Be warned Adwords Account holders: New email in circulation

[dharrison]

Hi all

I have just warned all my customers and I will do the same for this community: I have just received an email from Click Settlement (or claims to be) that reads the following:

This court-ordered notice may affect your legal rights. Please read it carefully. If you purchased online advertising from Google between January 1, 2002 and the present, you are a class member in a class-action lawsuit in the Circuit Court of Miller County, Arkansas. This notice is to inform you of the Court’s certification of a class; the nature of the claims alleged; your right to participate in, or exclude yourself from, the class; a proposed settlement; and how you can claim an award of advertising credits under the settlement. Please read the attached notice.

You can get more information at: www.clicksettlement.com.

It is written in 8 different languages and the URL isn't pointed to click settlement (or the like).

Seems to be a mix between the 419 scams and the phishing emails.

Just thought I'd mention it y'know. If it saves one person from being fooled, I would say it was worth it. I have also notified Google.

HTH

[Adam Lasnik]

Google's made an official announcement on this topic. You can check it out here:
http://adwords.blogspot.com/2006/05/...ettlement.html

[TrafficProducer]

Read this WARNING !!!

And other notes:

http://www.webproworld.com/viewtopic...=301695#301695

Sorry if I repeat, if it is fraud it needs to be stopped as soon as possible, this BUT Read the WARNINGS: Is it Phishing


A Ponzi scheme is a fraudulent investment operation that involves paying returns to investors out of the money raised from subsequent investors, rather than from profits generated by any real business. A Ponzi scheme offers high short-term returns in order to entice new investors, whose money is needed to fund payouts to earlier investors, and to lure its victims into ever-bigger risks.


http://www.webproworld.com/viewtopic...ent+com#301647

http://www.webproworld.com/viewtopic...=301695#301695

http://www.webproworld.com/viewtopic...ment+com+legal

http://forums.site-reference.com/top...else-get-this/

More Scams and Hoakes Links

[dharrison]

I just got an email from Google saying that it was for real.

So the content is right but the link is a hoax.

Very very crafty.

[incrediblehelp]

I just got an email from Google saying that it was for real.

So the content is right but the link is a hoax.

Very very crafty.

Um yeah just like eBay and Paypal are for real the those phishing email links are not.

I thought everyone knew that Google was sued and lost for PPC fraud by now?

[senaTTor]

I just got an email from Google saying that it was for real.

So the content is right but the link is a hoax.

Very very crafty.

I got this email too, and all the links seem to match up with the notice from Google (i.e. clicksettlement.com and clicksettlement@xmr3.com) I'm not sure I see the hoax. Plus they're not asking for anything...?

Maybe I'm crazy. Scratch that - I'm definitely crazy. Seems like this one is real?

[Christian_SEO]

Please explain the scam part of this mailing of which I received about 6 copies?

All were addressed to valid Google account emails and none were received on any of the normal addresses that I received spam on.

From my prespective, this is a SPAM mailing that is connected to the law firm in the case. Check the domain that the site is registered to.

The attachment is a PDF file and provides more information as stated. If there is a danger in the PDF, please let me know about it...

I think the mailing should be reported as SPAM, since the party behind the mailing (the law firm) is a commercial operation that stands to profit BIG TIME if everyone goes along with the suit. One place to do that is www.spamcop.net.

[ron angel]

The thing is where did they get the mailing list to just the right people, was it inside or privileged information they were using if so did they break the law? the dns record show that the site belongs to
Gilardi & Co. Created on.: Fri, May 12, 2006
to where it was redirected.



www.ssrichardmontgomery.net

[anablake]

We also received this email.

I wasn't aware that email was a valid conveyor of legal notice in the United States. Is this something new? Any class action suit that we have previously been involved with have always had notice delivered via U.S.P.S. or posted in the legal notices section of the newspaper.

From a CBS news article dated May 5, 2006:

Attorneys suing Google in the California case say they will do everything possible to persuade advertisers to reject the Arkansas settlement.

"Google's motto is 'do no evil,' but it's not following its own advice by entering into this kind of settlement," lawyer Brian Kabateck said.

If enough advertisers balk, it might derail the deal. Google has the right to nullify the settlement if advertisers that supplied more than 5 percent of its revenue since 2001 reject the agreement.

Google spokesman Barry Schnitt said Kabateck and his colleagues are trying to rally opposition to the Arkansas settlement so they can revive the California lawsuit in an attempt to drum up more fees for themselves.

Stephen Malouf, a Dallas lawyer who negotiated the Arkansas settlement, doubts advertisers can get a better deal than what Google has offered. "It's easy to take cheap shots now, but what is the alternative and what are the chances of success?"

Now, if we look at who the website is registered to:

Gilardi & Co.
Timothy McGoey
3301 Kerner Blvd
San Rafael, CA 94901
US

Interesting, California -- "Experts in Class/Mass Action Administration." (http://www.gilardi.com)

[mont7071]

I don't see how either of you can feel that this email is "spam" . It is sent to a specific, targeted class (the contact info of which they got FROM GOOGLE). Just because the lawfirm sending out the message will benefit from the eventual class action settlement doesn't make this spam. It's alot more efficient method to contact the people who are affected (PPC advertisers)then digging up WHOIS info for every person who has ever spent any money on PPC. Considering the audience, webmasters who presumably are used to email as a form of communication, this is the most efficient method to keep advertisers informed of such developments, and what they can do to participate in the class. If you dont' want to be part of the class, then opt out, but complaining that this communication is on par with " Buy Viagra Now" messages sent out to millions of random email addresses seems ridiculous.