Becky, Brad,
I passed on links to this thread to Louisa Kwasigroch at DLF, who may be
able to let you know if any other registered attendees had this issue.
Cheers,
Mark
--
Mark A. Matienzo <[log in to unmask]>
Director of Technology, Digital Public Library of America
On Fri, Mar 13, 2015 at 11:26 AM, Becky Yoose <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Hi Brad,
>
> If there was an option for an annual subscription for ACTIVE as part of the
> registration process, I'm wondering why this wasn't brought up during the
> registration period. What you are describing would have been suspicious to
> anyone signing up for the conference.
>
> If I remember correctly, DLF was the one who handled the fiances for 2013,
> so if someone from DLF is on the list, can they doublecheck to see if there
> was anything like Brad described below?
>
> Thanks,
> Becky
>
> On Fri, Mar 13, 2015 at 10:17 AM, Brad Busenius <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
>
> > They are separate charges. WithdrawalACT*Council is probably the charge
> > for the conference. I probably have that one too. The Active charge came
> > later as an annual subscription. They used the conference registration
> as a
> > way to trick people into opting in to their unrelated service. I assume
> > most people noticed this and opted out. I did not notice and therefore
> did
> > not opt out. That's what I think happened, anyhow. I am looking for
> > confirmation on this. I've had to piece things together.
> >
> > Brad
> >
> > On 3/12/15 7:48 PM, Becky Yoose wrote:
> >
> >> A follow-up - the charge name that is listed on my statement for 2013
> >> registration is WithdrawalACT*Council on Library which is different than
> >> what you have listed in your statement. :-(
> >>
> >> Thanks,
> >> Becky
> >>
> >> Sent from the ball and chain
> >> On Mar 12, 2015 7:22 PM, "Becky Yoose" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> >>
> >> Hello Brad,
> >>>
> >>> I'm sorry to hear about the suspicious charges! Per your request, I
> >>> checked the history of the the account I used to pay for 2013 and did
> not
> >>> find a reoccurring charge like the one you described. I wonder what
> >>> happened with your account...
> >>>
> >>> Thanks,
> >>> Becky
> >>>
> >>> Sent from the ball and chain
> >>> On Mar 12, 2015 7:09 PM, "Brad Busenius" <[log in to unmask]>
> wrote:
> >>>
> >>> Hi everybody,
> >>>>
> >>>> I hope this is the right place to inquire about this. I have some
> >>>> information about a possible problem with the company handling
> >>>> registration
> >>>> for code4lib. I recently noticed a suspicious charge on my credit card
> >>>> for
> >>>> the amount of $64.95. The charge showed up as ACT*ACTIVE-NETWORK.
> After
> >>>> some investigation I found out this was from a company called ACTIVE
> >>>> Network, LLC. Apparently this company handles registration for events.
> >>>>
> >>>> To my dismay I found out that I had been charged for this annually
> since
> >>>> 2013. I'm very embarrassed that 1. I didn't notice this during the
> >>>> registration process and 2. I didn't catch the charges earlier.
> Anyhow,
> >>>> after a quick email search I found something surprising; I had
> received
> >>>> emails from this company at my /work/ email address. I never noticed
> the
> >>>> emails because they looked like junkmail, however, upon reviewing
> them I
> >>>> discovered that at some point I had supposedly registered for a free
> >>>> trial
> >>>> that ended after a month, at which point I was automatically enrolled
> >>>> into
> >>>> an annual subscription. Needless to say, I//did /not/ ever sign up for
> >>>> any
> >>>> trial or subscription, at least not to my knowledge.
> >>>>
> >>>> Since I have only used my personal credit card for work purposes 3
> >>>> times,
> >>>> it was easy to tie this to code4lib 2013. I looked at my receipt for
> >>>> code4lib 2013 and saw that something called RegOnline (owned by Lanyon
> >>>> Solutions Inc) was used to process my event registration. Though I'm
> not
> >>>> sure this is the same company, RegOnline, Lanyon Solutions Inc, and
> >>>> ACTIVE
> >>>> Network, LLC all share the same physical address. I suspect these
> three
> >>>> companies are one and the same and will refer to them as ACTIVE
> Network,
> >>>> LLC for the rest of this email.
> >>>>
> >>>> I did a little investigating and found out that ACTIVE Network, LLC.
> >>>> uses
> >>>> unscrupulous business practices to trick people into singing up for
> >>>> their
> >>>> annual subscription. The crux of this is an "automatic opt-in" they
> >>>> employ
> >>>> while processing enrollments for third parties. Though I'm very
> >>>> embarrassed
> >>>> I didn't catch this, in my own defense I wasn't expecting it while
> >>>> registering for an academic conference. I'm not blaming anyone nor am
> I
> >>>> angry with anyone on this list. I only send this email to inquire and
> >>>> inform:
> >>>>
> >>>> 1. To see if anyone else has had a similar experience.
> >>>> 2. To warn other people from code4lib to check their bank statements.
> >>>> 3. To plead with the community to stop using ACTIVE Network, LLC and
> >>>> anything affiliated with them for registration.
> >>>>
> >>>> Let me be frank for a moment. ACTIVE Network, LLC engages in highly
> >>>> unethical business practices. I did not intend to enroll in any annual
> >>>> subscriptions when I registered for code4lib and I never would have
> >>>> agreed
> >>>> to anything of the sort had I noticed what was happening.
> Additionally,
> >>>> the
> >>>> subscription isn't at all relevant to code4lib. I'm not even sure what
> >>>> value is being provided by the subscription. I think it has something
> >>>> to do
> >>>> with coupons for outdoor exercise equipment but I'm not even sure.
> Also,
> >>>> these guys are bad. They lost class action lawsuits in Iowa and
> >>>> Vermont. In
> >>>> fact, this whole thing is just bad all around. Since noticing the
> >>>> fraudulent charges this morning, I've already disputed them with my
> bank
> >>>> and filed a formal complaint against ACTIVE Network, LLC with the
> better
> >>>> business bureau. Apparently I'm not the only one:
> >>>>
> >>>> 1. http://www.outsideonline.com/fitness/bodywork/the-fit-list/
> >>>> Active-Network-Consumer-Complaints.html
> >>>> 2. http://www.yelp.com/biz/active-network-san-diego?sort_by=date_desc
> >>>> 3. http://legalnewsline.com/news/253622-active-network-will-
> >>>> pay-160k-to-consumers-after-action-by-vermont-ag
> >>>> 4. https://encrypted.google.com/search?hl=en&q=Iowa%20ACTIVE%
> >>>> 20Network%2C%20LLC#hl=en&q=Active+Network+scam
> >>>>
> >>>> I apologize if I've made an error in my investigation or if I've done
> >>>> something inappropriate by emailing this list. I can't imagine that
> >>>> anyone
> >>>> would have intended anything like this but I thought you should all be
> >>>> aware.
> >>>>
> >>>> Sincerely,
> >>>>
> >>>> Brad Busenius
> >>>> Web Administrator
> >>>> The University of Chicago Library
> >>>> (773) 702-4391
> >>>>
> >>>>
>
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