----- Original Message ----- From: Alan & Dorathy Hardie <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, March 28, 2000 7:33 PM Subject: [ADAMS-L] [Fwd: Rip Off Warning] > > > The message below came from another list I belong to. Passing it > > along FYI. > > > > Subject: Rip-offs of the genealogy community continues > > > > Good Morning, friends and cousins in the genealogy community! > > > > The response to the identification of the genealogy rip-off operation > > in Denver last week has been tremendous with a steady stream of requests > > for add'l info. > > > > The operation in Denver with a newly discovered "branch" in Utah is an > > incarnation of the identical scheme that Halbert's used. The same form > > letters, books and newsletters are being sold, and the same fake > > "Crests" and other products are being created "to exacting standards". > > > > The new incarnation has not yet been linked financially to Halbert´s or > > NUMA (Halbert parent), but the resemblance is so close, they could be > > joined at the hip, operating under dba's Mountain West News Service, > > Mountain Pacific News Service, and MORPHCORP. The Better Business Bureau > > reports that the company has joined the BBB in January 2000, opened in > > 1985, and is rated as satisfactory. A complete history of Halbert's, > > courtesy of Jeff Scism (despite our surname homonyms, we ain't kin --- > > he hopes!) is available at > > http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~blksheep/shame/halberts.htm > > > > Volunteers interested in assisting in informing the genealogy community > > of this scam have come out of the woodwork. We would ask the recipients > > of this email the following: > > 1) A sample of the Colorado flyer is at > > http://www.dfc.cc/CyberCousins/genfraud.jpg > > Print it and post in the genealogy section at your library with > > appropriate message and make announcements at your gensoc. > > > > 2) After you have read it, as a researcher you realize the fraud that it > > is. Go to the Federal Trade Commissions website at > > https://www.ftc.gov/ftc/complaint.htm and file a complaint ONLINE. For > > a sample complaint and further detailed information to use, please go to > > http://www.dfc.cc/CyberCousins/complaint.txt > > > > 3) Forward this to every list you are on. > > > > 4) If you are a member of NGS ([email protected]) or FGS > > ([email protected]), contact those organizations and ask that they get > > members motivated. Gentech, Inc. ([email protected]) has a director and > > a well-known regular conference speaker in the Denver metro. I asked > > them to do some local research. No response to date. > > > > 5) Contact every genealogy columnist whose work you read, both local and > > online such as Myra Gormley ([email protected]} or Dick Eastman > > ([email protected]) who was stalwart in early work on Halbert's, both > > of whom, as well as others, are on this list. No response to date. > > > > 6} If you have rec'd a flyer yourself, please report the names and > > addresses to me. We need to know all the DBAs they are using. Then > > take it to the local post office and file a complaint. > > > > 7) If you are in the Denver area, we need search of the court house > > records to determine any corporate connections. If we can make a > > corporate connection, I am fairly sure the restraints placed on > > Halbert's can be extended by the proper authorities. > > > > 8) If you are a supplier (software, services, researcher) to the > > genealogy community, this type of scam effects you even more. > > Contribute to the effort. > > > > 9)This is no small time scam. Halbert's is owned by a company named > > NUMA whih in turn is owned by CENDANT. Go to > > http://itjobs.cendant.com/cendant_co.html to find other Cendant > > companies. You will NOT be happy with how you have been doing business > > with folks like this --- I promise you. > > > > These scams are more likely to rip off folks less involved in genealogy > > than most recipients of this msg. Most of us will recognize it for what > > it is and trash it. That does not relieve us of the responsibility of > > making it more difficult for these and other parasites within our > > community to enjoy their ill-gotten gains. I have found far too many > > that "don't want to get involved", "Didn't happen on my watch." (to use > > an old Navy excuse), running from controversy and responsibility. Let > > us unite in eradicating those that are behind an obvious attempt to > > profit unethically from the popularity of genealogy. > > > ==== ADAMS Mailing List ==== > To UNSUBSCRIBE in MAIL mode use: Mail to > [email protected] > To UNSUBSCRIBE in DIGEST mode use: Mail to > [email protected] > To access GENCONNECT use: http://cgi.rootsweb.com/~genbbs/indx/FamAssoc.html