A sucker is literally born every minute – the latest a$$hole to waddle past me takes the form of a spammer offering an advance fee/directory scam. The whole story starts out with them sending an email similar to the one below:
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
In order to have your company inserted in the registry of World Businesses
for 2009/2010 edition, please print, complete and submit the enclosed form (PDF file)
to the following address:WORLD BUSINESS GUIDE
P.O. Box 2021
3500 GA Utrecht
The Netherlandsemail: register@worldbusinessguidenow.biz
FAX: +31 20 524 8107Updating is free of charge!
If you are not the intended recipient, please submit an email to
unsubscribe@worldbusinessguidenow.biz
Your request shall be dealt with accordingly.
The attached form points out its “freeness” multiple times, but contradicts itself in the fine print at the very bottom. While this alone IMHO disqualifies them under Austrian law (misleading contracts are prohibited), the legalities of spamming potential customers IMHO doesn’t need to be discussed under the latest Austrian ECG act.
Their actual web site is pictured below: please do note that the date there is still displayed as the 24th of November:
P.S. I have googled the web looking for other “victims” of the World Business Guide scam, and found none who were actually prosecuted: it looks like the best thing is to formally dispute their charges and ignore both them and their (nonexistent) debt collection agency…
P.S.2. Thanks to Peter Burgstaller’s Lawfirm Linz and the FH Hagenberg, I am well aware that their action is not legal (thanks, Peter, for the great course). I have thus decided to go Ed Fagan on them – here is my response:
Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,
thank you so much for your letter, which constitutes punishable spam under Austrian legal code (§107 TKG)! I have passed this on to my attorney and will seek legal action against your company.However, I am willing to settle with your company for the payment of the costs I incurred in processing your email, which make up for a total of 35 Euros, which constitutes half an hour of work! I am more than willing to provide you with an invoice and a contract freeing you of all further claims from me if you so desire!
All the best from Vienna
Mos. Tam HannaP.S. I have taken the liberty to publish this to my well-read web site network:
….
Related posts:
What does “Mos.” mean?
Hello
I have been caught in this scam (World Business Guide). I am based in the UK. Is there anyone who can give me advice? I have paid one third of the fees.
Please help!
Angus Margerison
Hi,
the money you already paid is lost unless you can get a refund via the bank or credit card company.
As for the rest: IANAL…but ignoring them is a good way
All the best
Tam Hanna
Hi Tam
I managed to stop the payment this morning. I have also contacted a solicitor. We have forwarded requests to them asking for how they got my address in order to send the illegal unsolicited email and also where their company is based. We haven’t had a reply yet. What should I do. Did you sign the form too? Should I just ignore them and hope they’ll go away? Do you know anyone who’s been prosecuted by them?
Thanks for your help.
Angus
Hi Angus,
no – I just looked at it and blogged it.
Jokes aside: as far as I have heard, nothing has ever happened to anybody. They just keep calling you…and can be sweared at with no consequences (one guy did that at least).
Of course, I am neither a lawyer nor all-knowing and thus can not give you a guarantee for anything.
All the best
Tam Hanna
They tried this scam in Trinidad several years ago and I just received this new email spam at my private address and am alerting a local paper because they ripped off several companies. The marketing manager in my former company read the “free” part, put on the company stamp and away it went. Poor girl, the bill came in and the chairman wanted to know what the hell was this. At the time the only way you could find your company is if you knew the name of your company (they had a rotten search engine). A guy called several times – we said we’re not paying. I was the litigation specialist and our written response was we are not paying, remove our name immediately, you can sue us – and remember you have to come to court with clean hands. Never heard from them again. Note on the new scam that although they list the same The Netherlands contact – on the website they say “The World Business Guide online is product of International Directories, a corporation organized and existing under the laws of BVI.” If you need a witness, email me. Tell them the world is a small place …
Hello!
I am very sad to be the next victim:( I just received the bill and sent an e-mail their way:
Dear Sirs,
I have received an invoice from your organization for the insertion of
Musicians Further Training Center in the world business guide.
Unfortunatley there has been a misunderstanding as we are a very poor
non-profit organization and we did not understand that your service is not
free of charge. We do not have the possibilitie or interest to be added to
your system if it is not free of charge as we understood. I’m sorry for
any incoveniences, I have already posted the invoice, CDROM ect back to
you.
What should I do next..?
As if I don’t have enough work as it is.. I’m never signing anything again!
Looking forward to hearing from you.
All best,
Leelo from Estonia
Hi,
just ignore them!
All the best
Tam Hanna
I will try. If you have not joined, there is a community on Facebook about this called “Stop EU Business Services Ltd / Euro Business Guide”.
All best,
Leelo
Hi,
as said – I am not a lawyer and can’t do much.
All the best
Tam Hanna
Hi
Unfortunately I fell into the same trap back at the beginning of the year – when I found out I rang them straight away to cancel the order to which they told me I could not, only if I paid for the first year could I then cancel the following two years of the apparent contracted 3year period.
I Then decided to do exactly as you advise and ignor all correspondance from them, they have sent letters faxes and emails relentlessly at least once a week since.
This is the latest two emails
Dear Sirs,
Since you failed to comply with your financial obligations towards our company, we are currently preparing your file in order to send it to a debt management and collection company.
I have to underline the fact that ignoring the invoice no. 24588 , won’t make it go away. Only payment will.
Thus, if the invoice for the insertion into the World Business Guide is not going to be paid as soon as possible, your file will be sent to a law firm as transfer of debt; an additional legal fee in the amount of Euro 300 will be added to the amount already due, the total sum reaching Euro 1429.
From that moment on, the lawyer will be dealing with the given situation.
However, International Directories Group Ltd would like to avoid the occurrence of this unpleasant situation and consequently, we still hope that you will find a way to solve this matter in a forthcoming way.
Thus, please make the payment using the following bank details and send us the swift confirmation of the bank transfer.
Bank details:
PAY TO: World Business Guide
BANK: ING Bank N.V., P.O. Box 1800, 1000 BV AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands
IBAN: NL50 INGB 0001335004
SWIFT CODE: INGBNL2A
A/c#: 1335004
Waiting your reply and I thank you for your time and cooperation.
