Remember the guy who got escorted out of Office Depot by the police for trying to get the pricematch?? Well here's another story about how hot dealin' can get you arrested:
Like many of us, i signed up for p@ypal and xc@m back in January Feburary for the Hot Deal of FREE MONEY..what could be better, right? Seemed so good I told all my friends and family to signup to...heck I even let them signup on my computer! Even did the direct deposit from p@ypal into xc@m so we could access our money through the ATM... signed up six people from my family, and alls well, right? WRONG!
Recently checks started bouncing at one of the xc@m accounts, even though there was $2000+ in there! WTF? Never heard a word from p@ypal or xcom...then login to the new combined x entrance and find all the p@ypal accounts are "restricted"...the x checking accounts do not show a restriction, but wont let you move any money within them, indicating they were frozen too...apparently they did this July 2...
...come TODAY, this idiot, John Kothanek (JKothanek@x.com)"Fraud Investigator" calls and says "youre in big trouble buddy, we've tracked your IP address and found you have created several accounts from there" I say yes I indeed have, whats the problem?? My mom, dad, me , friends etc, all signed up using my computer,,hell i even typed a couple of the apps...as soon as he heard that he flipped, stating what a HUGE Federal crime it was b/c I was opening accounts for other people, regardless of ANY facts, such as they were there, or had given permission, or were disabled and couldnt type (all true)..he says that alone is a violation of TOS and is wire fraud..i asked him to point out where it states it is not permitted to help type someone's app for them (in some cases it would be violating the Americans With Disabilities Act if these people were denied access to apply due to a disability)....
....this idiot then states he wants to talk to my mom and dad regarding charges on p@ypal from my CC deposited in their xcom accounts...i tell him to screw himself, after the way hes talking to me, theres no way imma let him talk to my mom and dad like that, especially since they are more "innocent" when it comes to the net and could actually get freaked by the BS this guy was running...he basically used that conclusion to prove I was engaged in fraud and said he would be "contacting the authorities". I told him go ahead, and whats gonna happen to the $2000+ in my checking account you have frozen, with checks getting bounced right and left - first he says he will allow a partial restriction, then makes the "executive decision" and says they will stay COMPLETELY frozen during investigation...Thats ridiculous, since if we had the P@ypal money sent to a non-affiliated bank or sent by check they couldnt pull this, only b/c xc@m and P@ypal have merged was he able to pull this, We specifically didnt want to give P@ypal our main bank # for this specific reason!
he didnt care, so I told him im gonna dispute the last CC-charged p@ypal deposit into an xc@m account that cant be accessed, since we didnt get the product we paid for. So in the end its really no big loss, just a lot of hassle...this guy, feeling outwitted, he sends an email after the conversation with this nice ending:
"""John Kothanek (650)251-1141
PS what about the meeting with your parents,you and myself to discuss this
in its entirety. I could bring law enforcement if that would make you more
comfortable. """
This guy is talking like im 15 years old, when i happen to be 25 and have been a law enforcement officer over 3 years ago!
Since when has YOUR local bank threatened to come visit you with the cops?? This idiot seems to forget I am a CUSTOMER with over $2000 of my money in their accounts, not some criminal who stole anything from them.....
I know there are more people who have had problems with these 2 companies, and want to warn others who may have signed up their friends/families from their computer....watch out! BE CAREFUL!!!
Ive seen their new requirement that you "link a bank account' at P@ypal....WHATEVER YOU DO, DONT LINK YOUR MAIN BANK ACCOUNT TO P@YPAL!!! They are tracking IP addresses, and from reading recent epinons on xcom, they are FREEZING peoples bank accounts left and right! This is one hot deal that definitely went bad....I was all for their services till this started, and reading other's experiences it seems once there is a problem youre screwed b/c they have NO customer service or concern!!
I'll keep ya posted if this guys' threats have substance behind them
BTW, does anyone know the Proper Govt Authorities to call regarding freezing your assets b/c of mere suspicion? I know they are supposed to get a Court Order to be able to do this!
---
This message should be posted in the Moderator sponsored ~~~~ Brag & Moan ~~~~ thread.
