ACQNET: RE - MDSC Publishing & other business directory scams

Date: Mon, 22 Sep 2003 06:22:56 -0400
From: Joan Bueter (Barry University) <jbueter_at_mail.barry.edu>
Subject: RE - MDSC Publishing & other business directory scams

I don't know what our standing would be or what it would take to
organize this
as a formal group.  It seems to me as long as everyone has the names of
these companies and reports their activities to the FTC as Brad
suggests,
and also to the US Postal Service, to the States Attorney Office in your

state and to the Better Business Bureau we are acting as a group.

I know that my library has not been contacted by any of these companies
for
months, (knock wood) so I have reason to believe that they got the
message
and know that we are not fooling around with this form of theft and
economic terrorism.

Joan Bueter
Barry University Library
Miami Shores FL, 33024
jbueter_at_mail.barry.edu

-----Original Message-----
From: Eleanor Cook [mailto:cookei_at_appstate.edu]
Sent: Sunday, September 21, 2003 3:45 PM
To: acqnet-l_at_listproc.appstate.edu
Subject: ACQNET: MDSC Publishing

Date: Tue, 02 Sep 2003 11:12:47 -0400
From: Bradley Vogler (Hernando CO PL System)
<BradleyV_at_co.hernando.fl.us>
Subject: MDSC Publishing

First - please excuse the cross posting of this message.  Second - I
would
like to thank all of the people who have taken time to respond to my
queries on business directory scams.The advice I have received from
those replies
has helped immeasurably.  For almost a year now we have been getting
calls
from MDSC Publications in Canada, a known scam company, and I found a
case
filed by the FTC, http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2002/11/handson.htm against
Hanson
Publications, who used the same selling practices as most of the scam
directories I've come in contact with.  I have filed a complaint with
the
FTC about MDSC, and I'm asking that if your library has been contacted
by
them that you do the same.  (ED. note: That is, if you can get the site
to
work. Brad provided a URL that is not working at this time: )
http://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU01

It seems like librarians have come up with various ways to combat these
scam companies, but I'm wondering if, as a group, we companied to one
organization it might have more of an effect on stopping some of ! this
problem.

Thanks for your help,

Brad Vogler
Collection Management Librarian
Hernando County Public Library System bradleyv_at_co.hernando.fl.us





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