I am not the only one blogging about Mamasource. There are other women out there who are just as angry about the spamming, the email hijacking and phishing, and the unethical tactics that Artie Wu employs in the name of community that they too have decided to take a stand for what is right, to tell the world what is wrong with Mamasource.
So many of you love Mamasource...and that's fine, BUT do you love what they are doing to people's email address books? Do you love that they are using non-profits like Trees for the Future and The Breast Cancer Fund to further their agenda? Do you agree with using these charities to encourage people to give up their email address book passwords?
You should be thinking twice about these tactics!
Does it bother you that you CANNOT UNSUBSCRIBE FROM YOUR EMAILS?
It should. Because having an unsubscribe link that doesn't actually unsubscribe you is in direct violation of the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003.
You probably aren't aware of how Mamasource's email servers re configured, but it might be of interest to you that they are configured like those of EMAIL SPAMMERS.
Try It!
Try and send an email to abuse@mamasource.com, and an email to postmaster@mamasource.com.
THEY WILL BOUNCE BACK! (and they are not supposed to!)
This site is shady and I'm not the only one who thinks so.
Check out this blog and read Amy's story. Do you really want to belong to a community site that spams people in the name of trees and breast health?
Advice Goddess Blog
I know that over 500 of you have visited this site through my Google AdWords ads. I want you to know that my ad campaign is costing me money, and as a single mom, I really don't have it to spend. It is coming out of my own pocket, and the reason I keep this campaign going is because I feel so strongly that what Artie Wu is doing is WRONG. Plain and simple, he is scamming and spamming you, and it is WRONG!
He's got millions and I have nothing but the compelling evidence I've uncovered, my computer and my convictions.
I am NOT sponsored. No one is giving me money, no one is paying for my time or my ad costs. It is just me, and I have other things to do in my life, but each and every time I find another woman online who has been spammed, who has been scammed, and who has been embarrassed, I find it in me, again, to keep up my vigilance, to keep unearthing information supporting my statements, and to keep shelling out money so more eyes will look at this site.
You must look at the FACTS and decide for yourself if you want to support Mamasource with the way they are doing "business." And yes, it is a business.
Please visit the following blog and read her story and other people's comments. I am NOT THE ONLY ONE who is angry enough to write, angry enough to dig deeper into this supposed community site, angry enough to uncover these shady and unethical tactics for all to see.
Please visit Amy's blog at:
AdviceGoddess Blog
Showing posts with label can-spam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label can-spam. Show all posts
Monday, February 18, 2008
Monday, February 11, 2008
The Three Things That Need To Change
There are really only three things that need to change with Mamasource's practices for me to let this matter rest.
1. Stop harvesting people's address books! Which means you've got to stop asking for people's email passwords!
2. Provide an unsubscribe link in all of your email correspondence that really lets people opt-out of your list!
3. Change your email servers so that they are not configured like all the other spammers out there.
That's it. Really.
Does anyone think this is unreasonable?
1. Stop harvesting people's address books! Which means you've got to stop asking for people's email passwords!
2. Provide an unsubscribe link in all of your email correspondence that really lets people opt-out of your list!
3. Change your email servers so that they are not configured like all the other spammers out there.
That's it. Really.
Does anyone think this is unreasonable?
Sunday, February 10, 2008
What Other Moms Are Saying About Mamasource
Many have implied that it was just me having trouble with the email harvesting that took place, even Mr. Artie Wu himself in a personal email he wrote to me today.
Upon further investigation,
I can tell you that I am not the only one - this has happened to countless others!
Here are some random thoughts and snippets of other moms who've experienced the same thing, and if you'll notice the dates on the forum, this has all taken place recently.
DECIDE FOR YOURSELF!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Random talk from the Urban Baby Community Board:
why do I keep getting e-mails to join mamasource. did they hijak someone's mailbox?
Is Mamasource a new hip thing? i just got a tree planted through it.
no, it sucks, and you're spamming it
Apparently, it's akin to a parasite, sucking off your contact list. Please don't spam it here
okay but i don't know how it would get my contact list.
okay but nobody has told me that they got any emails from me about it. i didn't give out anyone's emails
oh! sneaky
How do i UNSUBSCRIBE from mamasource.com? HELP ME. (there is no working UNSIBSCRIBE LINK!)
mark as spam
i do not want to be a member. how do i get out?
omg me too. they are so annoying!! i dont even know how i am a member!
i'll post it if i do. but they suck.
thanks i am sick of their mail everyday
in the "contact me" section, you can email them. no idea if they will respond
I signed up for mamasource and everyone in my email address book keeps getting 'flowers' sent to them. I don't know how to get it to stop.
my friend planted a tree in my name - perhaps it hijacked her address book, too
I can't get it to stop!!
what is this? i keep getting emails from friends for it
There has to be an opt-out (according to the CAN-SPAM ACT there must be an opt-out!)
I just wrote to them asking to cancel my membership immediately
anyone know anything about mamasource? an acquaintance keeps inviting me but it sounds hokey
what is it?
i checked it out yesterday on advice from someone on ub. it was very hokey.
