I’ve just found a scam called Google Profusion that has been catching people out all over the internet, so much so that I feel it needs to be uncovered here.
I found an online ad, while downloading from Mediafire, about earning from home by posting Google links. I don’t normally respond to these things but some idle curiosity made me click on it while my file downloaded.
What came up was a blog called ‘youronlinesuccessblogs.com’ which seemed to be written by Emily Rosher with a nice photo of her latest check from Google at the top of the page and another photo of her and her family to the side.
This blog post is very persuasive along the lines of
Emily Rosher’s success story takes the cake for our success story for the month of September! Learn how she gets paid £5 to £30 for every website link that she posts on Google. She accomplished this through working from home 4-8 hours per week on her personal computer. Read her inspirational survival story below:
She explains how, using something called the ‘Internet Home Business Kit’, she was able to pay off £37,500 ($50,000) of debt and now makes a full-time living from home.
What’s more, if you want to copy her success, you can have the ‘Internet Home Business Kit’ sent to you for just the cost of shipping!
Below the blog post were a host of comments from apparently delighted users who were thanking her for putting them in touch with this money-making opportunity.
Just to see what I could uncover about this ‘free’ system I did a little website search in Google to see what other pages were on the blog. This one turned up seemingly written by Sharon Tan:
Sharon Tan’s success story takes the cake for our success story for the month of September! Learn how she gets paid $7 to $40 for every website link that she posts on Google. She accomplished this through working from home 4-8 hours per week on her personal computer. Read her inspirational survival story below:
I smelt a scam!
In fact the post was 95% percent identical to the Emily Rosher wording, only the previous employer and earning figures were changed. Even the comments were the same!
I clicked through to the ‘Internet Home Business Kit’ to find a page from Google Profusion with more claims about massive earnings from CPA and Adwords.
So I then did a search on Google Profusion. A little bit of research dug up claims that were markedly different from the comments on the blogs. According to one user he filled out the application form with his address and credit card details for the cost of shipping the ‘free kit’ and was surprised to find his card debited for an extra $59.95 for the first month’s ‘membership’.
There have been a myriad of complaints about Google Profusion and Profit Profusion. This seems to be a recurring post on various forums, including Google’s own – see http://www.google.com/support/forum/p/Google+Apps/thread?tid=421476d1f7d77382&hl=en
Keep well away from this one!
31 comments ↓
Great Blog post. I am going to bookmark and read more often. I love the Blog template ? if you need any assistance customizing it let me know!
thank you for your info about google pro fusion..i’m just about to purchase it…thank again ..and nice blog
Wow, I just stumbled upon this scam today. I’m from the Philippines and I am just amazed at how they customized the page for Filipinos. Everything was the same except for the photos of the lady who claims to have successfully earned through this. Sigh.
I just hope Filipinos won’t sign up for this scam. tsk tsk.
Thanks for the info!
im from the philippines as well. it did seem kind of fishy because the ‘testimony’ of the filipina who earned so much money was written very well in english. not to be mean or anything, but someone who spoke that well in the philippines would surely have a better job than being a cashier in some unknown grocery! and all the comments after were in english also… very very weird indeed!
I have been also scammed by profusion. I saw that the charge is only $2.66 and when i tried to close it says i have a discount of which i will only end up paying $1.66 but eventually, my brother’s debit card was charged for $166 which was not authorized.
Do you know how we can take the money back? My brother’s card is a debit card.
Joyce, I feel for you, and what a pity your brother didn’t use a credit card. But I still may be able to help.
First get your brother to call his bank and dispute the transaction. Point out that you were told you would only be charged $1.66 and the full charge made was fraudulent.
Next call the merchant’s help line and ask for your money back. Don’t take any of their crap about ‘you have a 7 day trial and can cancel after that’ because it’s hogwash. They’re just trying to keep you from claiming back.
Tell them you want to cancel all memberships and to charge back everything but the $1.66 shipping you were told they were charging in the first place. Don’t take any nonsense. Be polite to start with but, if they really pressurise you, tell them you are going to sue them for fraud.
