Scams

[Angrboda]

A couple years ago I was ordering stuff from a shop in Japan. The total came to $133, which I ordered primarily because they were offering free shipping that week. They didn't have an electronic payment option offered, so in order to pay, I had to send them a personal check. (I know, bad move.) Anyway, after they received my check, they emailed me back and said that the bank had subtracted a $35 processing fee. They suggested that I could send them the additional funds or accept a partial order. Typical scam. I'm just sure they were making up the "free shipping" on the back end by this way. At first I was confused about what to do. They had my money and I was in a vulnerable position. Well, I decided to email them back, threatening to complain to everybody from Japanese customs to the U.S. postal inspector general if they didn't send my order. They emailed back that they would send the order as requested. I was still in a vulnerable position because I had not requested any tracking or insurance on the order. I envisioned my order getting "lost in the mail" and them just pocketing my money. But that didn't happen. They sent the order as promised. I still don't know whether they were or were not trying to scam me as I never verified the processing fee charges with their bank (in France of all places). I'm just glad things worked out well. Lesson learned, I guess.