I'm so embarrassed. I signed up for that mamasource site and it sent a freaking flower to EVERYONE in my address book. I thought I deselected it. Grrrrr.
happened to me too...got a lot of angry emails from people i had not been in touch with for a long time. so bad!
What do you mean "a flower"? And how the fuck does it get access to your e-mail addys?
what is it mamasource.com?
SPAM
that site is creepy
Spamalamadingdong
watch Mamasource - I got spammed when my friend joined and gave them addresses of her friends. It was annoying.
Anyone know anything about Mamasource? Someone sent me an email wanting to plant a free tree on my behalf? I do know this person, but never heard of this.
----------------------------------------------------------
Do you really think that a site like this is trustworthy??? Do you really think I am barking up the wrong tree here?
Please leave your comments, tell me your thoughts!
Let's get to the bottom of this mess...NOW!
Upon further investigation,
I can tell you that I am not the only one - this has happened to countless others!
Here are some random thoughts and snippets of other moms who've experienced the same thing, and if you'll notice the dates on the forum, this has all taken place recently.
DECIDE FOR YOURSELF!
-----------------------------------------------------------
Random talk from the Urban Baby Community Board:
why do I keep getting e-mails to join mamasource. did they hijak someone's mailbox?
Is Mamasource a new hip thing? i just got a tree planted through it.
no, it sucks, and you're spamming it
Apparently, it's akin to a parasite, sucking off your contact list. Please don't spam it here
okay but i don't know how it would get my contact list.
okay but nobody has told me that they got any emails from me about it. i didn't give out anyone's emails
oh! sneaky
How do i UNSUBSCRIBE from mamasource.com? HELP ME. (there is no working UNSIBSCRIBE LINK!)
mark as spam
i do not want to be a member. how do i get out?
omg me too. they are so annoying!! i dont even know how i am a member!
i'll post it if i do. but they suck.
thanks i am sick of their mail everyday
in the "contact me" section, you can email them. no idea if they will respond
I signed up for mamasource and everyone in my email address book keeps getting 'flowers' sent to them. I don't know how to get it to stop.
my friend planted a tree in my name - perhaps it hijacked her address book, too
I can't get it to stop!!
what is this? i keep getting emails from friends for it
There has to be an opt-out (according to the CAN-SPAM ACT there must be an opt-out!)
I just wrote to them asking to cancel my membership immediately
anyone know anything about mamasource? an acquaintance keeps inviting me but it sounds hokey
what is it?
i checked it out yesterday on advice from someone on ub. it was very hokey.
I'm so embarrassed. I signed up for that mamasource site and it sent a freaking flower to EVERYONE in my address book. I thought I deselected it. Grrrrr.
happened to me too...got a lot of angry emails from people i had not been in touch with for a long time. so bad!
What do you mean "a flower"? And how the fuck does it get access to your e-mail addys?
what is it mamasource.com?
SPAM
that site is creepy
Spamalamadingdong
watch Mamasource - I got spammed when my friend joined and gave them addresses of her friends. It was annoying.
Anyone know anything about Mamasource? Someone sent me an email wanting to plant a free tree on my behalf? I do know this person, but never heard of this.
----------------------------------------------------------
Do you really think that a site like this is trustworthy??? Do you really think I am barking up the wrong tree here?
Please leave your comments, tell me your thoughts!
Let's get to the bottom of this mess...NOW!
When Will I Drop This Matter?
There are several things that Artie needs to fix in order for me to let up:
1. Create an unsubscribe link that actually goes to an unsubscribe page, not an email preferences page. A user must be able to opt-out with one-click. At this point, not one of Mamasource's subscribers can do that...not one. This IS in violation of the CAN-SPAM act.
2. Quit harvesting people's email addresses! I am not the only one whose email address book was harvested. There is no indication that users can select individual contacts from their address books like you can in other social networking sites. Once an unsuspecting person submits her password, those flowers and trees go to everyone in their address books and they don't go away, the requests keep being sent out again and again. This IS spammy and unethical. And using The Breast Cancer Fund and Trees For the Future to solicit moms in this way? Pathetic. Also, the page you get when you sign up at the site is a blatant pitch page encouraging moms to enter their email passwords for flowers, a page that says "this is your only chance!" and I find this very alarming.
3. Fix Mamasource's mailservers that are currently configured like those of a spammer. Read the post on the DNS report for more information on that one. I wish someone more technical than myself (which is about anyone) would comment on the current configurations and why they are configured like they are.
1. Create an unsubscribe link that actually goes to an unsubscribe page, not an email preferences page. A user must be able to opt-out with one-click. At this point, not one of Mamasource's subscribers can do that...not one. This IS in violation of the CAN-SPAM act.