Also email your complaint to this address which, I believe, is their customer service: support@productcustomerservice.com
give your order ID and order name and any other info that can help them trace your purchase (not your full card details though!)
Hope that helps
wow.. luckily I found your website! I almost sign up.
They advertised on facebook for Indonesian people. The story and everything are the same.
http://bizsuccessblogs.com/lastripurba/blog/?t202id=12806&t202kw=Fid-9
Thanks!
Thank you very much for the information Jonathan, I was thinking about getting it for my wife as she wants to do something online.
Good to know that somebody cares enough about other people.
Thanks again and great blog.
Trevor
OMG!
I just signed up to Google profusion. But i didn’t log-in to their website. Does it mean that they can’t get money in my debit card? They just charged me $3.88. What will I do so that they can’t get a penny in my debit card? I have just emailed them to cancel my account
Hi Beth, they can still get your money because they have your debit card details.
I would do two things. One is ring them and say you want to cancel your membership, effective immediately. The other is ring your bank and tell them not to approve any further payment to the vendor who charged you $3.88.
Don’t just rely on the email! Best of luck.
I just know something’s wrong at first look! I will blog about this as well to spread the word. I can’t believe people still fall into traps like this.
Nice job!
Jonathan, thank you for saving a lot of people from getting further ripped off by these professional scam-bags.
It is really amazing of how they cleverly tailored each campaign targeting country by country. Just as well, I googled their url.
Good on ya bro. God bless you.
Cheers
Paul
[...] I was alerted to the latest ‘outbreak’ in Indonesia by Fenny who commented on my Google Profusion Scam Uncovered [...]
Thank God I found this blog. Jonathan, you are sent from heaven to save us.. I almost signed up too. Im from the Philippines and I have also read the testimony of this ” Rosario Bautista” which was linked to facebook.
Whew! That was close. I thought that they are helping.. OMG!
Thanks again Jonathan! God bless!
unlucky me. I’d signed up without looking at the T&C included. And now I’ve just realized that I was being scam. Anyway, good information you have hear. Thanks for sharing.
At first I was charged $3.88 as stated. And now, I was charged for the $59.95 without my aware.
Sorry you got caught by this one. Yes, you will get charged the full cost of this Google Profusion kit within 3 days of the initial ’shipping’ charge. Of course 3 days doesn’t give you the chance to see the kit fully before making up your mind whether it’s for you! This is the essence of the scam. It looks as though you are getting it all for $3.88 but, really, you’ll be charged the full price without having any ability to evaluate what you’ve signed up to. And watch out for the extra ‘memberships’ that will be added on too if you don’t cancel them!
Hi, thanks a lot. I almost signed up, but after reading the terms and conditions, it didn’t seem to be as “easy” and cheap as they made it look. So I googled Google Profusion and saw the link to this blog.
I suppose there is no such thing as easy money???
Easy money? Depends what you mean by ‘easy’.
I’m writing a system at the moment that shows you the way to make ‘easy’ money online. It’s the way I do it, so I’m telling it from personal experience.
Of course there’s some effort involved but, and here’s the clever part, once you’ve done that work then you can sit back and make money on autopilot.
I’m giving advance notification to my subscribers on this blog, so if you want to get this system as soon as I finish it, and at the lowest possible price, then please subscribe using the form on the right.
It seems they are now also advertising in the South African market – I came across this link this morning:
mysuccessblogpage.com/lindadavis/blog/
Ms Davis is apparently the lucky computer illiterate mother of two who “takes the cake for [their] success story for the month of October”. The lay-out is identical to those mentioned above, but features the words “South Africa Edition” in the top right corner. The description under “About Linda” in the SA version, is 100% identical to that of “About Emily” in the UK version – just a different picture. This time our unhappy little receptionist worked at Pam Golding Properties, and her grocery store cashier stint saw her hitting the tills at Shoprite.
I got suspicious (this was before I had read your blog) when I noticed several inconsistencies:
1. the name on the “actual cheque from Google” differed from that of our supposed wonder-mom.