Regards,
Andreea
Account Manager
International Directories Group Ltd
Tel: +34 91 188 1696
Fax: +34 91 791 9167
andreea@world-businessguide.com
and then this one this week
Dear Sirs,
Please be informed that since your company has not fulfilled its contractual obligations with regards to the agreement concluded between ???????? and International Directories Group Ltd. on 08/01/2009, your file shall be forwarded to the Debt Management and Collection Company we are working with under the form of transfer of debt, Legal Fee in the amount of EUR 300,- supplementing your already due amount of EUR 1129,-.
Please be advised that International Directories Group Ltd is in possession of the original order, dated 08/01/2009 bearing the legal signature of a member of your company, thus making it legally binding. This constitutes the legal approval of the content of the order and of the Terms and Conditions for Insertion.
The original order is the legal proof that will be forwarded to the Debt Management and Collection Company in order to proceed with the Collection of Unpaid Account.
I would kindly ask you to advise us with regards to the status of the payment.
Waiting your reply and I thank you for your time and cooperation.
Regards,
Andreea
Account Manager
International Directories Group Ltd
Tel: +34 91 188 1696
Fax: +34 91 791 9167
andreea@world-businessguide.com
Is this really likely to go away or will I find the baliff knocking one day?? It all seems to be getting a little too serious??
yours faithfully
Colin
Good thing I googled this, before signing…
Thanks to everyone posting on this site.
We just got hit with an invoice for EUR995.00 this morning.
Straight away we smelt it! Tried ringing them in Utrecht (PO Box) then Madrid and told them we were trying to contact Utrecht. We wouldn’t give our company name, lovely lady said we would have to write to them!
I think THEY are now the suckers.
This is a scam, don’t pay anything, they have never taken anyone to court ever despite intimidation and threats. They claim to publish a number of directories.
Tell everyone and join stoptandt@yahoogroups.com for support and info if you are targeted.
And at long last the main drivers of the scam have been arrested in Switzerland – http://blogs.mirror.co.uk/investigations/2009/07/police-raid-novachannel-busine.html
Hi,
ignore them.
If they go to court, usually just reject the demand and you are set. They never enter court proceedings and rather pay the court fees themselves for retractiung!
All the best
Tam Hanna
Hi guys
im from Russia and like most of u i have been caught by this scam about a month ago. i have been receiving their ‘reminders’ several times since then. personally i have no worries regarding their threats but i am just confused that i will have to explain all this shit to my managers and lawers.. so silly…
if anyone can give an advice on how i can shut them up, please, comment here. unfortunetely, i doubt i can get any advice from the local authorities as they are not really helpful here in Russia.
many thanks
all the best,
Lisa
Hi,
you could theoretically threaten to sue them for spam!
All the best
Tam Hanna
Hi!
I am from Ukraine. I sent them a PDF file with a stamp by fax and e-mail,and now I have an invoice. I wonder everyone did it like me or they sent them an origion of the order by mail?
Thanks Tam. Probably you are right – this is the only way ((( I dont think I can take such responsibility
I will have to speak to lawer…
Bastards! They should have been arrested long ago!
Hi Irina
I sent the form by email. It doesnt matter how you send the form as they will keep on sending their bloody mails now anyway (((
Best,
Lisa
Hi Guys and Gals,
there isnt much responsibility in there. One user sends them threats of killing and nothing ever happens (as the moment they pop in court to file suit they will prolly be arrested)…
Theoretically, we could have loads of fun with them by registering a fake company and then f###ing around with em.
Of course, I don’t advocate any of this!
Tam
Hi Lisa!
At least it is good I am not alone! Please write about new threats from them, maybe you will have same advices from lawyer it is interesting for me to know, please write here. As for me I do not think it is legal when they have no original document. I am trying not to tell anybody from our company about it, because I am afraid to be fired, I just throw away their faxes.
ha ha someone told they would kill them?! that’s really funny )))
Hi,
just ignore them – this particular bunch is way to pussy to do anything (some German gangs are more dangerous).
Or threaten to sue them. Or whatever!
All the best
Tam Hanna
Hi Irina
I passed all info on them to the lawyer and i also approached local body on consumer protection. pls write your e-mail here, it would be easier if i tell u all detail via e-mail.
Cheers
Hi Lisa!
My e-mail is oclima@ukr.net. Thanks a lot.
Hi,
this will get you loads of spam. Should I remove the email adress for you?
Tam
Hi!
This is not my main e-mail, so do not worry. Thanks.
Irina
Hi Tam
I just wanted to say thank you very much for raising this subject in your blog! I am sure that will help people like us who were silly enough to fall into this to fight the spammers
))
Cheers
Hi,
it was a pleasure!
All the best
Tam Hanna
I’ve just receive their e-mail and my problem is to know how they managed to pick my e-mail address? Haven’t go one day to obongomail.com website or virtualterminalnetwork.com or graphcard.net; if so perhaps I can help for trace the way.
Hi,
random email harvesting!
All the best
Tam Hanna
We’ve been pestered by these bastards for about a year now. After not seeing anything about a price on the letter or website… and thinking it was a free service, I sent off the form thinking I would hear something back soon. About six months later I got an invoice for a ludicrous amount of money. I immediately wrote a letter asking to be removed form the site but it was to no avail and I got faxes in the middle of the night, emails and a plethora of letters for the next several months. I have sent several letters and even tried to call but have never received a personal reply… only more demands for money and threats to increase the amount. Finally I thought they had given up when I received a letter today from “Waldberg & Hirsch Global Collections LTD” demanding 1429 EUR.
Even if I could afford this I would not pay out of principal.. I would pay a lawyer more if I needed to.
Cheers,
Tobin
Oh… I forgot to mention the irony… \Waldberg & Hirsch Global Collections\ also does fraud investigations!
Perhaps we should hire them to investigate their own clients???
I received exactly the same letter today from Waldberg and Hirsch!!
I am going to ignore it but it’s starting to really, really piss me off. Complete bastards!! Sending misleading spam e-mails to companies that never asked for them and then chasing for ridiculous amounts of money. I’ve heard of one lady who’s been chased for over 2 years with letters, e-mails and phone calls. Very tempting to say I think we should all group together and get a cheap flight over to Spain and pay them a visit?
hi- just spoke with the “accounts manager” Olga about the same issue
when I asked under which jurisdiction they fall, I was informed that they are registered in the british virgin islands – a tax haven. so now we have the netherlands, spain and the virgin islands!