2. Quit harvesting people's email addresses! I am not the only one whose email address book was harvested. There is no indication that users can select individual contacts from their address books like you can in other social networking sites. Once an unsuspecting person submits her password, those flowers and trees go to everyone in their address books and they don't go away, the requests keep being sent out again and again. This IS spammy and unethical. And using The Breast Cancer Fund and Trees For the Future to solicit moms in this way? Pathetic. Also, the page you get when you sign up at the site is a blatant pitch page encouraging moms to enter their email passwords for flowers, a page that says "this is your only chance!" and I find this very alarming.
3. Fix Mamasource's mailservers that are currently configured like those of a spammer. Read the post on the DNS report for more information on that one. I wish someone more technical than myself (which is about anyone) would comment on the current configurations and why they are configured like they are.
Why This Blog Exists
I've been criticized for questioning Mamasource's intentions and believe me if there is anything I'd love to see happen in this world, it is planting of more trees and wiping out breast cancer. Really. I can't think of more worthy causes.
That is how I got sucked into this whole ordeal in the first place. I wanted to see more trees planted. Look what happened...my friends got caught up in this because of my exuberance to plant more trees. In my defense, I Googled Mamasource before I hit "submit" because I saw all the accolades about the site. I thought they could be trusted. Everyone was raving about them. And then the emails from my friends and family came pouring back in. First I was embarrassed by own own stupidity, and then I got angry.
Who does Artie Wu think he is that he can con people like this? He builds this massive community site, builds it up in the media, aligns himself with worthy causes like Trees for the Future and The Breast Cancer Fund and then preys on his subscriber base.
This is why I created this blog. I have a busy life, and I don't really have the time for all this, but I feel strongly enough about what I've found to keep pushing on.
The only thing I can verify at this point is that he is violation of the CAN-SPAM act by not providing his subscribers a way to opt-out. THIS IS FACT. That alone should have the FTC looking at him closely and should have anyone involved with Mamasource a little nervous.
Then there is the whole "enter your email password" thing on his invites. Enough people have come forward to say that they never got the chance to select recipients from their address book, that the invite went to everyone in their address book, that you should all take notice, that you should question Artie Wu's motives. You should know that even if this is legal (I am not sure how legal it really is) it is truly unethical.
This is a post I received last night and I am posting it here to show you I am not the only one show who has questioned Mamasource:
"I've been spammed several times by my unsuspecting friends, who I am sure only wanted to plant a tree. I, like alot of people i'm sure, want to be kind to our environment. However, something bugged me about the fact that when I didn't respond right away, the email requests just kept coming. It smelled like spam; so before i clicked on the link, I decided to google mamasource first, and i ran into your site. Great job in helping me avoid a spam nightmare!! Thanks! I'll be reporting them to the site you suggested."
Posts like this keep me moving forward, and keep me on the Internet researching Artie Wu, Arthur F. Wu, Vividence, Vividence Spyware, and all the techniques Mr. Wu has created in the past that mine intelligence from websites. I firmly believe that not only is Artie Wu spamming his Mamsource subscribers, but he is building up a huge database of information for his own personal gain.
I signed up for the Mamasource site, well I thought I signed up, but only got as far as the spam page, featuring The Breast Cancer Fund's logo, telling me to "Enter your Gmail email password to look up Moms you know on Mamasource...Mamasource will not save your Gmail password." They go on to tell me "This program is limited to newly registered members, and this page will be your only opportunity to participate - both joining Mamasource and sending Mamasource Flowers are 100% free." Well, I didn't fall for this (think I am going down that road twice?) and when clicked "don't send flowers" I was directed to a page where I found out I wasn't even signed up for the site. Can someone explain this to me?
Some comments I've seen on other blogs include:
"I joined Mamasource this morning look for cakes/bakeries for my daughter's upcoming birthday. Now a couple of my friends have emailed me and thanked me for the "flower"? In my profile(on mamasource) it shows members I have invited, flowers I have sent...whoa! Hold on, I didn't send anything to anyone. What is going on?"
"What a shady way to spread your website...now everyone in my gmail address book will get a flower? Oh niiice....So not cool."
This is why this blog exists, this is why I spend my precious time doing the research on Artie Wu, Vividence, intelligence mining and mailservers. This is why I've looked into his DNS stats. Do I really want to know what PTR is? No. But I do want to know why he doesn't have mailservers that point back to his Mamasource addresses. Why they don't point to abuse@mamasource.com, why "one or more of (his) mailservers is claiming to be a host other than what it really."
I wonder why this father of two would start a site like Mamasource. After all, he sold his company Vividence, for about $22M, so I am sure he didn't start this company just to "make the job of being a mom a little bit easier."
These are questions that need to be asked...I hope someone can answer them.
That is how I got sucked into this whole ordeal in the first place. I wanted to see more trees planted. Look what happened...my friends got caught up in this because of my exuberance to plant more trees. In my defense, I Googled Mamasource before I hit "submit" because I saw all the accolades about the site. I thought they could be trusted. Everyone was raving about them. And then the emails from my friends and family came pouring back in. First I was embarrassed by own own stupidity, and then I got angry.
