Has anyone been to court before :(

[a legacy reborn]

http://www.ehow.com/how_4847616_recognize-class-action-lawsuit-scam.html
And if you're looking for a date... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703834804576300973195520918.html LOL this one can be ignored.

Seriously, though, that is the most obvious scam letter I've seen in a while. You'd think that when there's money to steal that they would at least give it their best effort, rather than being lazy. I guess that's why people scam in the first place though, laziness. Whatever, you have nothing to worry about until you receive an official summons in the mail(which, in this case, isn't going to happen).

 

[Adam Howard]

While on the topic.... As a business I would indeed register myself.

• Sole proprietorship

• Partnership (General, Limited, Limited liability)

• Corporation

• Cooperative

• State-owned enterprise

Depending on your situation; one of these may apply more to you than the other.

 

[Apokalupsis]

1) No physical notice = scam alert
2) No phone # to contact the London office = scam alert
3) No case/claim # = scam alert
4) Email contact only with pretty bad English = scam alert
5) FBI mentioned in email = scam alert

You need 1) the case/claim # to be provided to you in the notice (which ought to be physical and mailed to your home). I know of NO legal court in the world where they send emails instead of physical notices. Emails go into spam folders all the time or get ignored. There are numerous technological problems that can occur to prevent the receiver from getting the email. Physical notices can be tracked and they also serve the purpose of confirming a physical addressed.

The case/claim # is important because it allows you to reference the case/claim obviously. You ought to be able to call the court that is on the notice and refer or ask questions about the case/claim #. The fact that there is none should alert you big time to this being a scam.

The FBI, a US entity being mentioned in an 1st contact via email is yet another serious problem. Cases don't automatically go to the FBI, nor is the FBI notified merely because there is a court case. There's a matter of escalation. The FBI doesn't care about every single case that occurs, only the cases in which they need to be involved in. And if this guy is trying to go after you via a private suit, then notifying a government agency is absurd.

I'm in the US. That's how it is done here. I cannot imagine that it would be all that different in the UK. If I received that email I'd actually start having fun with it because I KNOW he was a scammer if he tried to pull that crap here. I get scammers all the time, most go to my junk folder, every once in a while someone will slip through. I usually start responding in gibberish or say that I will send them my pw/login details for my bank ONLY if they first send me $2,500 for e-postage or some crap like that.

 

[Apokalupsis]

I got that information from http://www.justice.gov.uk/help/fraud mate.

Did you follow the instructions on that site?

If you believe you have been a victim of this scam you should report the matter to Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or via the website.

Your reports will then be passed on to the National Fraud Intelligence Bureau and analysed to see if they can be used as part of a police investigation.

You can help to stop scammers by warning your friends and family, and by making Action Fraud aware of any scams that you have encountered.

 

[David_]

Wow remind me to never do hosting there if that's all it takes to get something removed...

 

[MichaelDance]

http://www.ehow.com/how_4847616_recognize-class-action-lawsuit-scam.html
And if you're looking for a date... http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703834804576300973195520918.html LOL this one can be ignored.

Seriously, though, that is the most obvious scam letter I've seen in a while. You'd think that when there's money to steal that they would at least give it their best effort, rather than being lazy. I guess that's why people scam in the first place though, laziness. Whatever, you have nothing to worry about until you receive an official summons in the mail(which, in this case, isn't going to happen).

Thank you mate.

Having actually been to court..... This whole claim sounds like total bullsh*t.

I would personally keep the e-mails on file, but no longer reply. This sounds like a scam or even a possible setup. Further communication would only further their resolve either way.

Thank you mate.

1) No physical notice = scam alert
2) No phone # to contact the London office = scam alert
3) No case/claim # = scam alert
4) Email contact only with pretty bad English = scam alert
5) FBI mentioned in email = scam alert

You need 1) the case/claim # to be provided to you in the notice (which ought to be physical and mailed to your home). I know of NO legal court in the world where they send emails instead of physical notices. Emails go into spam folders all the time or get ignored. There are numerous technological problems that can occur to prevent the receiver from getting the email. Physical notices can be tracked and they also serve the purpose of confirming a physical addressed.

