PayPal survey email, 800# goes to phone sex line

[Frankool]

Nov. 16 I received a detailed email asking me to participate in an "online discussion" (marketing survey) for PayPal and offering $175. for participating in three, 1-hour web surveys the week of Dec. 5...I forwarded this email to spoof@paypal.com and received automated email (twice) indicating this was NOT a phishing attempt Quote: "Although we've determined that the email you forwarded to us is not a phishing attempt, our security team is grateful for your concern."

The email listed 2 survey companies involved in the survey (Ipsos & Focus Pointe Global, which google says are companies that do market research). Again, the email looked "legit" in all respects, it addressed me by first and last name, and the emails back from PayPal told me it was not a phishing attempt. So I called the 800 number listed (this was stated as a requirement to register for the survey) and a recording says something about "talk to girls live NOW!!". Tried it twice, checked the number both times, yes I dialed correctly. (No, I didn't talk to any girls, live or recorded!)

Today I managed to reach a live human being at PayPal customer service (I used the Web Pin feature and eventually got through the automatic phone menus)...he could not resolve this and sounded a little disbelieving, so I guess not too many people have called about it...he told me to forward the email to the support address he gave me, and assured me, quote, someone would get back to me on THIS kind of thing. Well, the email address sent back an automated reply saying they would not reply to email sent to this address. Which is pretty much what I expected.

I could really care less about the $175. but would gladly participate in a legitimate survey about PayPal. I feel I have some good feedback to offer them (and that they need it).

Nothing else like this seems to show up on the forums recently, so thought I'd throw it out here.

[Frankool]

Hadn't heard from anyone at PayPal here in the forum, or via email (no surprise) so I contacted customer service at Focus Pointe Global (mentioned in the email I received from PayPal as the "screener and recruiter" for the PayPal survey) and explained my issue.

I received a very prompt though vague response from a Tracey ******* telling me I could register with them for the PayPal survey by phone at 800-***-**** (this number varies by a couple of digits from the sex-phone number in the original email) or online at focusgroup dot com. I did not call the number but looked at their web site. You are required to register, provide all personal information, address, etc., sign off on a lot of legalese, and apparently answer questions about your buying habits (I did not go this far, but it was implied in their other literature) and then they will decide if your replies and your "profile" suit their needs with a particular client of theirs (in this case, PayPal) and THEN let you into the focus group/survey. Or not (in which case you are apparently paid nothing.) I decided it was not worth it for the offered $175., as much as I'd like to give PayPal some feedback about their policies and so-called marketing. The email says you'll be paid to participate in 3, 1-hour sessions online, but getting to that point is going to add more time and they may not even accept you into the program after the hurdles are cleared.

By the way PayPal, what the heck is wrong with you, sending out an email like this to your customers, and then not bothering to send a correction with the right phone number? I'm going to paste in the entire invitation email here for future reference of others. I've removed my name, and the project number as it may be an identifier for me personally, I do not know.

(end post, email follows)

Dear (my first and last name):

PayPal is conducting market research to explore your views about our products. We want to know how we can better meet your needs now and in the future. It’s important that this research is carried out independently, so that you can be completely open in expressing your views about us. This is why we’ve partnered with two independent research agencies: Ipsos & Focus Pointe Global

Focus Pointe Global is responsible for screening and recruiting participants for our upcoming study, and Ipsos is responsible for conducting the discussions.

The discussion will be conducted online the week of December 5 and will require your participation for a total of 1-hour per day on December 5, 7, & 9. You will be asked to respond to questions online that have been posted by the moderator who will lead the online discussion forum. In return for participating in the online forum discussion, you will receive a thank you payment of $175 USD.

Again, Focus Pointe Global will be recruiting this study on PayPal’s behalf. If you are interested and available, please call 800-***-**** between the hours of 9:00am – 6:00pm EST and reference project number XXXXXXXX, “Financial Services” study at your earliest convenience.

The discussions will explore our future directions and developments so you’ll need to sign a non-disclosure agreement prior to participating.

Kind regards,

PayPal

PayPal has commissioned Decipher Inc., an independent market research firm, to conduct this Web-based survey among its members. If you have concerns about the validity of this survey, please contact (edited for post)

Please note, PayPal will not request personal data (password, credit card/bank account numbers, and so on) in an email. Learn how to protect your account (edited for post)

We are contacting you for market research purposes. All information collected is confidential and the information you provide will be used strictly within PayPal's Privacy Policy, which can be found at the following URL: (edited for post)

This PayPal notification was sent to (my first/last name). To unsubscribe, please click here (edited for post)

To modify your notification preferences, log in to your PayPal account, click the Profile sub-tab, then click the Notifications link under Account Information. Changes may take up to 10 days to be reflected in our mailings. PayPal will not sell or rent any of your personally identifiable information to third parties. For more information about the security of your information, read our Privacy Policy at
(edited for post)

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