Who does Artie Wu think he is that he can con people like this? He builds this massive community site, builds it up in the media, aligns himself with worthy causes like Trees for the Future and The Breast Cancer Fund and then preys on his subscriber base.
This is why I created this blog. I have a busy life, and I don't really have the time for all this, but I feel strongly enough about what I've found to keep pushing on.
The only thing I can verify at this point is that he is violation of the CAN-SPAM act by not providing his subscribers a way to opt-out. THIS IS FACT. That alone should have the FTC looking at him closely and should have anyone involved with Mamasource a little nervous.
Then there is the whole "enter your email password" thing on his invites. Enough people have come forward to say that they never got the chance to select recipients from their address book, that the invite went to everyone in their address book, that you should all take notice, that you should question Artie Wu's motives. You should know that even if this is legal (I am not sure how legal it really is) it is truly unethical.
This is a post I received last night and I am posting it here to show you I am not the only one show who has questioned Mamasource:
"I've been spammed several times by my unsuspecting friends, who I am sure only wanted to plant a tree. I, like alot of people i'm sure, want to be kind to our environment. However, something bugged me about the fact that when I didn't respond right away, the email requests just kept coming. It smelled like spam; so before i clicked on the link, I decided to google mamasource first, and i ran into your site. Great job in helping me avoid a spam nightmare!! Thanks! I'll be reporting them to the site you suggested."
Posts like this keep me moving forward, and keep me on the Internet researching Artie Wu, Arthur F. Wu, Vividence, Vividence Spyware, and all the techniques Mr. Wu has created in the past that mine intelligence from websites. I firmly believe that not only is Artie Wu spamming his Mamsource subscribers, but he is building up a huge database of information for his own personal gain.
I signed up for the Mamasource site, well I thought I signed up, but only got as far as the spam page, featuring The Breast Cancer Fund's logo, telling me to "Enter your Gmail email password to look up Moms you know on Mamasource...Mamasource will not save your Gmail password." They go on to tell me "This program is limited to newly registered members, and this page will be your only opportunity to participate - both joining Mamasource and sending Mamasource Flowers are 100% free." Well, I didn't fall for this (think I am going down that road twice?) and when clicked "don't send flowers" I was directed to a page where I found out I wasn't even signed up for the site. Can someone explain this to me?
Some comments I've seen on other blogs include:
"I joined Mamasource this morning look for cakes/bakeries for my daughter's upcoming birthday. Now a couple of my friends have emailed me and thanked me for the "flower"? In my profile(on mamasource) it shows members I have invited, flowers I have sent...whoa! Hold on, I didn't send anything to anyone. What is going on?"
"What a shady way to spread your website...now everyone in my gmail address book will get a flower? Oh niiice....So not cool."
This is why this blog exists, this is why I spend my precious time doing the research on Artie Wu, Vividence, intelligence mining and mailservers. This is why I've looked into his DNS stats. Do I really want to know what PTR is? No. But I do want to know why he doesn't have mailservers that point back to his Mamasource addresses. Why they don't point to abuse@mamasource.com, why "one or more of (his) mailservers is claiming to be a host other than what it really."
I wonder why this father of two would start a site like Mamasource. After all, he sold his company Vividence, for about $22M, so I am sure he didn't start this company just to "make the job of being a mom a little bit easier."
These are questions that need to be asked...I hope someone can answer them.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Why Can't You Unsubscribe From Mamasource?
According to the CAN-SPAM Act of 2003...
"Your email must give recipients an opt-out method. You must provide a return email address or another Internet-based response mechanism that allows a recipient to ask you not to send future email messages to that email address, and you must honor the requests. You may create a "menu" of choices to allow a recipient to opt out of certain types of messages, but you must include the option to end any commercial messages from the sender."
Well, lo and behold, Mamasource does provide an unsubscribe link, but guess what? YOU CAN'T ACTUALLY UNSUBSCRIBE! This link takes you to an email preferences page, where you can change the following:
Email me a Daily Digest of the latest requests, news, and activity on Mamasource.
Yes
No
Email me each time a new request is made on Mamasource.
Yes
No
Email me each time I receive a new response to one of my own requests.
Yes
No
Email me each time I receive a new personal message.
Yes
No
Does anyone see an unsubscribe option here?
Check out the "unsubscribe" page for yourself
It is plain to see that they do not allow you to enjoy a "one-click opt-out" or let you unsubscribe without hassle. They do, however, make it very easy for you to unknowingly spam all of your friends, relatives, and acquaintances with trees and flowers with a simple click!
See the CAN-SPAM ACT of 2003 here.
If you are sick of getting these emails, I suggest you forward them in their entirety to spam@uce.gov!
Stop these people from gathering your information and harvesting your email address books.
It just ain't right!
"Your email must give recipients an opt-out method. You must provide a return email address or another Internet-based response mechanism that allows a recipient to ask you not to send future email messages to that email address, and you must honor the requests. You may create a "menu" of choices to allow a recipient to opt out of certain types of messages, but you must include the option to end any commercial messages from the sender."
