Fraud Alert: Credit Card Processor Merchant Accounts
Symbiotic Design™ has experience dealing with merchant account providers, not all of it good. Believe it or not, there are major credit card processing companies on the internet who conduct business fraudulently.
As an example:
CreditCardProcessor.com uses the old Bait and Switch to Defraud Symbiotic Design™:
Reference: Fraud Alert
I am writing to alert you and make you aware of the FRAUD practiced by the company CreditCardProcessor.com on Symbiotic Design™.
Hello.I am Douglas Peters. I was looking to setup a merchant account for my company, Symbiotic Design™ (http://www.symbioticdesign.com/) so that I could take credit cards online through my web site. You won't believe the fraud that was perpetuated by CreditCardProcessor.com on me and my company.
CreditCardProcessor.com uses the old Bait and Switch to Defraud Symbiotic Design™:
On February 20th, 2002, I, Douglas Peters, received a quote from one organization of 2.09% + $0.30 per transaction, a 10.00 per month statement fee, $5.00 per month gateway charge, with a $400.00 with no other hidden fees.
The next day I received a call from CreditCardProcessor.com and I told Dan Lyons, CreditCardProcessor.com's sales representative, that I was not interested in his company's offer because I had a much better offer. Upon learning of this offer, on February 21, 2002, CreditCardProcessor.com said they were authorized to beat any quote and Dan offered 2.09% + $0.30 transaction fee, a $5.00 per month statement fee, $9.95 per month gateway charge, and a $299.00 setup with no other hidden charges. In order to pressure me, Douglas Peters, into the deal, Dan Lyons told me that this was a one-time offer and that it would not be offered again, but I could call them up, speak with anyone and cancel this contract before the electronic transfer was scheduled and my account would not be charged.
Upon receiving the proposal the very next day (February 22, 2002), I was astonished to find a $25.00 per month minimum transaction charge. This was not a part of the deal that I had made with Dan, and I called up CreditCardProcessor.com immediately and canceled the order. Dan wasn't in, but Lance told me that Dan would get back to me. He was sure that Dan would correct the problem in order to retain my business. I made it clear that I was canceling the account under the terms which I received in writing via overnight express delivery, but if they wanted to retain my business because this was a simple error on their part I would be happy to discuss it.
At this point, CreditCardProcessor.com and I had entered into a verbal agreement for one deal and I was sent a contract for a totally different deal. I called up immediately upon reading these new terms and canceled my business with CreditCardProcessor.com, which negates the original deal and the modified version which was sent to me in writing.
Dan Lyons never attempted to get a hold of me, Douglas Peters (or my company, Symbiotic Design™), either by phone, email or post to retain the account (ever). To this day neither Dan or Lance has ever returned any of my calls concerning this matter (today is April 1st, 2002). Note that this is not an April fool's joke, I am very serious about this matter which has been going on since CreditCardProcessor.com called me on February 21st, 2002.
The first charge was due to debit my account electronically on Wed., Feb. 27th, 2002, had I not canceled my business with CreditCardProcessor.com. The first payment of $157.25 was for half of the setup fee and was not charged to my checking account on Feb. 27th, 2002. I was comfortable in knowing that CreditCardProcessor.com had no intention of doing business with me or my company. Instead, on March 12th, 2002, an illegal charge of $157.25 for half of the setup fee came out of my checking account for a service I had canceled. This cost me an additional $50.00 in insufficient funds charges and has ruined my otherwise good credit.
The only contract I have ever received for these canceled services is blank, unsigned and in my personal possession.
This is fraud in the worst way. Not only did CreditCardProcessor.com not deliver the contract under the payment terms as quoted (this is called the "Bait and Switch" a common fraud practice), they did not honor my account cancellation as their sales agent Dan indicated I could do (with anyone) easily. Furthermore, they also pulled money out of my checking account without authorization (upon canceling the order they had no right to any of my money for something I did not want). Since this has happened they have refused to refund me any of the funds which they have illegal and wrongfully taken from me. I hadn't even been asking for damages, until today.
I realize that this has already been a long drawn-out affair because of CreditCardProcessor.com's unwillingness to address this fraud and work with me on refunding me the funds which they have defrauded me and my company for. It will be a long battle to recover my losses and the damage that this company has illegally inflicted on me personally, as well as my small home based freelancing business, Symbiotic Design. I am still seeking a quick resolution to this case, but it has become obvious due to my constantly getting the run-around from CreditCardProcessor.com's customer service department that this will probably wind up being a court battle. However, I have resolved to fight this case of fraud to the end.