Told her I would not pay as the form was misleading etc and that they had obviously spammed to get the email address (she told me they went through “direct marketing”)
basically i will be ignoring further contact – but if it gets too bad – I think we could accuse them of harassment!
I will join the facebook group
People, I agree to all what you said, I have been in the same situation plus I have asked for cancelling our company from their directory and I am not going to pay too.I really appreciate this blog is available that we all support each other.
Have a nice day,
Cheers!
Hello,
I am also persecuted. I just receive a letter from Walderg & Hirsch and they ask me to paid 1429 euros included 300 euros for legal fee!.
I will continue to ignore them but really ennoye! How thinks like this can be possible!Hope someone will bring them one day to code.
Thanks per advance to this one.
Hi
I work in London and have been hit with the same scan. We are extremely busy right now and I didn’t , like most people, read the small print. My boss signed the sheet in a rush and now we have been hit with a bill.
I have read all your comments and they have made me slightly more relieved. But, does anyone have advice as to what legal standing I have against them in the UK?
Please help! This is not something I want to discuss with my boss unless necessary.
Got hit last xmas when really busy too. Just recieved Waldberg & Hirsch Global Collections letter this morning. (they seem dodgy too – I called and they hung up!)
Write to everyone you can that WBG refer to and report them – I also wrote to Office of Fair Trading in UK, they can’t really do anything but have registered the complaint (misleaading form)if we ever need to refer to it. The more people who write and complain to offical bodies, the more likely they will team up and investigate. I even wrote to their bank and although I didn’t get a response, WBG changed their banking details! Spam any e-mails you get from WBG (mark them as Junk mail etc)and basically ignore their threats – They are bullies and as most have said, rather end up paying legal fees than pay WBG! (Which no one has had to to date) It’s upsetting at first, but these guys are more than welcome to come over here and face us!
Hello,
It seems to me that i have been the next victim in this scam, i am based in the Algarve and received the email on a busy July afternoon, printed signed and posted it off only to receive the invoice for 995 for the first year, after a phone call, letters and many emails i am still fighting to cancel the subscription.
Good to read i am not the only person that has done this but a bit concerned that these emails will be going on for longer.
Has anyone taken legal advice as i am keen to take this further and get them to pay for what they are doing to us all!
One more thing….. i have written to “Watch Dog” in the UK so if more of you can send emails perhaps they would be able to help…..
Hi everyone,
I seem the next victim when I received fax and Copy Invoice No.34072 for charging 995 Euros this morning. First of all, I’m very suprise and worried about this. But then I’ve send an email to them requesting delete my company name in their Edition because we don’t have financial ability to pay.
We are all dupes of the International Directories Group Ltd and I think we have to do something to stop their trap to the next victims. Rather we pay legal fee than pay to WBG.
Thank you Tam for your kind when raising this subject in your blog
Dzung – from Vietnam
There is more information on European City Guide which is connected to World Business Guide. This YouTube link is worth watching:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHX-3Vyr9v4&feature=channel
Hi,
once again: WBG = jerks, ignore them.
Summon from court: reject claim in writing ASAP.
All the best
Tam Hanna
I am the next victime of this World business guide shit. I am from Slovenia. Hope this swindlers will be cought ASAP. It looks like there is every minute another of this scam – worldwide.
Are there any ideas how to get the money back?
BR,
Brgo
*
It looks like there is every minute another VICTIME of this scam – worldwide.
Guys, thanks SO much for printing all of this. I got hit recently too, but of course DIDN’T pay anything at all. I keep getting emails and faxes too. One every week. I think I’ll just **** around with them and threaten to sue them for spamming me. This HAS been on my mind though, hence my reason for googling. SO glad I stumbled across this website. Again, MUCH thanks.
Mary
Hello from France… and THANKS to Tam for this information.
we began to receive this sort of … joke ? hoax ? scam ? … today, and my clients, lawyers, will be pleased to receive the message I’m able to write to them because of Tam !!!!!
All the best
NR
Hello from France,
THANKS to Tam for this information !!!!!!
We received this… how to say… Joke ? Hoax ? Scam ? this week…
Our clients, Lawyers and Funds, will be pleased to receive the “be careful mail” I’m able to write because of Tam !!!
MERCI TAM !!!
All the best.
NR
I got this email letter today and thanks to You I am not going to submit for it, thanks.
Ladies and Gentlemen.
In order to have your company inserted in the registry of World Businesses
for 2009/2010 edition, please print, complete and submit the enclosed
form (PDF file) to the following address:
WORLD BUSINESS GUIDE
P.O. Box 2021
3500 GA Utrecht
The Netherlands
email: register@registerwbg.com
FAX: +31 20 524 8107
Updating is free of charge!
If you are not the intended recipient, please submit an email to
unsubscribe@registerwbg.com
Your request shall be dealt with accordingly.
it came from email adress: reg@wbgregister2009.com
Hi Guys,
it was a pleasure!
All the best
Tam Hanna
Thanks for this info – It looks like they have been stepped on anyway – the site yesterday was just blank and this morning the listing shows an account suspension message in their google listing – oh dear.
Hi,
I cant access their site as of this writing either!
All the best
Tam Hanna
This is a bit of a murky one, People…..you MUST read your correspondence thoroughly, then read it again. This type of thing has been going on for quite sometime, in many areas.
I don`t want to be the “party pooper”, or dis illusion you in some way shape or form, just state the thing as one has seen it, and sees it. (take the saying…you may not like what I have to say, but, you could consider or respect the perspective, then it`s up to you either way).
Another example is the, FREE product…you just have to pay shipping, which is well and good…BUT…then in the “fine print” (sometimes not so fine) they generally state that you will be automatically signed up to some sort of subscriber membership “FREE” for the first 30 days, then you will be billed $20,$30,$70 or whatever amount monthly, UNTIL you cancel it.
Most people are in a hurry and excited (the emotions sales people use and count on), miss the fine print (it is legally there), and before they realize, their credit card has been charged once, twice, three times etc. and left wondering where the extra charge was/is coming from.