2. for her alleged R900pm “in rent alone”, you couldn’t rent an empty hut on a deserted beach here; small 2 bedroom flats in SA currently rent for R3,000 – R5,000pm; especially in Cape Town, where Ms Davis apparently resides, rents are much more expensive than that.
3. At one point during the description of her “success story”, the currency symbol used changes from South African Rands to British Pounds: This gave me the distinct impression that it was pre-existing copy that had just been quickly (and sloppily) adapted by changing a few names and currency symbols. All in all, her figures and the information just didn’t add up.
I then checked out the “Internet Home Business Kit” page, and saw the following statement at the bottom of the home page: “GoogleProfusion.com is not affiliated with, endorsed by or in any way associated with Google.” MAJOR RED ALERT.
I went back and took a closer look at Linda, Emily and Sharon’s “actual cheques”, and noticed that the “issuing” company’s details in the top left corner read:
GOOGLE INC
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View, CA 94043
I then searched for the head office address of Google – the REAL one. And guess what I found?
Yup, 1600 Amphitheatre Parkway, Mountain View, CA.
http://www.google.com/corporate/address.html
Now, HOW exactly can a company that is, by their own explicit admission, in no way affiliated or associated by Google, have that company then “issue” cheques, on their behalf???
I also studied the Terms & Conditions: The “advanced consent/negative option” bit that subtly conned you into an immediate “hidden” debit of an additional USD59.95, and a continuous automatic minimum debit of USD90 pm thereafter, had me seeing red, and the “opting out” by calling a toll-free number (which CANNOT be dialled from SA, by the way), just screamed scam.
I did a bit of research and came across your excellent blog; I just wanted to add my bit to it. It will be downright shameful to allow more naive and trusting people to be conned by heartless bastards such as this.
And to anyone coming across any sort of money-making scheme, always do 3 things before even CONSIDERING parting with your credit card details:
1. READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS. And every other word displayed anywhere on that website.
2. GOOGLE IT. Read everything that’s been written about the company and scheme – good and bad. Make sure your sources are reliable and objective.
3. TRUST YOUR INSTINCTS: if it SEEMS too good to be true, it usually IS.
Thanks Elmarie, that’s so informative, I hope it helps others
Oh god, i just signed up to this scam! I used a debit card to pay for it. Though i sent an email to ask for everything to be cancelled- i still have 3 days until the trial runs out. do you think i will get away with it? or do you think i will be charged? thanks, matt.
Get on to your bank in the morning and make sure no further payments are put through on your debit card from the originator. Tell them you’ve cancelled but you need to make sure that no further charges are made. Hopefully it won’t cost you!
Hi jonathan! Unfortunately, I have signed up and gave my sister’s cc details. That was last Nov.29 and until now, I haven’t received anything other than the DO NOT REPLY email they sent me right after signing up. I tried to go back to the website (i bookmarked it) but everytime I tried, I would only get OOPS! THE LINK APPEARS TO BE BROKEN… then I started to believe that it was really a scam. I still kept on trying until I found your blog. I tried to call the 1-800 number the provided in the email if i have questions about billing and order, but i can’t go through. I am from the Philippines and I’m not sure if I could directly call the 1-800 or should I dial some prefixes. Please help me. I have already canceled my account through their website, but I’m afraid it won’t do any good. Is there a way for me to cancel the transaction in my sister’s credit card? The charge hasn’t reflected yet in her statement. Thank you so much in advance.
Hi Sheika
You should call your credit card company and tell them you have canceled your subscription and make sure no further charges are made by the originator to your account. Most credit card companies are sympathetic if you have been caught by this sort of scam and will do their best to get a refund (called a charge back) if you are unhappy with the service from the supplier. However you have to give them all the details and show them that you have done your best to cancel the account, which in your case it looks as though you have.
Do give your credit card company as much detail as you can, when you signed up, the address and telephone numbers given to you and so on. Best of luck.
By submitting this form you are ordering the Google Profusion Kit and Profit Profusion Membership.