I have been treated with a who-cares attitude by their customer service representative who's typical answer only seems to be "I don't know". This was even her answer when I asked if they would attempt to rob me of any more of my funds. Since the initial charge of $157.25 was only half of the setup fee, it is possible that they might even try to fraudulently charge my account for another $157.25. She has never insisted that what her company is doing is not wrong or fraudulent. Her manager, Frank Bosah, is never there and has no extension. She refuses to put him on the line if he ever is in the office. The sales agents have never responded to my calls (I have asked them to respond numerous times).
For some reason, CreditCardProcessor.com's customer service agent wrongly believes that simply by viewing a proposal is the very same thing as accepting it's terms. I have an email to prove that this was not the case.
The only item modified in this email message is the link and password they issued me. This is otherwise, a full and complete archive copy of their message sent to me on February 21, 2002. This shows that I was looking at offers, only. No where does simply viewing a proposal constitute acceptance of a proposal.
In fact, it took a phone call from them to make me even take notice of them by promising to beat my earlier offer.
If you think that I could trust my business to such a fraudulent operation, or allow them access to my customer's personal and financial information, you are extremely wrong. CreditCardProcessor.com has pulled the old "Bait and Switch" fraud scheme on me and have hurt me personally, financially and business-wise, extremely.
These people just can't be trusted, they don't even operate within the law.
I am sending this email out to a variety of recipients. The list of recipients will include people at CreditCardProcessor.com, the Better Business Bureau, and potential attorneys (everyone will be addressed using the BCC field to protect privacies).A copy can be found on my web site at: http://www.symbioticdesign.com/alerts/fraud.html or you can follow a link to it there from the main page.
Additionally, hard copies will soon be delivered to law enforcement agencies, the FBI and Senator Daschle.
I stand behind this document and swear to God that it is true and factual to the best of my abilities. I will be happy to respond to any inquiry concerning this document. I will be updating the online version of this document as this case progresses. Furthermore, I have never downloaded any software or other materials from the CreditCardProcessor.com web site such as a shopping cart or credit card processing software, nor will I.
-Douglas E. Peters
Symbiotic Design™
http://www.symbioticdesign.com/-END of CreditCardProcessor.com FRAUD Alert
Update:
April 13th, 2002
I have contacted CreditCardProcessor.com repeatedly about this fraud and have filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau at www.bbb.org on April 4th, 2002. CreditCardProcessor.com has never bothered to contact me by phone, via email or through the post either on their own or through the Better Business Bureau. They have not only been sent a copy of this document through email, but also have been notified that it can be found online at http://www.symbioticdesign.com/alerts/fraud.html and continue to disregard this case.Obviously, CreditCardProcessor.com is not concerned about fraud or it would have addressed the facts in this case. I will be drafting a new plea for justice and sending out hard copies this weekend to parties with legal authority. I am now looking to recover the $157.25 which CreditCardProcessor.com stole from my bank checking account, the $50.00 in bank charges as a direct result of their illegal action, and the promise that CreditCardProcessor.com will never ever charge my account account or do any business with me or Symbiotic Design™ ever again.
-END of CreditCardProcessor.com FRAUD Alert UpdateYou can see the problems involved in setting up a merchant account from the example above. Learn from our mistake (it's cost us over $200.00, a hit to our previously good credit, undue personal, professional and business stress, so far).
Update:
February 2, 2003
Early autumn this past year I had been contacted by Officer Lew Reed who's police force had jurisdiction in this case. He informed me that Dan Lyons should be contacting shortly about settling my case. He informed me that I was only 1 of many FBI complaints concerning CreditCardProcessor.com all over the world that the FBI was investigating. He was doing preliminary investigations for them and giving Dan Lyons a small time frame in which to correct these situations.After approximately 3 weeks I still had not heard from Dan Lyons. I contacted Officer Lew Reed and informed him that no one from CreditCardProcessor.com had ever contacted since he had called me. He then informed me that he was forwarding my case, along with many others, back to the FBI.
To this day I keep the paperwork concerning CreditCardProcessor.com ready and handy for the proper authorities. But no authority has ever contacted me since Officer Lew Reed. The FBI has not contacted me. CreditCardProcessor.com has not contacted me. Dan Lyons has not contacted me. I have since, however, been contacted by another who shared with me a horror story accentuating how lucky I was in pulling out when I did. All I can do is warn people away from CreditCardProcessor.com. Don't let it happen to you.
To avoid such a catastrophe for yourself or your business, I recomend that you never deal with a merchant account provider, payment processor, or transaction gateway that is not a member of the Better Business Bureau. Additionally, Symbiotic Design™ has since developed a list of trusted Merchant Account providers with acceptable business practices. As this list does and will continue to grow, we maintain it seperately. Please see the link below.
Click here for a list of merchant account providers we DO recommend to all:
Symbiotic Design™ Recomended Merchant Account Providers
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This page last updated
February 2, 2003