With the Worldwide or International Directory issue, unfortunately, IF, they have a product, (I know this probably really sounds bad, as it looks, they have only spammed people, and using a what might be considered a less than decent form of marketing), they have included the price in the document, and the only thing that they have stated that was “Free” was updating, not registration….well…like I mentioned, it`s abit of a foggy situation.
But how many people fall victim to it everyday….see those mobile phone adverts on TV…the fine print you can`t read on the bottom of the screen…”FREE” they say…just SMS etc…then you`re hit with $5 per message each way etc….it`s not much different, nobody does anything about that global phenomenon, in fact it looks as though it`s supported by the nteworks or whom ever allows it.
I too recieved this email from them, downloaded or opened the .pdf document, at first, I thought about filling it in, (as I had a few times with another register a few years ago, but based in Canada or US, and that was Free), read it again, lucky, I`ll paste in my reply to them below.
(being diplomatic).
People, you have to think about what it is you were or are trying to achieve….Was it a simple directory listing, was it an ego boost opportunity (figuratively speaking), {veliki pun/punyi, nay vyenkshi pun/punyi}, OR were you trying to genuinely get more business.
If the later, genuinely get more business, then for the price and just a listing, you would probably have done better with your local Yellow Pages type directory listing….not really that ideal, but on par with what is offered. In that case, it`s Hit and Miss advertising, not effective,(the World/International directory group may disagree with me there, obviously).
One should consider a more targeted form of marketing or campaign than just a mere listing, at a fraction of the cost if not FREE, the “name in lights” the “tinsel” or all that glitters, may work if you already have some sort of celebrity status, more often than not, it is the case, and not effective as the amount it costs.
Consider social networking and such strategies, most of those service providers are free to join or subscribe to.
Don`t know if this helps any or at all, but I guess at the very least it gives another perspective, and something to perhaps consider.
Regards and much goodluck in your ventures
Sincerely
Smuchnyego_4u2
Oh…nearly forgot…(see rush rush, like the mad hatters tea party, late late for an important date…my oh my)… here`s my reply to them.
quote”….Only if it`s a free listing, no hidden fees or charges.
As very little if any business is derived from such directories, just
a listing, much spam etc.
The service is a novel idea, however, it is prone to harvesting etc,
and the or any benefits are far outweighed by the potential problems
and associated costs.
To that end we find more value in targeted advertising than general listings.
Thank you for the offer, but we must decline.
Regards…..”unquote
djankooye Elvis tuk letcho od dom.
Guys, Mary again!
It looks a if they have been frightened off, as their website has now been taken down.
However, in case you receive any more letters, try doing what I did. I sent them an email, advising them that I had reported them to our authorities in the UK and theirs in Spain, and that if they would like any further information, they would probably enjoy seeing the attached link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHX-3Vyr9v4&feature=channel
Since sending them that email, I NEVER heard from them again!
Oh, what fun!!
Best of luck everyone,
regards
Mary, UK.
In relation to this particular type of ‘contract’ I found an interesting part of the EU trading regulations were: EU DIRECTIVE 2005/29/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT (specifically Article 6). Which as I read it specifically targets these scams and as such makes the ‘contract’ void in a european court – This is not legal advice
just my findings.
Hope that helps
Thank youy Tam for this blog!
We are a design office in Italy, we signed (thinking it was just and updating of data we had already given and that it was free) and today we realized the fraud when we received their invoice – we are not going to pay it. But is it really a fraud? Of course their mail is misleading, but it contains written notice that you’ll have to pay €995/year etc. … Now I do not know wether just to ignore them or if I have to write them one single time and then ignore them; also I am wondering where to write to any authority (is there an European Authority to write to?)
We are upset, we feel they are criminals, but legally speaking do they have any right – as everything was written (small, misleading but written…) ? THANK YOU again
Hello guys,
I`m from Slovakia and the same truble happen to me. I am a new commer in our company and my co-worker asked me to sing their file \Data Control\at the end of August. I signed it and fax to their number and the invoice came on Tuesday. The same day came \friendly letter\ and also e-mail. I wrote them that I just updated information and we´re not going to pay but they haven´t response till now. I don´t know what to do. I´m going to inform my boss next Tuesday about all situation but I have to tell some possibilities how to fix this problem? Can you recommend me something? My offers are: 1. just ignore everything and will see because I don´t have legal rights to sign any document pertaining to money or 2. inform our layers and write some letter to Office of Fair Traiding but I don´t know if it´s enough….
Please I really need your help because I´m working here no more than three months and its still my exam period and I don´t wanna be fired because of this …
Thanks a lot
Well we all got in this trouble and i think that the fact that all of us feel that we have been victims of a scam is a good reason that any judge will take those messages into account. However, I doubt that they will ever take anyone of us to the court as their scam will end the next day. Their purpose is to scare the victims so anyone that pays them will be a good salary for them without providing any service. The following is the letter that I replayed to them and I will not waste any more time toward them.
Dear Sir/Madam,
RE: INVOICE NUMBER 37713 – Cancellation –
I am writing regarding your letter dated 02-10-2009, received on the 12-10-2009.
I have searched the internet to gain some feedback about your way of conducting scam around the world and I found that lots of other businesses have been victim of your scam.
I would suggest you to immediately cancel my company detail from your database before perusing you on legal action.
Therefore, I have no intention to pay any amount to your scam.
The only way to settle this scam would be in court. So if you do not want to waste any money that you already scammed, I suggest that you either cancel my detail or apply to the court.
No further reply will be send to your correspondence.
ciao
Fabio
Hi all,
Thank you for the advice. They have been sending their letters for few weeks now, but I do not have any intention to pay them a single penny.
Thank you for your support on the webpage.
I have also reported them to Spain and the Netherlands to the consumer right protection centres.
The e-mails are as follows:monitoring@reclamecode.nl; autocontrol@autocontrol.es
Please e-mail them and hopefully they will take some action.
Take care!
Hi all,
This is the feedback I have recieved from them after sending the cancellation e-mail:
Dear Ms Elizabeth,
International Directories Group Ltd strongly rejects these allegations which are totally unfounded and have no legal basis. We have no intention to deliver our services to companies that do not find them useful and have never inserted a company into the World Business Guide against their will or out of our own initiative.