Well, lo and behold, Mamasource does provide an unsubscribe link, but guess what? YOU CAN'T ACTUALLY UNSUBSCRIBE! This link takes you to an email preferences page, where you can change the following:
Email me a Daily Digest of the latest requests, news, and activity on Mamasource.
Yes
No
Email me each time a new request is made on Mamasource.
Yes
No
Email me each time I receive a new response to one of my own requests.
Yes
No
Email me each time I receive a new personal message.
Yes
No
Does anyone see an unsubscribe option here?
Check out the "unsubscribe" page for yourself
It is plain to see that they do not allow you to enjoy a "one-click opt-out" or let you unsubscribe without hassle. They do, however, make it very easy for you to unknowingly spam all of your friends, relatives, and acquaintances with trees and flowers with a simple click!
See the CAN-SPAM ACT of 2003 here.
If you are sick of getting these emails, I suggest you forward them in their entirety to spam@uce.gov!
Stop these people from gathering your information and harvesting your email address books.
It just ain't right!
Friday, February 8, 2008
Please Wait...Importing Contacts
This is the text of the page you get when you sign up at Mamasource...this is amazing to me!
Please comment and tell me your thoughts about getting into people's email address books this way. It is one thing to get an email invite and be naive enough to enter your email password (like I did!) but to get this straight away when you sign up on a "trusted" site like this? Seriously now folks, is this ethical? Is this legal? Can someone please tell me, because I don't know.
What I do know is that this is sketchy and I still smell a rat.
Here's the text of the webpage:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mamasource
Breast Cancer Fund (logo here)
Next step: Who else do you know on Mamasource? Find out and help prevent breast cancer. (are they even affiliated with the Breast Cancer Fund?)
For a limited time, when you look up Moms you may know on Mamasource and send flowers to non-members, we’ll make a donation to the Breast Cancer Fund for every Mom who sends a Mamasource Flower.
* For every Mom who sends a Mamasource Flower, we’ll make a donation to the Breast Cancer Fund, the leading national organization focused on identifying the environmental causes of breast cancer and preventing the disease.
* This program is limited to newly registered members, and this page will be your only opportunity to participate (oh come on!) — both joining Mamasource and sending Mamasource Flowers are 100% free.
* The more Moms who send Mamasource Flowers, the more we will donate to the Breast Cancer Fund. (I'd really like to know if they are affiliated with the Breast Cancer Fund...and if they are not, watch out, I've had too many friends and family members go through breast cancer to have this be be a scam!)
Look up Moms now using your Gmail Address Book:
Check your Gmail Address Book:
Gmail Username: (deleted)
Gmail Password: (not given!)
Enter your Gmail email password to look up Moms you know on Mamasource. Mamasource will not save your Gmail password. (no, they'll just harvest every single name out of there they can!)
Secure Transaction
The number of Mamasource Flowers you send will be shown on your profile.
Mamasource will not save your login information. It will temporarily and securely be used to retrieve your Gmail address book contacts.
Don’t send flowers (this is a link you can use to bypass the page)
Importing your contacts, please wait one moment... (not sure where this came from as I never entered by password!)
© 2007 Mamasource
Have a question? Contact Us (there is no phone number, and I have received all the same auto-generated reply when I've used this address, which BTW is support@mamasource.com)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope I'm wrong people, but none of this adds up.
Please comment and tell me your thoughts about getting into people's email address books this way. It is one thing to get an email invite and be naive enough to enter your email password (like I did!) but to get this straight away when you sign up on a "trusted" site like this? Seriously now folks, is this ethical? Is this legal? Can someone please tell me, because I don't know.
What I do know is that this is sketchy and I still smell a rat.
Here's the text of the webpage:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mamasource
Breast Cancer Fund (logo here)
Next step: Who else do you know on Mamasource? Find out and help prevent breast cancer. (are they even affiliated with the Breast Cancer Fund?)
For a limited time, when you look up Moms you may know on Mamasource and send flowers to non-members, we’ll make a donation to the Breast Cancer Fund for every Mom who sends a Mamasource Flower.
* For every Mom who sends a Mamasource Flower, we’ll make a donation to the Breast Cancer Fund, the leading national organization focused on identifying the environmental causes of breast cancer and preventing the disease.
* This program is limited to newly registered members, and this page will be your only opportunity to participate (oh come on!) — both joining Mamasource and sending Mamasource Flowers are 100% free.
* The more Moms who send Mamasource Flowers, the more we will donate to the Breast Cancer Fund. (I'd really like to know if they are affiliated with the Breast Cancer Fund...and if they are not, watch out, I've had too many friends and family members go through breast cancer to have this be be a scam!)
Look up Moms now using your Gmail Address Book:
Check your Gmail Address Book:
Gmail Username: (deleted)
Gmail Password: (not given!)
Enter your Gmail email password to look up Moms you know on Mamasource. Mamasource will not save your Gmail password. (no, they'll just harvest every single name out of there they can!)
Secure Transaction
The number of Mamasource Flowers you send will be shown on your profile.
