ISCL Independent Shopper's Company Ltd

I received a letter in the mail today with a bid fat check! That's right a check for $3,405.00. The letter accompanying the check informed me that since I was a member of Earn Cash for Survey, which yes I do belong too, I was selected for a special mystery shopper job.

The letter instructed me to call 905-616-5531 to activate the check and then complete my assignment. My assignment included cashing the check and then going shopping at Walmart and send a Money Gram in the amount of $2,950 to Mary Samuel, Calgary, Alberta Canada. Then report back on my experiences.

None of this seems legitimate to me, so I decided to research it. My first step was to research the company on the check itself. The I searched on ISCL Independent Shoppers Company LTD., and this is what I found out about the company:

It’s a combination of employment fraud and a wire-transfer scam. You may answer an ad in the newspaper, or get a letter in the mail, like I did. It involves a bank check and a simple assignment. The check may appear to be very official looking and be accompanied with instructions on what to do with it.

Usually, you’ll cash the check, say for $3000, and then wire the sum of $2600 to an address provided. You will keep the remaining $400 and submit a report on the whole process. Was it good? Did it go smoothly? How was the customer service?

Other versions of the scam ask you to cash the check, use the Western Union service at a local store, such as a Walmart, and then send some of that money to a given address. Again, you keep the difference for yourself. The “shopper” is also put under extreme pressure to do the whole assignment in 2 days or less, for obvious reasons. And you can guess what happens.

The check bounces and the mystery shopper is left out of pocket. Sometimes, it can be five-figure damage. These guys look and sound like the real deal, complete with corporate stationery and professional websites.

Don't fall for it. I have sent an e-mail to the company that the check was issued from informing them that I received the check and I did not believe that it was real. I will post when/if I get a response from them.