BidRack.com Allegedly Stole Images to Create Phony Testimonials

bidrack.com

A few weeks ago we tested out the new Canada based penny auction site BidRack.com, by the same owners of sample sale site NoMoreRack.com. I thought I had won a top-dollar designer item only to find out that the site was running in undisclosed beta mode, back then they even showed a page of winners with testimonials. After it said I had won the item it changed to show another winner won, BidRack’s CS did not respond to my inquiry. Now, BidRack is open and they seem to have a lot of activity, both with items and bidders.

Today, we came across an interesting discrepancy and a definite red flag.
vanessa_and_dana_bidrack

BidRack stole images from 2 bloggers and passed them off as winner testimonials

Dana Willard of Dana-Made-It.com and Vanessa Christenson of VanessaChristenson.com, both very creative ladies, recently found out that their photos were stolen by BidRack.com and placed on BidRack’s site to show “testimonials” of purported winners.

The phony testimonials:


Maryanne: “My friends recommended that I try bidding on Bidrack, and I snagged this adorable purse for only 10% of the retail price. Best of all, it’s brand-new.”

This is the first time I’ve bid on Bidrack, and I got this lovely bag for 95% off its original price. I’m bidding on a pair of Blahniks next.” –Stefania Gregor

Vanessa and Dana’s names were changed to Stefania Gregor and Maryanne Charleson

Dana says, in her blog, that the images were originally taken when the two hung out at the Quilt Market. BidRack appears to have photoshopped the images. In the original photo Vanessa was holding a Ghiradelli chocolate bar and not the wallet that BidRack shows her holding.

Neither Vanessa nor Dana had even heard of Bidrack until they found that their photos had been stolen by the penny auction site.

We agree with Vanessa, “but with all the fast paced and all the free internet information sharing there comes the overstepping of boundaries, calling something yours when it’s not.”

Vanessa also states that her own very own purse design, that she created and sells, was used in the edited photo of  her as Stefania. Vanessa updated the post to state that after they posted the article Bidrack.com pulled the testimonials.

This is not the first time we’ve found phony testimonials and regret to admit that his probably won’t be the last.

Just a few months ago Internet personality Justine Ezarik’s photos were stolen by alleged affiliate marketers for penny auctions QuiBids and BidMacs.

Discuss and review penny auctions in our penny auction forum!

The top screenshot image was taken from Dana’s post http://www.dana-made-it.com/2011/02/if-only-our-names-were-maryanne-and.html

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35 comments… add one
  • Candace Martineau February 24, 2011, 12:38 pm

    Yikes! That is definitely questionable behavior. I have heard of a few people receiving items, but so far only small ticket ones. I have not received any of my items yet.

    Reply
  • Lila March 3, 2011, 7:02 pm

    Hello, I spent a considerable amount of money on bids. So far I have not won anything. Yesterday, all of my bids THAT I PAID FOR, several hundred, just DISAPPEARED. POOF! GONE. No explanation. I had trouble getting a reply from their customer service via email after several attempts. I finally got through on the telephone after waiting and waiting for nearly an hour. Long story short– they refused to refund my bids saying there was no record of them. Total BS. DO NOT WASTE YOUR TIME OR MONEY WITH THIS WEBSITE IT IS DISHONEST AND FRAUDULENT. I will no longer shop at their NoMoreRack.com website either because of this. It should also be noted that at nomorerack.com I have been waiting more than a month to receive items I have been billed for. Terrible. I’ve been scammed!!! Watch out!!

    Reply
  • Robin Green March 14, 2011, 7:55 pm

    Hi,
    I have been using bidrack for awhile now. Started about the time they first started! It was awesome!! Recommended some friends who did end up purchasing bidpacks. I have won 14 items so far and received 8 out of the 14. Back when it first started, the site was running well, but then they obvoiusly began finding that they were “giving away the farm,” so to speak and about the time my friends joined was when they decided to change all the rules and tighten down the hatches. They have made so many rule changes and just changes in general, that my friends thought I was full of it!! I have had several issues with my account – credits disappearing mainly, but the phone customer service has always helped me out. EMAILing them is SLOW and you don’t always get the answers to your questions. I accredit this mainly to growing pains. Getting things worked out, and so on. Thing is that it is a bummer for people like myself who started when the site started – your free bids didn’t expire- Now they do. There used to be only 3-5 min between each auction, now it is 30 min. you used to get 60 credits for referrals- now only 40 (as if I will recommed them again, if only for the fear that things will change yet again.)
    All I can say is buyer- beware!! and it IS GAMBLING, so you need to decide if it for you or not!

