Royal Mail Hoax Scam (involving PDS)

Freddie_Snowbits

BAH HUMBUG

I see that Elf Bowling is designed to end the world at midnight on the millenium

trisontana

What makes it worse is that some people, before posting this warning, have checked it on Snopes and have see the "true" banner at the top of the article, thus assuming that this "scam" is still operating. You have to scroll down to see it was closed down years ago.

This is why I prefer Hoax Slayer which says right at the top:

Was true, but the scam was shut down in late 2005.

lisawood78

Arrrgh, my FIL came in earlier with a printed warning from work about this, lol!
I hadn't got the heart to tell him!

trisontana

Now here's an interesting variation of this chain-email. Somehow the "scam" and "warning" have become intertwined. This from a community website in Staffordshire:-

Ignore and delete any email purporting to come from Parcel Delivery Service (PDS). This is an old scam. You are advised to contact a premium rate number 0906 6611911.

In the past the scam has involved placing a card through a door with the same instructions. The Post Office Fraud Office say that in its present form, it only involves email messages. Please circulate this around especially as Xmas is fast approaching – it has been confirmed by Royal Mail & The Trading Standards Office who are making people aware of the scam.

trisontana

I am glad to see that Snopes have modified their article about this story. It now has the tag "Outdated" at the top of the text. This is much better than "true", which they used to have. The Daily Mirror is also running a feature about the story telling people that it's one big hoax, and PhonePayPlus have also reissued their statement.

4743hudsonj

sarahg1969 wrote: »

I've had two of these emails today, and see that it's gone up to £315 for the phone call this year!! How's that for inflation? :rotfl:

Haha me too! I had to double check it was the same seeing as this thread is 3 years old!

hybernia

But it always seems to be at this time of year.

These email chain hoaxes would never get momentum if people didn't keep insisting on their own few minutes of self-importance, acting as if they are privy to some information that they absolutely MUST warn everyone else about.

I fell out with a friend a year or so ago when she insisted an email she had forwarded me was true. It wasn't a warning, but a "genuine" story about a parking ticket collector outside Bristol Zoo who took £000s and then retired to Spain on the proceeds because he was never an 'authorised' collector anyway, and how clever is that?

I told her a quick check online would have shown the story was a hoax and she said something like, well it doesn't matter, I've passed it on to everyone in my address book to cheer them up.

So I asked her if she could take my name off the recipients list the next time she chose to clog up everybody's in boxes. She replied that she was taking my name out of her address book and I replied yes, that did seem to be the best idea of all.

I have never heard from her since. It seems in this age of emails you need to be more careful than ever how you choose your friends.

:mad:

Lifeisbutadream

I got this warning email from my sons school, which has come from someone at the council. I would have hoped they would have had more sense to pass it on really...

custardy

Gothicfairy

I can go one better..........I got an email from my FIL in New Zealand warning me to be careful this time of year and a copy and paste of this from 2007 ????

We however are Pagans and really don't do xmas ( and to be honest there is not enough living relatives left to bother with even if we did ) so it would have been slightly wasted on us. Although he does love to send out warning emails with every hoax he gets which has in the past lead me to block his email address.