S/O Beggars, Moochers and Scammers

[snowfire]

DH just cleaned out a computer for a friend.  He had let his anti-virus lapse and his computer had gotten locked down with one of those fake "FBI" ransomware things where they claim you have been downloading illegal/p0rn/bootleg stuff and you must pay $300 fine immediately to get it unlocked.  That sucker was hard to get rid of.

[GraceSullivan]

I usually say "yeah, sure", roll my eyes, and chuck the mail. But I'm not clear on what they're expecting to happen. Is it all a ploy to lure me to the dealership? Are they going to try and hook me with a new car and then give me a much lower trade-in on my car? I've always wondered what would happen if I walked into the dealership and tried to get the high cash amount they keep offering me, and refused to even look at other vehicles.

Yes, it's a ploy - and if you went in and didn't look at another car, they'd find a reason not to give you the deal. In many areas, used cars are holding their value so well, and are in such demand, that they are worth enough to justify that extra $$ from the dealer. Many folks are preferring used because of the economy, either not wanting to spend the money, not able to get financing, or don't want to drive something flashy when others can't.

I get them ALL THE TIME. Even since we moved. On my 2006 Kia van. If they're that desperate for a car that old, makes me wonder what they'd offer me for my 1997 Camry!

I got  that letter today.  They want to buy back my 2012 Rav 4.  The one I bought new 33 days ago. The stationary has my dealer's name on it, but the return address is a different state. I suspect it came from a corporate office.

Toyota is just great [sarcasm] with those.  Same thing happened when I bought my 4Runner back in 2006--I got them for years.  I don't get them anymore, though.  Apparently my car is now past its prime (but if they only knew about the dog fur and dog slobbery windows, I'm sure they'd want it then!).

I bought a MINI last August, and haven't seen anything similar from BMW--they must know that Miniacs would never sell their babies!

I got a MINI back in 2007, and a few months later, I got a box in the mail "Essential Motoring Nonessentials" - things like a smiling antenna topper, a secret message decoder to use on MINI ads, a mousepad, a really nice pen, and other goodies. I think when BMW bought them, they gave the marketing department a blank check and told them to have fun.

Since then, I've gotten 1 call from the dealership - I think back in 2010? - seeing how the MINI was working for me. I think they were hoping I might trade it in for a new one, but were informed that it was going great and I was hoping to keep it for a few more years. :-)

They still do that!  Although I lost my antenna topper 

[Elfmama]

DH just cleaned out a computer for a friend.  He had let his anti-virus lapse and his computer had gotten locked down with one of those fake "FBI" ransomware things where they claim you have been downloading illegal/p0rn/bootleg stuff and you must pay $300 fine immediately to get it unlocked.  That sucker was hard to get rid of.

My father has a peculiar sort of tunnel vision that only lets him see what he WANTS to see.  When his anti-virus kept popping up with a notice "It's time to renew!" he completely ignored it for two months, until we came down to visit and he could ask us about it.      And most of his computer use is stock trading.  It's pure luck that his accounts weren't compromised.   

[Moralia]

I usually say "yeah, sure", roll my eyes, and chuck the mail. But I'm not clear on what they're expecting to happen. Is it all a ploy to lure me to the dealership? Are they going to try and hook me with a new car and then give me a much lower trade-in on my car? I've always wondered what would happen if I walked into the dealership and tried to get the high cash amount they keep offering me, and refused to even look at other vehicles.

Yes, it's a ploy - and if you went in and didn't look at another car, they'd find a reason not to give you the deal. In many areas, used cars are holding their value so well, and are in such demand, that they are worth enough to justify that extra $$ from the dealer. Many folks are preferring used because of the economy, either not wanting to spend the money, not able to get financing, or don't want to drive something flashy when others can't.

I get them ALL THE TIME. Even since we moved. On my 2006 Kia van. If they're that desperate for a car that old, makes me wonder what they'd offer me for my 1997 Camry!

I got  that letter today.  They want to buy back my 2012 Rav 4.  The one I bought new 33 days ago. The stationary has my dealer's name on it, but the return address is a different state. I suspect it came from a corporate office.

Toyota is just great [sarcasm] with those.  Same thing happened when I bought my 4Runner back in 2006--I got them for years.  I don't get them anymore, though.  Apparently my car is now past its prime (but if they only knew about the dog fur and dog slobbery windows, I'm sure they'd want it then!).

