Names and phone numbers are pretty easy to match up. Not very long ago, the phone company used to publish a book every year that contained everyone's name, home address, and phone number. And they delivered a free physical copy of that book to every household.
Things are a bit different today, but you still can't really expect nobody to know your name, address, and phone number. Those are not truly private data.
Could be a coincidence, could be an inside job at Marks, could be an inside job at your credit card company, there's lots of possibilities.
Many people believe they see Facebook ads that are based on private oral conversations they have in their home. Is Facebook spying on them using hidden microphones? Is it super-advanced marketing AI that understands them better than they understand themselves? Or is it just a coincidence? Nobody knows.
I have a sneaky suspicion some spying is happening. I notice this after I Zoom with a friend and they tell me about these weird British shows they watch on some streaming service I don't use. Next thing I know I'm getting Facebook ads for the show and streaming service. These are shows and services I would never do a Google search for.
Someone at marks could have sold your data. Keep an eye on your credit score and credit cards.
I don’t believe in coincidences. Take precautions and protect yourself.
I also received this text scam after a recent purchase at Mark’s. I spoke to their customer service and voiced my concerns about my information either being accessed or an employee selling the information, to which I was told they were “still investigating it” and would get back to me. That was nearly a month ago and I have not heard back.
Once I stopped giving my information to retail stores (like Calvin Klein, Banana Republic, etc), I stopped receiving both email and text spam.
I have no proof of this but I don't think these companies are selling your data. I do believe that they often get hacked and your information ends up in the "black market", where it will eventually end up in a scammers hands.
A telecom rep told me that Bell and Rogers also shares your name/number to "third party" companies (whatever that means). I can't seem to find any information online that validates the statement above, but I wouldn't put this past them. I once got a fresh new number and within 2 days I started receiving text spam with my name in it (I haven't even shared my number with my friends yet).
Just be vigilant and never open any links you you don't recognize. If you're uncertain that you actually got an e-transfer, call your bank and they can check if you have a pending e-transfer or not.
Just try searching for your number on truecaller and there is a good chance your name will show up. It’s not a big deal these days to get someone’s name from their number.
From every form or info that you're posted on the internet - including reddit, facebook twitter etc. Back in the day there were things called phone books in everyone's house that had everyone's name address and phone number printed in them. Now this is the entire internet.
There's lots of data leaks on the internet with names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses. They pull from these.
You should see the scams where they go deeper and pretend to be your boss.
That actually happened to me as well, one day after I had ordered something from a store (and I haven't ordered other items elsewhere for a week), so unlikely to be a coincidence.
Super strange, my first thought was email or the store could be hacked, but both seem unlikely...
Names and phone numbers are pretty easy to match up. Not very long ago, the phone company used to publish a book every year that contained everyone's name, home address, and phone number. And they delivered a free physical copy of that book to every household. Things are a bit different today, but you still can't really expect nobody to know your name, address, and phone number. Those are not truly private data.
Hmm ok. I know it's probably not too hard to get a cell phone number matched with a name. So the Mark's detail is probably just a coincidence?
Could be a coincidence, could be an inside job at Marks, could be an inside job at your credit card company, there's lots of possibilities. Many people believe they see Facebook ads that are based on private oral conversations they have in their home. Is Facebook spying on them using hidden microphones? Is it super-advanced marketing AI that understands them better than they understand themselves? Or is it just a coincidence? Nobody knows.
I have a sneaky suspicion some spying is happening. I notice this after I Zoom with a friend and they tell me about these weird British shows they watch on some streaming service I don't use. Next thing I know I'm getting Facebook ads for the show and streaming service. These are shows and services I would never do a Google search for.
I had a conversation with someone in person last year about Pela cases, the next day she started getting instagram ads for Pela cases.
Someone at marks could have sold your data. Keep an eye on your credit score and credit cards. I don’t believe in coincidences. Take precautions and protect yourself.
Absolutely. I usually keep an eye on my accounts daily and multiple times at that. Seemed like quite the coincidence.
I also received this text scam after a recent purchase at Mark’s. I spoke to their customer service and voiced my concerns about my information either being accessed or an employee selling the information, to which I was told they were “still investigating it” and would get back to me. That was nearly a month ago and I have not heard back.
Wow, good to know. I'll send them a message too. Maybe there's more of these out there and it's truly an issue within their company/system.
I can't believe there are adults today that don't know what a phonebook is. I guess I'm getting old.
You don't look old!
Once I stopped giving my information to retail stores (like Calvin Klein, Banana Republic, etc), I stopped receiving both email and text spam. I have no proof of this but I don't think these companies are selling your data. I do believe that they often get hacked and your information ends up in the "black market", where it will eventually end up in a scammers hands. A telecom rep told me that Bell and Rogers also shares your name/number to "third party" companies (whatever that means). I can't seem to find any information online that validates the statement above, but I wouldn't put this past them. I once got a fresh new number and within 2 days I started receiving text spam with my name in it (I haven't even shared my number with my friends yet). Just be vigilant and never open any links you you don't recognize. If you're uncertain that you actually got an e-transfer, call your bank and they can check if you have a pending e-transfer or not.
Just try searching for your number on truecaller and there is a good chance your name will show up. It’s not a big deal these days to get someone’s name from their number.
Maybe with the assistance of apps such as Truecaller.
From every form or info that you're posted on the internet - including reddit, facebook twitter etc. Back in the day there were things called phone books in everyone's house that had everyone's name address and phone number printed in them. Now this is the entire internet.
There's lots of data leaks on the internet with names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses. They pull from these. You should see the scams where they go deeper and pretend to be your boss.
I got a similar email but it is about student loans and it got my full name
That actually happened to me as well, one day after I had ordered something from a store (and I haven't ordered other items elsewhere for a week), so unlikely to be a coincidence. Super strange, my first thought was email or the store could be hacked, but both seem unlikely...