Who's Who scam
Encyclopedia
A Who's Who scam is a fraudulent Who's Who
biographical directory. While there are many legitimate Who's Who directories, some individuals have created Who's Who scams that involve the selling of "memberships" in Who's Who directories that are created online and through instant publishing services. These are essentially thinly veiled scams designed to get individuals to part with their money or personal information.
The target is initially interviewed in order to validate personal information which can be included in the fraudulent directory, sold to other marketing firms, or used in future attacks such as phishing
emails. The interview often takes the form of a telephone conversation or a web form claiming it is to verify the target's qualifications. Once the personal information has been gathered, the next goal is to acquire the target's credit card number. The target is congratulated as having passed the interview, and then asked to provide a credit card number to finalize the process. Upon further inquiry the target may be told a credit card is required to receive a certificate and copy of the directory, at an exorbitant cost. Upon disputing the cost, the price will repeatedly drop in an attempt to acquire the credit card number by any means necessary. In the event a target tells the scammer they have no credit card, the target may be told to take someone else's credit card number, or may simply be hung up on.
Often the companies that "own" these registries are recently incorporated and the few individuals listed in them are people who are having themselves listed as a marketing tactic. That makes the publication in these directories a simple form of vanity publishing, with the listed persons often posting their listing on their own web sites.
Online blogs or forum posts that discuss these scams often have posts from people stating they have used the directory to make valuable business contacts. However, these posts cannot be verified and are much like other online reviews that provide no verification of the consumer's or user's identity.
Some of these Who's Who websites have closed their websites and disappeared from the Internet without a trace. You can still find people listing them in their online credentials.
Who's Who companies that filter adequately their entries and provide value to the people listed in them are hard to identify. A & C Black's Who's Who
is the canonical example of a Who's Who reference work, being the first to use the name and establish the approach in print. However, the longevity of the publication itself is not a guarantee. In 1999 Tucker Carlson
alleged in Forbes magazine that the long-lived Marquis Who's Who
adopted practices of address harvesting as a revenue stream, undermining their claim to legitimacy as a reference work listing people of merit. However, Forbes currently bases 10% of the methodology for its America's Best Colleges list on alumni listings in Who's Who in America, the flagship title of Marquis Who's Who. Marquis Who's Who was bought in 2003 by News Communications, Inc. and it now has an editorial team which decides who can enter the lists and who cannot.
Who's Who
Who's Who is the title of a number of reference publications, generally containing concise biographical information on a particular group of people...
biographical directory. While there are many legitimate Who's Who directories, some individuals have created Who's Who scams that involve the selling of "memberships" in Who's Who directories that are created online and through instant publishing services. These are essentially thinly veiled scams designed to get individuals to part with their money or personal information.
The target is initially interviewed in order to validate personal information which can be included in the fraudulent directory, sold to other marketing firms, or used in future attacks such as phishing
Phishing
Phishing is a way of attempting to acquire information such as usernames, passwords, and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity in an electronic communication. Communications purporting to be from popular social web sites, auction sites, online payment processors or IT...
emails. The interview often takes the form of a telephone conversation or a web form claiming it is to verify the target's qualifications. Once the personal information has been gathered, the next goal is to acquire the target's credit card number. The target is congratulated as having passed the interview, and then asked to provide a credit card number to finalize the process. Upon further inquiry the target may be told a credit card is required to receive a certificate and copy of the directory, at an exorbitant cost. Upon disputing the cost, the price will repeatedly drop in an attempt to acquire the credit card number by any means necessary. In the event a target tells the scammer they have no credit card, the target may be told to take someone else's credit card number, or may simply be hung up on.
Often the companies that "own" these registries are recently incorporated and the few individuals listed in them are people who are having themselves listed as a marketing tactic. That makes the publication in these directories a simple form of vanity publishing, with the listed persons often posting their listing on their own web sites.
Online blogs or forum posts that discuss these scams often have posts from people stating they have used the directory to make valuable business contacts. However, these posts cannot be verified and are much like other online reviews that provide no verification of the consumer's or user's identity.
Some of these Who's Who websites have closed their websites and disappeared from the Internet without a trace. You can still find people listing them in their online credentials.
Who's Who companies that filter adequately their entries and provide value to the people listed in them are hard to identify. A & C Black's Who's Who
Who's Who (UK)
Who's Who is an annual British publication of biographies which vary in length of about 30,000 living notable Britons.-History:...
is the canonical example of a Who's Who reference work, being the first to use the name and establish the approach in print. However, the longevity of the publication itself is not a guarantee. In 1999 Tucker Carlson
Tucker Carlson
Tucker Swanson McNear Carlson is an American political news correspondent and conservative commentator for the Fox News Channel...
alleged in Forbes magazine that the long-lived Marquis Who's Who
Marquis Who's Who
Marquis Who's Who, a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc., is the American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies...
adopted practices of address harvesting as a revenue stream, undermining their claim to legitimacy as a reference work listing people of merit. However, Forbes currently bases 10% of the methodology for its America's Best Colleges list on alumni listings in Who's Who in America, the flagship title of Marquis Who's Who. Marquis Who's Who was bought in 2003 by News Communications, Inc. and it now has an editorial team which decides who can enter the lists and who cannot.
See also
- American Biographical InstituteAmerican Biographical InstituteThe American Biographical Institute is a paid-inclusion biographical reference directory publisher based in Raleigh, North Carolina which has been publishing biographies since 1967...
- Diploma millDiploma millA diploma mill is an organization that awards academic degrees and diplomas with substandard or no academic study and without recognition by official educational accrediting bodies. The purchaser can then claim to hold an academic degree, and the organization is motivated by making a profit...
- Cambridge Who's WhoCambridge Who's WhoCambridge Who's Who is a publisher of executive, professional and entrepreneur biographies, located in Long Island.-History:As of July 2006 Cambridge Who's Who was established as a merger between Empire Executive and Professional Registry, Inc...
- International Biographical CentreInternational Biographical CentreThe International Biographical Centre is a publisher owned by Melrose Press Ltd that specializes in producing biographical publications, such as the Dictionary of International Biography and other awards. It is based in Ely, Cambridgeshire in the United Kingdom...
External links
- What with the Who's Who?, Who would be so foolish as to pay for inclusion in a Who's Who book that no one reads? CSO Online
- Vanity Publishing, guide against fraud by Connecticut State Attorney General
- Vanity Publishing, consumer protection fact sheet list by Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection
- Who's Who Scam, on Everything2Everything2Everything2, Everything2, or E2 for short is a collaborative Web-based community consisting of a database of interlinked user-submitted written material. E2 is moderated for quality, but has no formal policy on subject matter...
- Who's Who Directories and Biographical Works, New York Better Business Bureau