The case/claim # is important because it allows you to reference the case/claim obviously. You ought to be able to call the court that is on the notice and refer or ask questions about the case/claim #. The fact that there is none should alert you big time to this being a scam.

The FBI, a US entity being mentioned in an 1st contact via email is yet another serious problem. Cases don't automatically go to the FBI, nor is the FBI notified merely because there is a court case. There's a matter of escalation. The FBI doesn't care about every single case that occurs, only the cases in which they need to be involved in. And if this guy is trying to go after you via a private suit, then notifying a government agency is absurd.

I'm in the US. That's how it is done here. I cannot imagine that it would be all that different in the UK. If I received that email I'd actually start having fun with it because I KNOW he was a scammer if he tried to pull that crap here. I get scammers all the time, most go to my junk folder, every once in a while someone will slip through. I usually start responding in gibberish or say that I will send them my pw/login details for my bank ONLY if they first send me $2,500 for e-postage or some crap like that.

Thank you mate if only I knew that.

Wow remind me to never do hosting there if that's all it takes to get something removed...

Sorry if this has broken our reputation however I wanted to make sure, since I would of gone to find myself either looking a idiot at a court, or fined money I can't afford. Sulake are a massive company who lost two big investors, due to channel4 claims.. But better to ask for help and learn from your mistakes, I've never ever in my whole time working in the Industry for other businesses and companies come across that. I suppose it's like what my Dad told me when I told him "If something looks too good to be true it probably is" I think that's from a advert too.

 

[RickM]

Cubic if its any help I've been in your situation. I ran a VPS company a few years back, not really knowing what I was doing. It started out as a hobby, and a way to help me pay my server bill.

Within 6 months I had 14 servers and 200 customers. I was up to my eyeballs in it. Then I was contacted demanding I remove someones account because it was using this persons stolen content and such.

When this happens, you must demand that a propper DMCA notice is provided - if they are serious, they will know exactly what this is, and will be happy to provide one. At that point, if the DMCA notice is legit you can take action.

One thing I will say: You have zero protection from your clients if you are not a registered company. Even if you are self employed, you'll be liable for any losses. If you go for a LTD company, the company becomes liable, and that protects your assets (e.g your home).

That being said - I went down the LTD route and the costs and paperwork killed my company. I ended up selling off what was left (10 servers and about 70 customers) to a 'big' host over in the US. Most of that vanished in accounting fees (dont bother trying to do your own accounts with a LTD company unless you REALLY know what you're doing) and transaction fees.

I learnt my lesson the hard way. Get yourself protected and get your finances in order (if they aren't already) - you have to take it pretty seriously - no piggy backing off personal bank accounts, etc.

 

[MichaelDance]

Cubic if its any help I've been in your situation. I ran a VPS company a few years back, not really knowing what I was doing. It started out as a hobby, and a way to help me pay my server bill.

Within 6 months I had 14 servers and 200 customers. I was up to my eyeballs in it. Then I was contacted demanding I remove someones account because it was using this persons stolen content and such.

When this happens, you must demand that a propper DMCA notice is provided - if they are serious, they will know exactly what this is, and will be happy to provide one. At that point, if the DMCA notice is legit you can take action.

One thing I will say: You have zero protection from your clients if you are not a registered company. Even if you are self employed, you'll be liable for any losses. If you go for a LTD company, the company becomes liable, and that protects your assets (e.g your home).

That being said - I went down the LTD route and the costs and paperwork killed my company. I ended up selling off what was left (10 servers and about 70 customers) to a 'big' host over in the US. Most of that vanished in accounting fees (dont bother trying to do your own accounts with a LTD company unless you REALLY know what you're doing) and transaction fees.

I learnt my lesson the hard way. Get yourself protected and get your finances in order (if they aren't already) - you have to take it pretty seriously - no piggy backing off personal bank accounts, etc.

Thank you I did that before too. This time it's a different approach but that really scared me since I know about Sulake.