The order we have in our possesion is signed and stamped on behalf of Xcelence, which represents legal proof that you have ordered our services for three years.
We have done nothing but honour your request for our services, reason for which our position is as previously advised.
Best regards,
Chris
Account Manager
International Directories Group Ltd
Call center: 0034 91 188 1696
Fax: 0034 91 791 9167
I just received an e-mail on this scam and I’d like to post the contents here so Google, and therefore new victims can get the updated information when they search.
The contents of my message were as follows;
Ladies and Gentlemen.
In order to have your company inserted in the registry of World Businesses
for 2010/2011 edition, please print, complete and submit the enclosed
form (PDF file) to the following address:
WORLD BUSINESS GUIDE
P.O. Box 2021
3500 GA Utrecht
The Netherlands
email: registration@businessregister2010.com
FAX: +31 20 524 8107
Updating is free of charge!
If you are not the intended recipient, please submit an email to
unsubscribe@businessregister2010.com
Your request shall be dealt with accordingly.
As you can see, they’ve attached themselves to an entirely new domain name and are still in business.
I have to admit that I didn’t pay much mind to the e-mail at first, but something about it raised the hairs on the back of my neck (I’m in Canada; what does a business directory in the Netherlands care about my dealership?) so I started Googling. It wasn’t until I found this page that I read the fine print. Whew. I consider myself fairly shrewd but that one caught me a bit off guard.
Thankfully our company policy is to review any and all advertising concerns through atleast two levels of management before proceeding, then to carefully read and understand all terms and conditions and finally to vet the organization to find out things like where their publication is issued, what format it is in, what its target market/demographic is, readership, things like that.
Essentially if we spend so much as $100CAD on a publication that doesn’t reach our target market, it’s $100CAD down the toilet.
Hi All
Thank you for your comments and suggestions. I was really tensed on how I shall I pay a huge amount of EUR 1129.
Thank you again
Hello from Belarus! I am afraid we also trapped into this.
We have been given a message from World Business Guide to pay 995 euro, I
had a 20 minute talk over the phone and they said that I have to pay this
money otherwise they would send a message to an audit company and they would
make me to pay. It seems that this is fraud and we cannot afford this money
to be paid to them. It is all very frustrating for us as we never received
any confirmation from then that our order received and a kind of a message -
please, note that this service is fee-based and please make sure of the
amount to be paid. They never made a message and sent an invoice on the day
of its deadline to pay. I said – remove it and they said you could remove it
7 days after order was placed – I said that I would if you sent an invoice a
day after you received our order. But it was all in vain. They still are
very persistent.
Thanks to your great blog we will not pay anything to them. We also wrote to the authorities of Spain and Netherlands, may be something will be brought up!
The WBG gets around I must say. This is a greeting from Denmark. It has been a great joy to read about this “unserious” business. My last letter was the final notice, and I will be hearing from Waldberg & Hirsch soon. Honestly I couldn´t care less. I like the thougt about someone else using money on letters etc to try to get us to pay. In Denmark we call companies like these for “advertising sharks” we have our own site, where we can “file” our stories and warn others. So thankful that I found this site.
Just resived this e-mail to the company mailbox. The second I saw it I desided to Google it. Thanks for this page!
Ginny
Hello, I too have been fooled by this letter and signed, and have just received my invoice for 995 euros. Because of this info, i shall happily ignore them. It is disgusting whay some people do. I was really worried when i read their letter.
Hi all, I´m probably at the same stage as Bandixen. We recieved final reminder and waiting for Waldebrg & Hirsch whic, as I read somewhere else may not exist as company (from legal point of view).
)
And – join the FCB group (small add, hope you will not consider it to be scam
First of all thanks to everybody for publishing this useful information to all those who are mentally harrased by so called World Business Guide with their misleading marketing. I was also too worried in the beginning when i received the invoice but this forum has been so helpful to get rid of the unwanted mental turture. We have been receiving the emails and calls repeatedly ignoring them but still they had not stopped calling time to time. They are really a shameless… I would like to suggest all the friends those who are suffered by those shameless people that do not bother of their email/call full of threatning but enjoy the way you can out of these scammers that how they are wasting their time with the hope that we will pay them and let them waste their time likewise or just ignore them. We are in Asia, and we have not access to europe. The European countries Government should find out these scammer and punished them for the mental turture that they have given to innocent people around the globe. Once again, thanks to everybody their who have posted their comments on this forum.
These scammers still continue their dirty business, we are still receiving their warnings to pay their “services”. Hope that some day will appear an authority, who could find a way to punish them…
Dear Sirs,
I am writing on behalf of International Directories Group Ltd. to inform you that the 2nd Reminder containing the supplementary fees as follows:
- Late Payment Fee in the amount of EUR 99,-
- Administration Fee in the amount of EUR 35,-
is going to be issued towards … on the 20/11/2009, and will soon be in your possession.
However, if you manage to make the payment before it reaches you, your company will be exempt from paying the above-mentioned additional fees. Please take the necessary steps to initiate the transfer of funds in order to avoid any unpleasant situations that may arise from this unsolved matter.
Kindly yours,
Ms Maria
Account Manager
International Directories Group Ltd.
C/ Azcona, 58, local, Box 252, 28028 Madrid, Spain
Tel: +34 91 188 1696
Fax: +34 91 791 9167
Email: maria@world-businessguide.com
Beware these guys!
Hi everyone
We are at the 1429 Euro demand stage from the debt collectors. Waldberg & Hirsch Global Collections Ltd. Has anyone seen a bigger invoice? Let’s have a competition!
We haven’t paid anything and sight of the alleged fax order revealed a forged signature.
Incredibly, the legal system in the UK refers complaints about this sort of scam to local police stations so I registered a complaint but don’t hold out much hope.
BBC’s Watchdog programme is a good idea
http://www.bbc.co.uk/watchdog/gotastory/
I also have never heard of the claim proceeding to court, having followed blogs for more than a year and urge everyone to keep their bottle – these scams work by getting more and more aggressive.
Just now as I’m sitting I got this email. I am a VERY small computer tech business in a small town. Since I am a company of one (1) I had no idea why anyone would be soliciting me for a “world business directory” and was immediately suspicious. I googled and found your very informative site here and I am merely posting this to thank you very much for being here. I was not likely to sign up but it’s nice to know I wasn’t missing much.