I bought a MINI last August, and haven't seen anything similar from BMW--they must know that Miniacs would never sell their babies!

I got a MINI back in 2007, and a few months later, I got a box in the mail "Essential Motoring Nonessentials" - things like a smiling antenna topper, a secret message decoder to use on MINI ads, a mousepad, a really nice pen, and other goodies. I think when BMW bought them, they gave the marketing department a blank check and told them to have fun.

Since then, I've gotten 1 call from the dealership - I think back in 2010? - seeing how the MINI was working for me. I think they were hoping I might trade it in for a new one, but were informed that it was going great and I was hoping to keep it for a few more years. :-)

They still do that!  Although I lost my antenna topper 

I bought my Mini used last year, so I got no such goodies.

[Katana_Geldar]

G an alert in my gmail that someone in India tried to hack my account. Password has since been changed.

[GraceSullivan]

Moralia, did you buy it at a BMW dealership?  If you did, you should have gotten it I believe.  A friend of mine bought a used MINI from the dealership and got the welcome package.  Not sure if you bought it from say Carmax (which is where I almost bought a used MINI).

[BatCity]

Someone who goes to my church got a Tesla Roadster second - hand for $45,000. No, that was not a typo.  It's a fair price, since that's half its selling power, but that seems an awful lot for a used car, even if it is powered by lithium - ion batteries.

This doesn't surprise me at all. My brother has been on the Tesla waiting list for over a year, and he's going to pay over $75,000 for the car when it's delivered.. If someone offered him a used one for half that right now, he'd jump on it.

[Sebastienne]

I usually say "yeah, sure", roll my eyes, and chuck the mail. But I'm not clear on what they're expecting to happen. Is it all a ploy to lure me to the dealership? Are they going to try and hook me with a new car and then give me a much lower trade-in on my car? I've always wondered what would happen if I walked into the dealership and tried to get the high cash amount they keep offering me, and refused to even look at other vehicles.

Yes, it's a ploy - and if you went in and didn't look at another car, they'd find a reason not to give you the deal. In many areas, used cars are holding their value so well, and are in such demand, that they are worth enough to justify that extra $$ from the dealer. Many folks are preferring used because of the economy, either not wanting to spend the money, not able to get financing, or don't want to drive something flashy when others can't.

I get them ALL THE TIME. Even since we moved. On my 2006 Kia van. If they're that desperate for a car that old, makes me wonder what they'd offer me for my 1997 Camry!

I got  that letter today.  They want to buy back my 2012 Rav 4.  The one I bought new 33 days ago. The stationary has my dealer's name on it, but the return address is a different state. I suspect it came from a corporate office.

Toyota is just great [sarcasm] with those.  Same thing happened when I bought my 4Runner back in 2006--I got them for years.  I don't get them anymore, though.  Apparently my car is now past its prime (but if they only knew about the dog fur and dog slobbery windows, I'm sure they'd want it then!).

I bought a MINI last August, and haven't seen anything similar from BMW--they must know that Miniacs would never sell their babies!

I got a MINI back in 2007, and a few months later, I got a box in the mail "Essential Motoring Nonessentials" - things like a smiling antenna topper, a secret message decoder to use on MINI ads, a mousepad, a really nice pen, and other goodies. I think when BMW bought them, they gave the marketing department a blank check and told them to have fun.

Since then, I've gotten 1 call from the dealership - I think back in 2010? - seeing how the MINI was working for me. I think they were hoping I might trade it in for a new one, but were informed that it was going great and I was hoping to keep it for a few more years. :-)

They still do that!  Although I lost my antenna topper 

I bought my Mini used last year, so I got no such goodies.

It's a shame. It's a really, really good pen.

I love my Mini so much. No scams there.

[AfleetAlex]

I lease, and I still get letters from a dealership in another city for a car I haven't had for something like six years. I'm thinking that if they want to buy that car back they're going to have to find it first because I have no idea where it is anymore.

And of course I get requests to sell my current car too. That I lease. So that it really isn't even mine. 

[Sapphire23]

Got an automated call yesterday from a bank I don't have an account with saying my debit/credit card has been frozen, and to press 1 to be connected to their security team to reset it..   