You will be billed three dollars and eighty eight cents for the Google Profusion Kit and given a 3-day trial to ProfitProfusion.c
After your trial period you will be billed fifty nine dollars and ninety five cents per month allowing you to get up to the minute tips for your busine
You will also receive a free 7-day trial to Rebate Millionaire and a free 14-day trial to Network Agenda.
After the trial period, you will be charged $19.95 and $9.95 a month thereafter, if you choose not to cancel. Cancel any time by calling 800-934-0785. View full terms & condition
this is what I just found at the bottom of the website. Hope it helps!!
Adam
I just nearly signed up… I put all the details in, clicked confirm but then it asked me to tick the Ts & Cs box. I did not tick it and did my research finding this blog. Do you think those swines will have got me to? ish :s Im calling the bank in the morning.
How can you people call this product a scam if you haven’t tried it? Just becuase you read it was a scam in some shills forum? Have you ever bought a “how to” dvd/program before? This site is actually the scam. Using title tags like “Google Profusion Scam Uncovered” to get traffic. Pathetic. This is called negative marketing people. Essentailly, all Jonathon wants to do is get your email so he can email you his scam products. Watch out internet newbies!
Errm, it’s not me that’s calling it a scam! This is the response of people who have been caught by this system and their credit card has been fleeced to the tune of $60 – 70 when they thought they were only paying for shipping. And that sounds like a good description of a scam to me.
I’m happy to admit that I haven’t tried ‘Google Profusion’ or any of the other names that it goes under. That’s not the point. I HAVE tried plenty of dvd programs as you can see from the reviews on this blog. The ’scam’ in this case is the so-called ‘free’ trial for 3 days. No-one I’ve corresponded with yet has described that they received any 3 day trial before being billed for the full amount, plus a couple of other subscriptions that were unwarranted.
Personally I DO feel people should be warned that:
a) the 3 day trial is nothing of the sort and
b) this system has NOTHING to do with Google sending you checks as is claimed
And I’m not asking anyone to sign up to anything to find THAT out!
Dear Greg,
Would I be correct in assuming that you then have tried it? And have done so with success? It would be very interesting if you could share your experience and success report with us. Everyone here volunteers an opinion (without having to sign up for anything), and you are certainly entitled to yours; it would be very interesting and of value to all of us if you could report on your positive experience with Google Profusion.
And just out of interest, I can assure you that we are not “internet newbies”. I for one have been an Online Marketing & eCommerce Strategic Consultant for one of the world’s largest CRM consultancies since 2001.
The intention of this forum is not to badmouth products without warrant, and no one has any personal agenda; we simply share the actual and factual experiences of real internet users (with different levels of competence), with the view of giving those making the effort to do research before committing, some independent views and a fair chance.
Looking forward to hearing from you again.
Elmarie
GregJames: Did you read or even tried to read the comments posted here? Like mine? Or you just felt like posting here? Or worse, you’ve read it but you stupidly commented? I am a victim of this scam, and so are most of those who commented here. Personally, I signed up for GOOGLE PROFUSION and was asked to pay ONLY half of the shipping fee. But after a long wait, I didn’t get anything – NOTHING but a full charge of the shipping fee plus a WTF-i-don’t-know-what’s-that-charge for! In fairness to Jonathan, he has helped a lot of people already, those who were lucky to have read this blog before signing up.I have 2 questions for you: Why on earth you’re questioning us for calling it a scam if we haven’t tried it WHEN WE ACTUALLY ALREADY HAVE??!!?!?! And the other question is, HAVE YOU? If not yet, why don’t you? All I can say is GOOD LUCK! Think first before you post anything here. It appears that your fingers type faster than your brain work!
THIS IS A SCAM! Thanks for the post. I nearly paid for it. I was only a second away, when it said “click here to confirm you have read the terms”. So i decided to do that, and WEHEY! You get charged $59.99 after 3 days. Its a scam because it doesnt mention anywhere on the site, that you are going to be pulled in like this. Guys like these need to be shot in the walnuts for taking advantage of people who are already struggling.
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