Hi
I’ve blogged about this too – and lots of similar comments from other people who have been harrassed. A lot of my contributors are talking about ‘Expo Guide’ – another of these (endless) scam directories.
Stand firm, folks, and don’t respond to them.
You can read more comments here:
http://www.mukaumedia.co.uk/expoguide-scam-decide-yawn/
im from China and like most of u， i have been caught by this scam about two month ago. i have been receiving their ‘reminders’ several times since then. personally i have no worries regarding their threats but i am just confused that i will have to explain all this shit to my managers and lawers.. so silly…
if anyone can give an advice on how i can shut them up, please, comment here. unfortunetely, i doubt i can get any advice from the local authorities as they are not really helpful here in China
many thanks
Leo Zhou
Thank you so much for putting this on the web. I received the email yesterday from them and decided to do a google on the company as I couldn’t remember signing up with them. That’s how I saw this site.
Thank you…
Dear Sirs,
Thank you for your email.
Allow me to point out the fact that the invoice no.34501 was issued on the basis ofa signed and stamped order dated 31st of July 2009. This document is legally binding and represents the legal proof of you having ordered our
services for three years.
Therefore, when we received the order on behalf of XXXXX we took it for granted and delivered our services for this first year. Thus, your company already appears on the online database of the World Business Guide. That is why, I have to point out the fact that at this point the order cannot be cancelled in full. There was a seven-day cancellation period after requesting our services during which the order could be cancelled without any costs involved. Unfortunately, your cancellation request was not made in the given cancellation period and at this point you can only cancel the order for years 2 and 3.
Furthermore, I kindly ask you to review the document in order to verify that all the information regarding our services appears on the front page of the order: “I will have an insertion into its data base for three years. The price per year is EUR 995″.
However, if you consider that you do not longer need our services, as soon as the money for the first year’s subscription in our online data base reaches our account, we will send you the cancellation note for the next two years and we will consider the matter closed.
Therefore, since our part of work has already been delivered we expect you to do the same and proceed with the payment as soon as possible in order to solve this matter in a forthcoming way.
Thank you in advance for your prompt reply.
Regards,
Ms Andreea
International Directories Group Ltd
Call center: 0034 91 188 1696
Fax: 0034 91 791 9167
andreea@idg-wbg.com
Hi,
as said – just ignoring them seems to do the trick!
All the best
Tam Hanna
International Directories Group Ltd. is registered with the BVI Registrar of Corporate Affairs. It has a registered agent in the Territory of, Crescent Corporate Services Limited, No.6, 3rd Floor, Quomar Building, PO Box 875, Road Town, Tortola, British Virgin Islands.
World Business Guide, and International Directories Group Ltd do not have licence to provide financial services business by the BVI Financial Services Commission.
Hope it helps.
hi we have fallen into the same trap and are receiving threats for legal action, phonecalls, emails etc.
However may be of interest, the form was signed but not stamped, when they were told we did not stamp the form they emailed a copy a few days later with a stamp and our company number obviously done by them, our company stamp is different in style and theirs is clearly a make shift shop bought stamp. Just wondered if anyone else has had their company stamp inserted by them. I am ignoring them but do you think we should take some kind of action against this fraud they have done?
Susan Kahil
Take a look at the message:
I have already offered you the registration number of our company, which is:
BC NO. 1429105, BVI.
I must inform you that we are under no obligation to provide you any other
documents other than those directly related to the payment of the invoice
no: 37963. Apparently, you seem to divert this discussion to other issues,
which are of no relevance as far as the payment of the invoice which is now
in your possession is concerned.
If you can’t take full responsibility of your actions, by making the payment
for the services that your company has already ordered, then we will have no
other option than to send your file to the debt collection company we are
working with. Please be informed that with the transfer, extra legal fees
shall be added and the next year you shall receive another invoice. At the
end of the contractual period, your debt shall be around EUR 5000,-.
Hoping that you will reconsider your position, I am looking forward to your
earliest reply.
Kindly yours,
Maria
Account Manager
———
They are still making the same fraud…
Yesterday we realised that we too were victims of this scam. We realise that the thing to do is not pay, but what legal action can we take? Is there a body of scam vicitims taking joint action? Any information much appreciated.
Never Give Up!
I will close my company before paying them!
Shalom from sunny Israel
HI
I TOO HAVE BEEN DEALING WITH THIS DISEASE FOR A LONG TIME NOW SO I DECIDED TO DO SOME RESEARCH.
WHAT I FOUND OUT IS THAT THIS “COMPANY” THAT IS LISTED TO BE BASED IN THE NETHERLANDS IS ACTUALLY BASED IN ROMANIA, MORE EXACTLY IN TIMISOARA, A WESTERN CITY OF ROMANIA.
THE COLLECTION FIRM WALBERG AND HIRSCH IS NOT A REAL COLLECTION COMPANY, IT IS JUST THE SAME “EMPLOYEES” ANSWERING THE PHONE BECAUSE EVERYTIME I CALL THERE ARE ALWAYS OTHER PEOPLE ON THE LINE CLAMING TO BE MR VAN RULER’S SECRETARY ( THE LEGAL ADVISOR ) AND HE IS NEVER THERE TO TAKE CALLS. THIS PERSON DOESN’T EXIST!!!
SO DON’T PAY, DON’T GO TO LAWYERS, DON’T MAKE COMPLAINTS, DON’T BOTHER TO DO ANYTHING, YOU ARE SIMPLY WASTING YOUR TIME AS THEY ARE NOT SCARED OF THREATS, THEY WILL JUST CONTINUE TO SEND YOU EMAILS, FAXES, TO CALL YOU ON EACH AND EVERY NUMBER THEY CAN FIND. IF YOU ARE SICK OF THE HARRASMENTS JUST CHANGE YOUR LINES AND IGNORE THE JUNK MAIL FROM THEM.
Dear Sirs
We too have been hit by this scam
Luckily we are a firm owned by an offshore law firm.
I managed to get one of our newly qualified (hotshot) Advocates on the situation and the gist of our reply is set out below:
Dear Sirs
Invoice 37672
We refer to your letters dated 20th October and 5th November 2009.