Mamasource will not save your login information. It will temporarily and securely be used to retrieve your Gmail address book contacts.
Don’t send flowers (this is a link you can use to bypass the page)
Importing your contacts, please wait one moment... (not sure where this came from as I never entered by password!)
© 2007 Mamasource
Have a question? Contact Us (there is no phone number, and I have received all the same auto-generated reply when I've used this address, which BTW is support@mamasource.com)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
I hope I'm wrong people, but none of this adds up.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Mama What?
"Mama What???"
This was in the subject line of an email I just received from a girlfriend.
This is what she had to say to me:
"did you sign me up for some mother's group? or is it spam? i cant imagine you would think it appropriate!"
OK, I made a HUGE mistake. It was late. 2 AM actually. I'd been up for two days with a very sick 7 year old and I was feeling a little, I don't know...alone. While I am online, I get this invitation to plant a tree, and being a kind of outdoorsy, tree-hugging kind of girl, I thought I would pass on the tree. I mean, who doesn't want to plant a tree? And yes, I entered my email password....I know, I know! (did I mention it was 2 AM?) I've since changed it, but still that doesn't erase the fact that I entered my password. You all know NEVER to do this, right?
Over the next few days, I began getting emails from people I hadn't heard from in ages. I was kind of shocked, because I hadn't picked anyone from my address book to send the invite to. I mean afterall, the email dis say "enter you password and we'll keep it private." (I already have beat myself up for this, you don't have to!)
I even got emails from myself to myself! (I have a couple of different email addresses)
It was obvious I'd been had, so I changed my email password right away (you should do this if you haven't already, and continue to do it regularly, stupidity or no stupidity) and thought the matter was over, but I kept getting emails from friends (at least they used to be friends!)
The one reply that caught my eye was from my sister-in-law, who said her 10 year old son got the tree invite. Ya, I am sure I would have invited him to Mamasource!
At this point, I went to unsubscribe from all things Mamasource and found I could not. The "unsubscribe" link went straight to a page for email preferences, and I can tell you there was not one preference for removing yourself from the list. This is in blatant disregard of the CAN-SPAM act which regulates commercial email. By this time, I was getting pretty angry. Yes, at myself too, because I, like many of you, know better. It was the lure of that darn tree.
My new slogan for Mamasource is:
Plant a Tree, Spam Your Friends!
I started to wonder if I was the only one having trouble with Mamasource, propagator of SPAM, harvester of emails, so I started to do some research. I found that a lot of people really liked this site, but I couldn't get past the whole SPAM and EMAIL HARVESTING tactic which is just, well lame!
When I found out that the founder is Artie Wu, the former founder and CEO of Internet market research company Vividence, and when I got past the "he's a man?" thought, my next thought came out as "Shame on YOU Artie Wu!" at which point the dogs woke up and put their tales between their legs. Seriously Artie, how can you SPAM people like that? How can you not provide an UNSUBSCRIBE link that actually unsubscribes people? Did you learn these dirty little black hat techniques from some underlings at Vividence, or did you teach them to your team yourself? Maybe you just waited until you could form your own little online community. Can't you build your subscriber base without resorting to these underhanded email marketing tactics?
"CONNECTING moms in your community"
should be changed to...
"COLLECTING moms in your community!"
I pulled some very interesting comments off the Internet from other people who had similar problems and I am going to share them here. Of course, because I value people's privacy, I will not share names, screennames, URLS or any other personal information about the posters.
Please feel free to include YOUR comments here about Mamasource as a website (a lot of women like it) and about these questionable email campaigns they are launching (plenty of women don't like that!) Anyone with any information on CAN-SPAM and harvesting emails in is welcome to reply as well. I want to hear YOUR thoughts on this matter.
To report spam, simply forward the email in its entirety to spam@uce.gov and if you really like Mamasource, do them a favor and write to them and tell them you don't approve of their non-compliant use of email. Tell them it is shady, tacky and ILLEGAL!
What other people are saying about Mamasource's questionable email practices:
"i used to be a member of mamasource and it used to be okay. i changed email addresses because i tried for a year to unsub and it wouldn't let me and was ticking me off royally!"
"I tried unsuccessfully for a while to unsub from the INDIVIDUAL emails because it got to be so many. I finally just switched it to the daily digest, so it's not flooding my mailbox all day, but I usually delete them without looking at them now." (note: contact them directly and they will unsubscribe you)
"I joined Mamasource this morning look for cakes/bakeries for my daughter's upcoming birthday. Now a couple of my friends have emailed me and thanked me for the "flower"? In my profile(on mamasource) it shows members I have invited, flowers I have sent...whoa! Hold on,
I didn't send anything to anyone. What is going on?"
"What a shady way to spread your website...now everyone in my gmail address book will get a flower? Oh niiice....So not cool."
"I recently got invited there to plant a tree or something, by a friend of mine. So, I clicked the link and did the tree thing, but when it asked for permission to invite others by getting into my email, I bailed. I thought it was kind of weird." (smart girl!)