    Reply
    • Bernard March 17, 2011, 12:01 pm

      Robin,
      Of the 8 items you received were any valued over $10 and how long after you won them did they come?

      Reply
  • Tiffany March 18, 2011, 10:32 pm

    I won 4 items and received 2 of the 4. The 2 I received were the low ticket items. The other 2 I have not received was a Sony TV and an ipod nano. I won them 3 and 6 weeks ago. I have been emailing them for a few weeks regarding these items and have been given the run-around. I was told “they’re going to all ship out next week”. I was told “items had been shipped”, then yesterday I was told that they had a problem with their supplier but it had been resolved and that my items have been processed and ready to be shipped.

    Today I just received a generic mass email from them stating some of my items cannot be shipped because of a problem with their supplier, but they will replace my item by offering equal value in bids.

    What’s interesting, is they have an auction up right now for the exact same Sony TV I won. How is it that they supposedly can’t send me my item because of issues with the supplier, but yet they are offering that same item in an auction right now? I have since sent them 2 emails and called them, sat on hold for 15-20 minutes, before it transferred me to an answering machine. I left them a message about 2 1/2 hours ago and haven’t heard back from them yet.

    I’m pissed. I want my items, not a stupid replacement in bids. 🙁

    Reply
  • tina March 19, 2011, 12:24 pm

    Very pissed here too.
    Same thing happened to me. I got an Ipad and haven’t received it. Some are saying are planning a class action lawsuit. check this blog and the comments… we’re all very frustrated.

    I don’t understand if they don’t have inventory why auction it? ridiculous.

    Reply
  • Janet March 24, 2011, 11:14 am

    If anybody gets a class action lawsuit started, let me know. I’ve had exactly the same experiences as everyone on here. I won three auctions, one being a diamond necklace valued at $599 and I haven’t received one single thing that I won.

    Reply
  • christy April 2, 2011, 9:00 pm

    I am also very angry at BidRack.com. Before the problem with their supplier, I won a total of 15 auctions! One of which was an Ipod touch, $75 worth of Target gift cards, 2 purses and 2 wallets. I did however receive two of the items I won which were 2 cheap rings. I was counting on the Ipod touch as one of my daughter’s birthday present’s which was on March 19. I won the Ipod in the middle of February and contacted them via e-mail to see when I would receive this item. Their response was “shipping takes 2-3 weeks and we can’t expedite any items that were won”. I also did receive the e-mail claiming that all of the items I won would be replaced by bids. This totaled 1000 bids! What I don;t understand is that they are auctioning ipod touches on a daily basis! Why can’t they give me the Ipod touch from their different supplier? Also I don’t understand why they couldn’t still give me my Target giftcards! With my free bids, I did win a Dell 15″ laptop. I am anxious to see if and when I will get it. I will keep you posted! I would also be willing to go in on a class action lawsuit against them!!!

    Reply
  • rramlal April 4, 2011, 7:18 pm

    I won over 35 items from Bidrack. I spend hundreds of dollars and countless hours bidding on items only to get an email one day saying that none of the items I won would be shipped. When I questioned it, they said that they had a problem with their shipping vendor so the items cannot be shipped. They will refund the bids I used. I am highly upset because no compensation was given for the time I spend or the original money I spend to buy the bids. I think Bidrack.com is being run by a bunch of scam artist. I am patiently waiting to see if a class action lawsuit get filed against them.