Please note that the contract by reference to which you have raised the above invoice is void and unenforceable, we deny all liability thereunder, and we therefore deny any liability in relation to your aforesaid invoice.
Without prejudice to the foregoing, the aforesaid contract is void and/or voidable on the grounds of mistake and/or misrepresentation in that we were mislead into thinking that the form provided related to a free update, rather than an expensive subscription. If (which is denied) any contract has come into being, we hereby rescind same.
Further, your communications with us by facsimile are in breach of the Data Protection Act 2002, Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12th July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communication sector, and the Unsolicited Communications Regulations 2005 in that we have not previously consented to such communications being sent to us electronically. We will make an appropriate report to the Communications Commission in relation to such breach.
We hereby require you to cease and desist from sending us any further communications by facsimile or by any other electronic means, and make express that we do not consent, and have never consented, to such communications.
Nothing in this letter consists or shall be taken as consisting of an admission of any fact or a submission to the jurisdiction of the courts of any country.
Yrs etc
Please feel free to use any of the above in your refutations to these sharletans!
Thanks for all the information, i am also a victim of this fraud, they are emailing me every week threatning of legal action, i had specifically in the email written that update only if it is free, i dont want any new entry, but still they raised the invoice for Euro 995 and then penalty and then telling that they will add Euro 300, can anyone get the persond behind arrested and the series of frauds stopped
Hiding the true cost of a service is against UK law & is now covered by the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations 2008 which came into effect on 26 May 2009. DON’T PAY
Hi there..I’m from Indonesia. Thanks for this information. apparently that this scammer got us too. My boss seems to rush signed & stamped without reading the small tiny trap from them and send it back. Now this account manager, Olga send us so many invoices that keep telling us to pay + all the extra cost for legal fee. The best way i think is to ignore them & hope that they will stop by themself. My last email to WBC that just stop & pull our company name from their database cause we will not pay anything to them. Cheers
I have also been scammed by them. They harassed me so much that I paid… and I realized that my data aren’t published in their website. Any advice?
World Business Guide stinks!
Thanks for the posting. They are scammers and there is no way they can(will) take you to court. Just ignore all there letters / emails / faxes. I run a company staffed by ex-special forces operators – we are using our resources to track them down so we can have a little chat with them. As for Waldberg & Hirsch Global Collections Ltd letters…ignore them too. Jimbo
They have been active in Australia as well and we are currently getting threatening emails and letters. We are trying to ignore but when you are a small business it can be a worry. We received a letter from Walberg and Hirsh today. We intend to continue to ignore. Thanks to all of the above comments.
Cheers
Tricia.
I found the details the registered Agent of WBG and International Directories Group (should any of you would need to send complaints):
c/o Crescent Corporate Services Limited, No.6, 3rd Floor, Qwomar Trading Building, PO Box 875, Road Town, Tortola, VG1110, British Virgin Islands. email address is services @ crescentbvi.com
Hi All
I to have been caught by this scam. We are a small research company based in South Africa and definitely can not afford somthing like this. we have received numerous emails and faxes demanding payment and they’ve found a way of getting through to my director for payment. we have also received a letter form Wldberg & Hirsch demading Eur1429 for a service their client is providing to us. They have only got our company name and number and nothing else, not even our type of business.
please advise what to do/
Thanks
Freda
Hello
I also have been caught in this scam (World Business Guide). I am based in Spain. I collected the spam email, plus the ‘contract’emails etc and all this in order to demostrate if they sue me, that this is a fool, a scam, small letter, tricky maneers. An spanish judge would never approve their behaviour. I will just ignore them and not paying anything. Right now I will send them a letter saying that if they have understood that I wanted a paying advertising in their guide, this is not the case. In order to prevent further renovations and extensions of the fake contract. Just in case
Be calm everybody, just don’t pay and ignore them, nobody has been sued as far as I know
Juan Carlos
Please help!
Angus Margerison
We (a small company in Germany) habe been caught by WBG about one year ago. We have received around 20 letters and faxes during these months and never reacted to one of these threats.
In October 2009 also Waldberg @ Hirsch demanded 1429 Euros – we neither reacted to their threats. Meanwhile the scam and the threats have stopped (last letter on November, 10, 2009).
So just give all their letters to the waste bin, don’t pay a dime, just ignore them …
The scam is alive and well in Australia.
I was caught exactly one year ago after registering a small company dedicated to emergency medical training.
I sent a response stating that WBG’s actions represented misleading and deceptive conduct.
I have just received the Waldberg & Hirsch letter.
So far I have paid no money but the constant letters and threats are annoying and slightly disconcerting, even though my informal legal advice is that there is no basis to the claim and I see from this site that they are unlikely to risk appearing in court.
It seems as if ensuring the “contract” is disputed and cancelled, then ignoring all correspondence is the best way to go, although it would be nice to see them get their just desserts like the European City Guide scammers.
Rahul
I emailed MEP Simon Busuttil, who has been active incombatting business directory scams. I have attached the advice from his office (with permission) below:
Good luck and above all DO NOT PAY
You may wish to sign the petition enclosed within the reply – the more people complain about this scam the more likely the authorities are to do something about it.
Rahul
This is the response to my query:
Further to your query I would like to bring the following information on Business-directory scams for your attention.
The standard information that we give is that the letters and invoices you received from the Business Directory should be ignored on the basis that you were deceived into signing a form – thinking that it would provide you with a free entry into a business directory but later discovering that the entry was not at all free.
Please note, however, that this information is not and cannot be construed as legal advice. Legal responsibility rests with you.
I am attaching the report prepared by MEP Simon Busuttil on Misleading Business Directories, which was adopted by the European Parliament in 2009.
The report advises you not to pay any fees to misleading business directories and to report the matter to the authorities and seek advice on how to proceed on your specific case.
Moreover, the report sets out a list of concrete measures to achieve the following objectives:
To raise awareness so that fewer businesses become victims.
To enable victims to resort to a clearly identifiable authority to make a complaint and seek a remedy.
To ensure that existing EU laws on misleading advertising scams are adequately enforced in EU countries.
To tighten existing EU law so that it can address such scams more directly.