AnandTech Moderator
Like many of us, i signed up for p@ypal and xc@m back in January Feburary for the Hot Deal of FREE MONEY..what could be better, right? Seemed so good I told all my friends and family to signup to...heck I even let them signup on my computer! Even did the direct deposit from p@ypal into xc@m so we could access our money through the ATM... signed up six people from my family, and alls well, right? WRONG!
Recently checks started bouncing at one of the xc@m accounts, even though there was $2000+ in there! WTF? Never heard a word from p@ypal or xcom...then login to the new combined x entrance and find all the p@ypal accounts are "restricted"...the x checking accounts do not show a restriction, but wont let you move any money within them, indicating they were frozen too...apparently they did this July 2...
...come TODAY, this idiot, John Kothanek (JKothanek@x.com)"Fraud Investigator" calls and says "youre in big trouble buddy, we've tracked your IP address and found you have created several accounts from there" I say yes I indeed have, whats the problem?? My mom, dad, me , friends etc, all signed up using my computer,,hell i even typed a couple of the apps...as soon as he heard that he flipped, stating what a HUGE Federal crime it was b/c I was opening accounts for other people, regardless of ANY facts, such as they were there, or had given permission, or were disabled and couldnt type (all true)..he says that alone is a violation of TOS and is wire fraud..i asked him to point out where it states it is not permitted to help type someone's app for them (in some cases it would be violating the Americans With Disabilities Act if these people were denied access to apply due to a disability)....
....this idiot then states he wants to talk to my mom and dad regarding charges on p@ypal from my CC deposited in their xcom accounts...i tell him to screw himself, after the way hes talking to me, theres no way imma let him talk to my mom and dad like that, especially since they are more "innocent" when it comes to the net and could actually get freaked by the BS this guy was running...he basically used that conclusion to prove I was engaged in fraud and said he would be "contacting the authorities". I told him go ahead, and whats gonna happen to the $2000+ in my checking account you have frozen, with checks getting bounced right and left - first he says he will allow a partial restriction, then makes the "executive decision" and says they will stay COMPLETELY frozen during investigation...Thats ridiculous, since if we had the P@ypal money sent to a non-affiliated bank or sent by check they couldnt pull this, only b/c xc@m and P@ypal have merged was he able to pull this, We specifically didnt want to give P@ypal our main bank # for this specific reason!
he didnt care, so I told him im gonna dispute the last CC-charged p@ypal deposit into an xc@m account that cant be accessed, since we didnt get the product we paid for. So in the end its really no big loss, just a lot of hassle...this guy, feeling outwitted, he sends an email after the conversation with this nice ending:
"""John Kothanek (650)251-1141
PS what about the meeting with your parents,you and myself to discuss this
in its entirety. I could bring law enforcement if that would make you more
comfortable. """
This guy is talking like im 15 years old, when i happen to be 25 and have been a law enforcement officer over 3 years ago!
Since when has YOUR local bank threatened to come visit you with the cops?? This idiot seems to forget I am a CUSTOMER with over $2000 of my money in their accounts, not some criminal who stole anything from them.....
I know there are more people who have had problems with these 2 companies, and want to warn others who may have signed up their friends/families from their computer....watch out! BE CAREFUL!!!
Ive seen their new requirement that you "link a bank account' at P@ypal....WHATEVER YOU DO, DONT LINK YOUR MAIN BANK ACCOUNT TO P@YPAL!!! They are tracking IP addresses, and from reading recent epinons on xcom, they are FREEZING peoples bank accounts left and right! This is one hot deal that definitely went bad....I was all for their services till this started, and reading other's experiences it seems once there is a problem youre screwed b/c they have NO customer service or concern!!
I'll keep ya posted if this guys' threats have substance behind them
BTW, does anyone know the Proper Govt Authorities to call regarding freezing your assets b/c of mere suspicion? I know they are supposed to get a Court Order to be able to do this!
---
This message should be posted in the Moderator sponsored ~~~~ Brag & Moan ~~~~ thread.
AnandTech Moderator
...look at my past posts, they're not governed by any government institution, they're just backed by a bank...
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