    Reply
    • Amanda April 5, 2011, 8:05 am

      This is very upsetting. Others have told me the same thing…

      Reply
  • Desi April 5, 2011, 1:03 pm

    Oh my goodness thank god I only bought 10 bids for $0.01 and am using my free bids! I just bought a Lancome lipstick, so I’m hoping I receive it! 🙁 Otherwise this is going to suck BIG time.. Now I feel kind of bad for all the people I see winning the big ticket items.. HAS ANYONE ACTUALLY RECEIVED A BIG TICKET ITEM?? computer? ipad? anything??

    Reply
  • Judy April 24, 2011, 11:49 am

    Anyone had any experience since the last post on April 5th?

    Reply
  • DeeIsScum May 4, 2011, 8:53 pm

    BidRack is a scam run by Deepak Argawal he is responsible for many online scams. They will ship cheap items, expensive ones when people complain and maybe refunds if you complain enough. You can spend hours begging for your money back OR you can CALL YOUR BANK AND DISPUTE THE CHARGE. This takes 10 minutes at most, if they want you to sign some forms, print these complaints and mail it back with a copy to your local politician. Your money will be refunded 100% of the time guaranteed. IT will also cost bidrack $35-$100 when you call your bank and dispute the charge. This will get them shut down and put out of business.

    CALL YOUR BANK AND DISPUTE THE CHARGE, DO NOT DEAL WITH BIDRACK…..

    You were scammed tell your bank to send you a new card so they dont charge you again

    Reply
  • Sheri May 11, 2011, 9:04 am

    Bidrack’s website said “Hurry and Receive a Special Bonus Offer!”

    I put in my information.

    It took me to another page and asked for my CC#. I figured it was for storage purchases so that when I bought something my card would be on file. I hit “Enter” and it said “Congratulations on your order!” I didn’t know what I bought!

    When I put in my information I figured 1 of 2 things would happen: 1. They were asking for my credit card # so they could validate it before I started bidding and then store it in the event that I actually bought something. Or 2. There would be an order confirmation page like you get on every single website I’ve ever EVER shopped on that says, “Order Confirmation” at the top and lists your address, the last four of the CC#, the amount of the charge, and what you’re buying. At that point, if you decide, “oops, I made a mistake” you can hit “cancel order” or you can submit the order. Either way, I was safe. They were either storing my CC# or there would be an order confirmation page where I could opt out if you were indeed trying to charge me something.

    I immediately e-mailed them and am being told I bought $49 worth of bids and they have a strict no-refund policy. I e-mailed them back and told them I needed to speak with someone about this and explained once again that I didn’t know I was buying anything. All I received in reply was “Someone from Bidrack already responded to your question. We have a strict no-refund policy.” I am very angry! $50 is a BIG DEAL to me. All I wanted to do was look around and now I’m out 50 bucks because of it. What a scam!

    Reply
    • jerry May 25, 2011, 8:02 pm

      i did the same thing and they took 99$ out of my account and now i cant get it back. Never knew i bought anything and now im down 100$

      Reply
    • Sabrina June 1, 2011, 5:37 pm

      They just did the same to me except for $99, I have emailed and called repeatedly and get the same email response. They are a bunch of crooks and we need to do something about it!!!

      Reply
  • Wayne May 13, 2011, 3:55 pm

    Same deal as Sheri. Joined on 5/13/2011 and realized it was all a scam too late. Called my bank. Had been charged $60 for 100 bid credits and an additional $90 on top of that for more credits that I did not order. Have emailed for full refund but doubt a response. Too good to be true. Always type the name of a business into google with the word “scam” and see what comes up. Trusted link in a website that I read frequently.

    Reply
  • Veda June 1, 2011, 8:53 am

    I did nothing but sign up and the next thing I knew 99 bucks was taken out of my account. I hadn’t even bid on anything. I’m disputing the charge to my bank and everyone should do the same. I tried calling customer service, was on hold for 30 minutes before getting an answering machine. I’m very pissed off!

    Reply
  • Joe June 6, 2011, 5:38 pm

    What is with you people? False testimonials!? Who took the time to research that?Then don’t sign up. I signed up and paid the $99 charge 3 times, willingly, because I read the info first! Also, I keep winning, ipod $23, gift cards, $.01, vacuum, and on and on. I think you people are just afraid of something new.