Should you like to send a Petition on this issue to the European Parliament Petitions Committee please access the following on-line application form on:
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/parliament/public/staticDisplay.do?id=49
Should you require further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind regards,
Matthew Gatt
Parliamentary Assistant
Office of Dr Simon Busuttil MEP
Head, Maltese Delegation in the EPP
European Parliament,
Bat. Altiero Spinelli,10E142, 60 Rue Wiertz,
B-1047 Brussels,
Belgium.
Tel : (+322) 2847686
Fax: (+322) 2849686
Yes yes yes!!!! I was right!!! So glad I did not continue to dispute this with them. I got the first e-mail asking for payment to which I said I had not contracted anything from them as I was using their form for an update as clearly stated on their form. They replied that as I had nothing to update with them, then I was indeed purchasing a service from them.
I then replied that this sounded like a scam to me and under Spanish law, they were to submit in writing where they got my information from (Ley Organica de Proteccion de Datos). They kept replying and sending me e-mails and now I have received the letter from the solicitors. After refusing them formerly via mail, I then chose to ignore them but I thought I would google this and have found this site! So thanks for publishing this information, it sets my mind at rest.
Best regards
Jason
I just found my last ‘formal’ reply to them:
Please understand that sending a threatening letter will get you nowhere. This is Spain, not UK and things are done differently here. Are you seriously telling me that you have inserted Alesur into a directory based on a form which we did not ask for, signed by a person who is not authorised to make purchases and entirely on good faith that an invoice would be paid for on receipt of an ‘unpaid notice’? Are you also telling me that you insert company details into a directory without actually receiving payment for the insertion? That would be far too naïve to be believable and it all seems rather dubious to me and more like a back garden operation trying on an elaborate confidence trick, which of course, I do not accuse you of…
Just in case you are indeed a legitimate company, I will say the following for what it is worth. Your company uses the same form for an insertion at a cost of 995 Euros (as per the small print which I believe is illegal in the UK) as it does for an update of information which is free. This must be very confusing for you as it is open to misinterpretation. I am “confirming” to you that we were filling in the form for a “free update” and “not for an insertion”, if you have “chosen to interpret” this as an insertion, it is “not our problem”.
Also, if sending us the form was part of a mailing campaign which we did not voluntarily ask to be a part of, you are in breach of Spanish law. Furthermore, under the LOPD 15/1999 13 DEC, we would be in our right to pursue a legal case against your company for illicit use of our details.
I hope this clarifies the situation for you although I understand that there will now be a long string of threatening correspondence but please understand that we will not be bullied or harassed into making a payment. If you were more aware of who owns this company, you might think twice about it too. I will have no more to say in this matter but I do invite you to try your luck with our GM. If you put a persuasive enough case to him in person, he may be willing to pay you out of the cash box.
Best regards…
She replied with some bull saying that she did not operate from the UK nor from Spain and therefore did not have to abide by our laws! Quite obvious to me at this point that they were indeed scammers so I guessed that all I should do was ignore them. After receiving the fax from the debt collection company, I thought I would check them out and have found this site.
Best,
Jason
Hi,
as I already said: I dont think there is much to gain from threatening them. If they come to you and it is legal in your state, main em.
But don’t do anything illegal…they simply arent worth it! Think of the letters as free scratch paper for drafts – I seriously think about subscribing a few hundred times to them for the free paper
Tam
I wrote before that EU directives expressly forbids this type of ‘contract’ – we were receiving letters from this company every couple of weeks last year. I then sent a recorded delivery with an official notice of intent to prosecute for harassment with a full bundle of previous documentation to Waldberg & Hirsch. Strangely the letters have stopped. If you are interested, you can actually have a look at their offices on google maps(street level) – it’s a PO box in a photocopying agency – how sad! – It’s quite funny that they are trying to scam people without actually getting the money first – I would advise them to fix their scam plan – it may cost them more than they are earning!
Hi Mark,
as already said – my intent goes the other way round – I see them as a free paper supply.
They will soon find thousands of limiteds in their database – youaremonkeys, youarejerks and so on in 50 languages and /me will have an unlimited supply of free scratch paper.
Hell gee – if we all would do that, they would be bankrupt in a moment.
All the best
Tam Hanna
Hi all,
We received the following. It would appear to be a new version of what is highlighted in this blog. I just thought i would share it with you all.
From: info@registration2011.com [mailto:info@registration2011.com]
Sent: 02 March 2010 21:00
To: info@registration2011.com
Subject: Registration of the World Business Directory 2010/2011
Dear Madam/Sir,
In order to have your company registered in the World Business Directory for 2010/2011, please print, complete and return the enclosed form (PDF file) to the following address:
World Business Directory
Suite 149 – Rosden House – 372 Old Street EC1V 9AU / London – United Kingdom
E-mail: office@registration2011.com
Fax: +44 207 806 8157
Updating is free of charge!
To unsubscribe, please send an email to
unsubscribe@registration2011.com
hallelujiah!!!!!
I too trusted that this scammer was a free listing until I received a bill for an exhorbitant ammount of money. Although these unsrupulous people keep sending me reminder notices and adding extra for delayed payment I have no intention of giving them a cent.
All I have sent them is a couple of emails warning them of the dire consequences of illicit scamming in Australia. I was hoping they would take me to court to bring their devious operation out into the light. I am so relieved and happy to see these comments, well done, thank goodness for clear minded , brave people,
Lee
Me again,
Another good idea is to actually check their directory to see if you are listed, because I can’t find my business on it anywhere, even though they are so foolishly trying to get money out of me.
Just ignore them and let them waste their time and money on sending bogus paperwork.
To anyone who is worried, another thing to be aware of is that the signature is to be that of a legal or authorized person, so if you are not the director or such , don’t worry,in fact do not worry at all, be happy that these sorts of practises are coming out in the light and will die of atrition,
Lee
Lee
As per the Advertising Standards Authority 8th March 2010:
Autocontrol and Cross Border complaints executives have been informed about the continued complaints over the “ambiguous and misleading” forms sent out by International Business Guide or World Business Guide. The forms BREECH clause 14 of the Autocontrol code (in Spain) and World Business Guide were ORDERED to cease distribution. Bascially their stupid form is NULL and VOID and if you recieve any correspondance from World Business Guide, send it back to them and tell them that they have been reported for unlawful busines practices. – Or just ignore them because they are just a scam anyway and can NEVER take you to court or demand your money!