We ship packages for UPS. Yesterday a customer came in who wanted to ship cash to Publishers Clearing House (PCH). The shipment/sending of cash made me suspicious. When asked why they were sending cash and not a check or cashier’s check, they said that PCH would only accept cash. The customer indicated that they had received a check drawn on a bank in Florida and they were to send cash back to PCH.
The customer showed me a letter indicating that they had been selected by PCH and that they had won. The letter looked official except it wasn’t printed in color which to me, was another indicator that there something wrong. An internet search of the phone number on the letter came back as a Canadian number. Another red flag.
I called Publishers Clearing House and their representative said that my customer was being scammed. The PCH rep also said that if someone had won, then the Publishers Clearing House Prize Patrol would personally visit the customer. Publishers Clearing House does not notify winners via letter or phone. The PCH rep said the customer should not cash the check sent to them. The customer should contact their bank right away and also contact the local police and file a report.
The bottom line is that no one should ever mail/ship cash to an unknown entity. The fact that the receiving party would only accept cash is a bright red flag that something is not right with the situation. The following link is from Publishers Clearing House and discusses ways to tell if you are being scammed. http://blog.pch.com/blog/2013/
Although I felt really bad for the customer but because of our experience with computer scams etc. and a few questions and a phone call to the right company saved them from being scammed any further.
Sincerely,
Roger Ramsey
Owner - Computer Clinic
Inventor/Owner SkyStream Solar167 North Main St.
Wellsville, NY. 14895
Roger Ramsey
Owner - Computer Clinic
Inventor/Owner SkyStream Solar167 North Main St.
Wellsville, NY. 14895