    Reply
    • Dave June 21, 2011, 11:59 pm

      How much of those items have you received, any of them? Gift cards as I’ve heard look valid when they arrive. Beyond that, expect cheap plastic jewelry, watches and dollar tree clothing.

      Reply
    • Jim August 15, 2011, 9:41 pm

      LOL, Joe you sound like an idiot! I bet you never received anything yet. Or you work for the company.

      Reply
  • Mike June 9, 2011, 10:42 pm

    Man, that is pretty sneaky and TOTALLY not right. (fake testimonials) I think their way of advertising and promoting could really use some help. But the idea of the site and the way it works. I really like it! I’ve got a few little things that are great, but haven’t gone for the big ticket items yet.

    Reply
  • kimberly June 10, 2011, 12:24 am

    lol that ^ last 2 posts looks like it was written from the same people who wrote up the fake testimonials. i posted my experience at scambook.com i hope someone puts an end to the bidrack scam. I admit its my fault for falling into this scam but i’m not going down without a fight.

    Reply
    • kimberly June 10, 2011, 12:27 am

      oops sorry its http://www.scambook.com/browse/index/company/114 you can see a bunch of people already got scammed by bidrack already and reported them to scambook. mods please merge my post, i dont know how to edit my previous post.

      Reply
      • Mike June 13, 2011, 3:54 pm

        Kimberly,
        why insult me. I said it isn’t right what they did. and you say I sound like that? Like I said I have had a good experience. What not possible? What is your complaint? I’m sure it is your fault.And pleeaase don’t tell me the $99. If you enter aaaall your info, address, shipping address, cc#, cvv code…and got charged. It is not a scam. it is user error. Again. i haven’t had a problem with them. But maybe that isn’t the case with you.

        Reply
  • Kathy June 14, 2011, 3:43 pm

    Ya, kimberly. Leave poor mike alone. Bidrack rocks. My purse and boots say so. ha ha.

    Reply
  • DavidD. June 16, 2011, 6:49 pm

    I have been reading around (nothing to do with the fake testimonials) but it seems a lot of people think they are being scammed because they don’t understand how penny auctions work. There is an article about snipers that i commented on and also the “never ending timer” I have been using bidrack.com for quit a while and am very happy. but i see where an uneducated person, seeing the timer restart over and over might think it is rigged. And that is not the case.

    Reply
    • Amanda June 16, 2011, 8:15 pm

      Have you won + received many items from Bidrack? Thanks for stopping by! Yes, not many consumers understand the concept- sites are somewhat at fault due to how they market though.

      Reply
  • Jim June 18, 2011, 8:24 pm

    1) Report bidrack.com complaints to:
    http://www.ic3.gov
    It’s a government agency run in part by the FBI

    2) Contact your credit card company. It’s the only way you will get your money back.
    Stop wasting your time, getting the run-around from these bidrack scam artists.

    Reply
  • Monica June 25, 2011, 5:28 pm

    Wow, that was fast, a class action lawsuit is just got filed against BidRack: http://www.scambook.com/blog/2011/06/bidrack-class-action-lawsuit-filed/

    Reply
  • LeRoy July 24, 2011, 10:33 am

    7/24/2011 8:19 AM

    Support at Bidrack.com;
    I just completed a call with your support person Joseph, he was very polite and help full. However, he was unable to help me with my request for canceling my account and getting a refund. I explained my position to him as follows;
    I have tried to cancel my account and since I cannot do this Bidrack can take the position that since I still have an account I could use it at any time. Now most reputable websites allow you to cancel your account and track it should you try to sign up again.

    Once again, I am requesting that you cancel my account bigroy69 and refund any unused monies to my credit card.

    Thank you

    Reply
    • Amanda July 27, 2011, 4:04 pm

      LeRoy, are you suggesting that we are BidRack based on this post/ Please contact BidRack.com or initiate a chargeback if the charge was not authorized.

      Reply

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