business bureau to get a response from them. I wanted everything documented! They answered…. they would not acknowledge the 3,500 that they charged without my permission. All they did was repeat themselves over and over again.
    The BBC did all they could.
    Good faith??? These people do not care about anyone! They are Just after your money!
    DO NOT GIVE THEM ANY OF YOUR CREDIT CARD INFO!!!!

  • Oh my. The story just seems to be getting worse and worse. I hope you are able to recover your money.

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