[Seven Ate Nine]

DH just cleaned out a computer for a friend.  He had let his anti-virus lapse and his computer had gotten locked down with one of those fake "FBI" ransomware things where they claim you have been downloading illegal/p0rn/bootleg stuff and you must pay $300 fine immediately to get it unlocked.  That sucker was hard to get rid of.

My father has a peculiar sort of tunnel vision that only lets him see what he WANTS to see.  When his anti-virus kept popping up with a notice "It's time to renew!" he completely ignored it for two months, until we came down to visit and he could ask us about it.      And most of his computer use is stock trading.  It's pure luck that his accounts weren't compromised.   

As long as his browsing habits are fairly "clean" (ie, no downloads, he doesn't click on random links in email, doesn't visit certain types of sites) his risk of infection are actually pretty low.

[Moralia]

Moralia, did you buy it at a BMW dealership?  If you did, you should have gotten it I believe.  A friend of mine bought a used MINI from the dealership and got the welcome package.  Not sure if you bought it from say Carmax (which is where I almost bought a used MINI).

It was from a non-BMW dealership.  I can't complain, though...even needing a new clutch, I paid a VERY reasonable price. I take it to the local Mini dealership for service, though, so when I eventually go to get a new or 'new' one, I'll probably go there. Their customer service is really excellent.

Also, they give me a pen each time. 

[Zenith]

^^^  That may be, but I've gotten a couple of emails from my own email address and I am NOT on Facebook (and never have been), so they're getting those addresses somewhere else too.

I was recently cleaning out my very (6+ years) old personalised ISP email address and noticed a catalogue from an American clothing store 4 years ago. Standard ad but what got me was this email address is only used by me very selectively and it was addressed to my flatmates sister who is in no way linked to this email address at all. No way at all. I think my ISP sold my email which is why I switched my primary email to somewhere else a long time ago.

It's kinda scary how advertisers can make links and get my email address for someone else across the atlantic. I asked the intended recipient about it and she has never even gone on that American clothing website but used a sister site of theirs. It may have been a stab in the dark but wow they have some good programs to track people.

[Zenith]

DH just cleaned out a computer for a friend.  He had let his anti-virus lapse and his computer had gotten locked down with one of those fake "FBI" ransomware things where they claim you have been downloading illegal/p0rn/bootleg stuff and you must pay $300 fine immediately to get it unlocked.  That sucker was hard to get rid of.

I got pron virus bombed by an infected flashdrive. Took out everything and my system had to be wiped and reinstalled. 4 days to get everything back to before. That's the only time anything got through my defences and boy was I pissed at the person who gave me the flashdrive. Nothing like nude gifs of stripping ladies doing their thang on your screen while it disassembles your HD. This flashdrive came from a student at the local high school too who denied he put it on there. It turned out he got it from the school computers/infrastructure :O. That was a really nasty  virus. That is why I never transferred stuff between school and home at school. Even the school was unaware it was loose in their system but it had been contained but not wiped. Apparently someONE wasn't doing the software updates so it couldn't activate on the main system but anything plugged in was at risk. Naughty naughty.

I upgraded my firewall asap after that. I didn't know I was vulnerable in that aspect so it did have a good point.

[jedikaiti]

^^^  That may be, but I've gotten a couple of emails from my own email address and I am NOT on Facebook (and never have been), so they're getting those addresses somewhere else too.

I was recently cleaning out my very (6+ years) old personalised ISP email address and noticed a catalogue from an American clothing store 4 years ago. Standard ad but what got me was this email address is only used by me very selectively and it was addressed to my flatmates sister who is in no way linked to this email address at all. No way at all. I think my ISP sold my email which is why I switched my primary email to somewhere else a long time ago.

It's kinda scary how advertisers can make links and get my email address for someone else across the atlantic. I asked the intended recipient about it and she has never even gone on that American clothing website but used a sister site of theirs. It may have been a stab in the dark but wow they have some good programs to track people.

Data mining can be scarily effective: This is a 2012 Forbes article about Target's data mining, how they figured out a teenager was pregnant before her Dad did, and how they have to put a few wholly irrelevant coupons in their mailers so as not to freak out their customers: http://www.forbes.com/sites/kashmirhill/2012/02/16/how-target-figured-out-a-teen-girl-was-pregnant-before-her-father-did/