"I received the tree planting invite from a family member and I was disappointed when it signed me up to mommasource. Maybe I'm naiive but that email was really misleading. I'm not interested in being a part of something that has to be sneaky to get members."
"a forum spamming my friends, a little tacky on their part."
Mamasource may be a great site, but they harvest people's emails using this tree planting tactic. When you sign up with them, they do not provide a valid way to opt-out or unsubscribe. This is shady and against the CAN-SPAM act that regulates commercial emails. Beware of these emails, and this scam, and never enter you email password when prompted. Please mark these emails as spam and contact mamasource to tell them you disapprove of their spammy email tactics! If you'd like to report their emails to the FTC, simply forward them to spam@uce.gov
You can also write to them, but I am sure you will get an email much like the one I received. I am quite positive it is set up as an auto-reply, because I have received several of the same emails.
------------------------------------------------------------
This is Linda at Mamasource Member Support. Thanks for your message, and we are so sorry for any inconvenience.
Email address book contacts that are checked and highlighted in bright yellow are only contacted during the registration process if the button is clicked to "Select Moms and Invite". In this case, those highlighted contacts receive an invitation to join Mamasource.
As you requested I have gone ahead and canceled your account.
Please let me know if you need any assistance and I will be happy to help you.
Again, we are very sorry for any misunderstanding, and apologize for any inconvenience this has caused.
Warmly,
Linda
Mamasource Member Support
---------------------------------------------------------------
I don't know of anyone who was able to select anyone in particular. That invite went out to everyone in my address book, including my nephew!
Again, please post your comments here, I don't care if they are anonymous or not, and hit your "report spam" button, forward the email to spam@uce.gov and write Mamasource if you really want to see them continue as the beloved site they seem to be. Their email address (for the auto generated email response) is support@mamasource.com
If you like the service they are offering, demand they quit using shady tactics to grow their customer base!
Oh, and one more thing, in all the searches on "mamasource spam" I did, I kept seeing their anti-spam stance for their site:
"Mamasource is a free service, but to protect our members we are an invitation-only community. We have a strict no-spam policy, and your personal information will never be shared with advertisers."
This part kills me! A strict anti-spam policy? On their site maybe!
For more information on the CAN-SPAM act, please visit:
The FTC's page on CAN-SPAM Regulations
P.S. You know, the reason I am so furious (yes, I am mad at myself too) and created this blog, is because Mamasource is supposed to be a respected site and valuable resource for MOMS...not some SPAM generator.
Just so you know, I have no objection to the site itself (so far) but to the creepy and illegal SPAM techniques they use. I never report SPAM, I am far too busy and with gmail, it gets filtered quite nicely, but this has raise my hackles. Maybe it is the MOM in me!
Please post your thoughts on this illegal and tacky behavior below!
This was in the subject line of an email I just received from a girlfriend.
This is what she had to say to me:
"did you sign me up for some mother's group? or is it spam? i cant imagine you would think it appropriate!"
OK, I made a HUGE mistake. It was late. 2 AM actually. I'd been up for two days with a very sick 7 year old and I was feeling a little, I don't know...alone. While I am online, I get this invitation to plant a tree, and being a kind of outdoorsy, tree-hugging kind of girl, I thought I would pass on the tree. I mean, who doesn't want to plant a tree? And yes, I entered my email password....I know, I know! (did I mention it was 2 AM?) I've since changed it, but still that doesn't erase the fact that I entered my password. You all know NEVER to do this, right?
Over the next few days, I began getting emails from people I hadn't heard from in ages. I was kind of shocked, because I hadn't picked anyone from my address book to send the invite to. I mean afterall, the email dis say "enter you password and we'll keep it private." (I already have beat myself up for this, you don't have to!)
I even got emails from myself to myself! (I have a couple of different email addresses)
It was obvious I'd been had, so I changed my email password right away (you should do this if you haven't already, and continue to do it regularly, stupidity or no stupidity) and thought the matter was over, but I kept getting emails from friends (at least they used to be friends!)
The one reply that caught my eye was from my sister-in-law, who said her 10 year old son got the tree invite. Ya, I am sure I would have invited him to Mamasource!
At this point, I went to unsubscribe from all things Mamasource and found I could not. The "unsubscribe" link went straight to a page for email preferences, and I can tell you there was not one preference for removing yourself from the list. This is in blatant disregard of the CAN-SPAM act which regulates commercial email. By this time, I was getting pretty angry. Yes, at myself too, because I, like many of you, know better. It was the lure of that darn tree.
My new slogan for Mamasource is:
Plant a Tree, Spam Your Friends!
I started to wonder if I was the only one having trouble with Mamasource, propagator of SPAM, harvester of emails, so I started to do some research. I found that a lot of people really liked this site, but I couldn't get past the whole SPAM and EMAIL HARVESTING tactic which is just, well lame!
