If you find free merchandise from Amazon right on your doorstep addressed to you, you might feel like you hit the jackpot. You might be thinking, How could this be a bad thing? You are not the one who hit the jackpot. Scammers are the ones who benefit.
This scam is called brushing. This is beginning to happened all around the country. Packages of unordered merchandise from Amazon will be by your door. The package will have no return address except that of Amazon. There is no way to verify who ordered the items. In the packages you might find a humidifier, a hand warmer, socks, a Bluetooth speaker or one of many other items.
The scammer companies are usually foreign, third-party companies that are sending the items by using your address that they discovered online. Their intention is to make it appear as though you wrote an amazing review of their item which gets posted on their website or social media platforms. This scam becomes profitable when someone buys the same item based on your amazing review.
There are things to be concerned about. The scammer has some of your personal information, such as your name, address, and possibly your phone number. This information can also be used for nefarious reasons and lead to identity theft.
Just like the saying goes, there is no free lunch. Protect yourself and do not become a victim.
If this happens to you, there are steps that you can take
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Notify Amazon. Brushing and fake reviews are against Amazon’s policies, so contact Amazon Customer Service if this happens to you. They will investigate and take action on the bad actor. Go directly to Amazon’s website to get their contact information. The company also takes security seriously and encourages customers to report fraudulent purchases or other security issues. If the preference is to contact them by phone; be cautious of searching for support phone numbers.
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Change your account passwords. This may be a sign that personal information has been compromised and to improve account security, keep a close eye on credit reports and credit card bills.