When I found out that the founder is Artie Wu, the former founder and CEO of Internet market research company Vividence, and when I got past the "he's a man?" thought, my next thought came out as "Shame on YOU Artie Wu!" at which point the dogs woke up and put their tales between their legs. Seriously Artie, how can you SPAM people like that? How can you not provide an UNSUBSCRIBE link that actually unsubscribes people? Did you learn these dirty little black hat techniques from some underlings at Vividence, or did you teach them to your team yourself? Maybe you just waited until you could form your own little online community. Can't you build your subscriber base without resorting to these underhanded email marketing tactics?
"CONNECTING moms in your community"
should be changed to...
"COLLECTING moms in your community!"
I pulled some very interesting comments off the Internet from other people who had similar problems and I am going to share them here. Of course, because I value people's privacy, I will not share names, screennames, URLS or any other personal information about the posters.
Please feel free to include YOUR comments here about Mamasource as a website (a lot of women like it) and about these questionable email campaigns they are launching (plenty of women don't like that!) Anyone with any information on CAN-SPAM and harvesting emails in is welcome to reply as well. I want to hear YOUR thoughts on this matter.
To report spam, simply forward the email in its entirety to spam@uce.gov and if you really like Mamasource, do them a favor and write to them and tell them you don't approve of their non-compliant use of email. Tell them it is shady, tacky and ILLEGAL!
What other people are saying about Mamasource's questionable email practices:
"i used to be a member of mamasource and it used to be okay. i changed email addresses because i tried for a year to unsub and it wouldn't let me and was ticking me off royally!"
"I tried unsuccessfully for a while to unsub from the INDIVIDUAL emails because it got to be so many. I finally just switched it to the daily digest, so it's not flooding my mailbox all day, but I usually delete them without looking at them now." (note: contact them directly and they will unsubscribe you)
"I joined Mamasource this morning look for cakes/bakeries for my daughter's upcoming birthday. Now a couple of my friends have emailed me and thanked me for the "flower"? In my profile(on mamasource) it shows members I have invited, flowers I have sent...whoa! Hold on,
I didn't send anything to anyone. What is going on?"
"What a shady way to spread your website...now everyone in my gmail address book will get a flower? Oh niiice....So not cool."
"I recently got invited there to plant a tree or something, by a friend of mine. So, I clicked the link and did the tree thing, but when it asked for permission to invite others by getting into my email, I bailed. I thought it was kind of weird." (smart girl!)
"I received the tree planting invite from a family member and I was disappointed when it signed me up to mommasource. Maybe I'm naiive but that email was really misleading. I'm not interested in being a part of something that has to be sneaky to get members."
"a forum spamming my friends, a little tacky on their part."
Mamasource may be a great site, but they harvest people's emails using this tree planting tactic. When you sign up with them, they do not provide a valid way to opt-out or unsubscribe. This is shady and against the CAN-SPAM act that regulates commercial emails. Beware of these emails, and this scam, and never enter you email password when prompted. Please mark these emails as spam and contact mamasource to tell them you disapprove of their spammy email tactics! If you'd like to report their emails to the FTC, simply forward them to spam@uce.gov
You can also write to them, but I am sure you will get an email much like the one I received. I am quite positive it is set up as an auto-reply, because I have received several of the same emails.
------------------------------------------------------------
This is Linda at Mamasource Member Support. Thanks for your message, and we are so sorry for any inconvenience.
Email address book contacts that are checked and highlighted in bright yellow are only contacted during the registration process if the button is clicked to "Select Moms and Invite". In this case, those highlighted contacts receive an invitation to join Mamasource.
As you requested I have gone ahead and canceled your account.
Please let me know if you need any assistance and I will be happy to help you.
Again, we are very sorry for any misunderstanding, and apologize for any inconvenience this has caused.
Warmly,
Linda
Mamasource Member Support
---------------------------------------------------------------
I don't know of anyone who was able to select anyone in particular. That invite went out to everyone in my address book, including my nephew!
Again, please post your comments here, I don't care if they are anonymous or not, and hit your "report spam" button, forward the email to spam@uce.gov and write Mamasource if you really want to see them continue as the beloved site they seem to be. Their email address (for the auto generated email response) is support@mamasource.com
If you like the service they are offering, demand they quit using shady tactics to grow their customer base!
Oh, and one more thing, in all the searches on "mamasource spam" I did, I kept seeing their anti-spam stance for their site:
"Mamasource is a free service, but to protect our members we are an invitation-only community. We have a strict no-spam policy, and your personal information will never be shared with advertisers."
This part kills me! A strict anti-spam policy? On their site maybe!
For more information on the CAN-SPAM act, please visit:
The FTC's page on CAN-SPAM Regulations
P.S. You know, the reason I am so furious (yes, I am mad at myself too) and created this blog, is because Mamasource is supposed to be a respected site and valuable resource for MOMS...not some SPAM generator.
Just so you know, I have no objection to the site itself (so far) but to the creepy and illegal SPAM techniques they use. I never report SPAM, I am far too busy and with gmail, it gets filtered quite nicely, but this has raise my hackles. Maybe it is the MOM in me!
Please post your thoughts on this illegal and tacky behavior below!
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