Rec'd several calls from this #.  Caller ID says Ken Hoagland and that number.  Since I do not know anyone with that name or number, I do not answer.  They keep calling and calling even though no one answers.  VERY annoying!

Getting these calls daily for the past week.... Don't answer... I don't answer any call I don't know, just remember you can call a person back you missed but once they know your number is good they will never stop....

Added to SPAM database.  Blocked at carrier.

No call but they texted all 3 of my cell numbers with this message "3056492@my provider.com /please call at 202*558*2143!  Account Suspension!

The $12.95 to Hot Sites LLC charge showed up on my credit card statement. Called them to report fraud, as I did not authorize this charge.

He called my mother who is 79 years old telling her to send them money so they can release 443,000 to her.  I called the number and they answer hello. Told her to buy a $4,000 policy.  Thank fully, she does not have 4,000.

just copied my response from the other thread...  
http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-805-275-2235

Pending charge from "Atala Designs St Paul Park MN" for $11.85 on 22Dec07.

I read through all 11 pages of this thread and the part about the GE Money employee caught my attention.  I am a contractor for a different portion of GE and that person IS listed in the address list we have.  I considered contacting them, but I will try to do some more digging before that.

I will be canceling my card as well.  I don't know where i made the transaction that caused my card to get compromised.  I have purchased things at several different sites online recently and definitely for the past few years, I've been shopping online.

Well add my name to the list; on 12/09/07 I got hit for $10.65 by Atala Design, WA and Interactive Design, MN.  I?ve contacted BofA and had that CC blocked/canceled; the bank has also refunded the $21.30.

I found an advertisement on craigslist for a company looking for someone to fill a management position.  When I sent them my resume ligtimately seeking employment I got a response telling me what they're "business/employment opportunity" was.

They ask independent 3rd parties, such as myself, to set up our own companies (Corp or LLC) to act as an "affiliate reseller" of Atala's products.  I was told that my only responsibilites would be to set up the corp or LLC with the state, then open and manage company bank accounts (including a merchant account to collect people's payment).

The product of course is website templates.  The company, Atala Designs, Inc., is supposedly based out of Latvia.  They use the story that they are using subsidiary companies in order to break into the North American market.

The email with which I've been corresponding is visvald_salguss@ataladesigns.com

I hope this posting helps some of you looking for more information on this scam.

God Bless

You're welcome Marnie. I am so glad that people are coming forward. Atala Designs is the same company (this is a big operation they have going here with multiple names). It's easy to spot when you go to any number of their dummy web sites. They all look the same and make that VERY distinctive clicking noise when you hold your mouse over the links. They are also all supposed web design template companies. People need to flood Digital River with calls at this point. Ask for their fraud department. Tell them Sensate is using multiple names now!

http://ataladesigns.com/

As you can see from above link there's that clicking noise and the same type of design and of course...web template company. Some have said they feel that maybe someone on the inside at Digital may be doing this but we really don't know at this point (how did Sensate aka a million other names break through a secure server to this degree). What we do know is that FreeMerchant/Digital River is allowing this to go on and not shutting down. It's not the merchant's fault. They trusted Digital to provide them with a safety net. We need to call the shop we visited and point them to these threads and call Digital. Don't let them make you feel that they haven't heard this before either because that would be a lie!

Natalie - I linked to this post from the Sensate thread where I first found you and posted my message today (I was charge 10.65 on Dec 6th).  There seem to be only two of us (so far)that have charges of $10.65 charged to our cards from a "company" called Atala Designs.  Have you heard this name anywhere yet?  I found a website for Atala Designs but the phone numbers listed got me nowhere (big surprise, huh?)I have not been able to determine which"mom and pop" company that I ordered from uses Digital River.  I checked the merchant list, but you're right, it's not a complete list.  You're also right that many people will simply ignor the "small charge" on their account - thankfully my curiosity got the better of me

thanks again for all your work on this!!

Hot Sites LLC is the same company as Sensate Technology and MVWebtemplates. They sent me a letter just like they sent whoever that was that posted that earlier in the thread. I got the same letter and it was fron Sensate Technology. It's a form letter because they are getting so many of these complaints daily because they are stealing money. Trying to fly under the radar and not get caught so they set up these dummy web sites. I found a few others they set up and abandoned too floating around the web. I also got hit after using a health food store that FreeMerchant hosts. I told them three weeks ago so if they act like they aren't getting calls, they're lying.

I can tell you exactly what the common denominator is here. We are discussing this in another thread about the same company only they call themselves "Sensate Technology" on our billings. This company is stealing our credit card numbers every time we place an order through a site that is hosted by FreeMerchant.Com (which has been bought out now by Digital River so they are the same company). If you look at any sites you ordered from in the three week period leading up to getting these strange charges, you will see the pattern. You should have been given a confirming e-mail like most sites give you to confirm that you just placed an order (look at any and all orders you placed and those confirming e-mails from that three to four week period because I will bet you it's there and you will also see the connection like most of us have already).

If you scroll to the bottom of that confirming e-mail you will probably see FreeMerchant.Com listed and that is the common denominator for us all. I placed an order to a small mom and pop candy company in Washington State. A guy on our thread placed an order with a baseball collectors site. A woman placed an order at a jewelry store site and all hosted by FreeMerchant.Com as their credit card processor. This company is stealing our credit cards as we enter them into any number of sites hosted by Digital River (FreeMerchant). It angers me to see this thread because now I realize this has been going on for longer than we thought (and still Digital River has not done anything about this problem)!

If you go to SensateTech.Com you will see that it's the same people and the same company that's doing this to you from this site:

http://mvwebtemplates.com/

http://sensatetech.com/

These are dummy web sites set up to make it look like they have a real business. They steal your card number off of FreeMerchant.Com's server than hit you with a clever nasty little "fly under the radar" charge that most people won't notice so they make a fortune. They figure that most people won't notice that small a charge and if they do no problem they will just reverse it back to you or not contest it to buy themselves more time. Some of us have notified the Ventura Police because Sensate Technology's so called business number (which is a dummy number-an unlisted residential land line of sorts) is located in Ventura California.

You really need to check out this thread and read what's going on but I find this one here VERY Interesting. I guess I should not be surprised that these people are doing this under other names as well.

I placed an order at a candy company that I had never used before and literally within a week I got this $10.65 charge from Sesnate Technology (unlisted and with the same recording all of you are getting when you call the phone number listed next to the transaction on your statement). It's the same company with the same set up. I didn't make the connection at first. I really didn't because they are this sweet little mom and pop candy store and apparently they had been in business for some time. Well we had a bunch of birthdays coming up so while I awaited my new card that I had to cancel because of these people, I placed another order using a BOFA card that has not been used in two years at that same candy company in Washington State. All of a sudden just like clockwork I got a charge from this other company for $10.65 so it was CRYSTAL clear what the common denominator was! I felt like an idiot because had I even remotely suspected them, obviously I would not have placed another order using a different card!

I called the company and they got defensive about it yet I knew it was from their server they are using. Now everyone is waking up and making the same connection and it all leads back to little stores hosted by Freemerchant or Digital River (same company). Here is our thread so you can catch up on whats going on. You know it makes me see red that Digital has known about this for so long and is sitting on their laurels probably terrified that the fact they have a breach will get out meanwhile people are still innocently entering their credit card numbers into their server!

Here is our thread.....

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-805-275-2235

I can tell you exactly what the common denominator is here. We are discussing this in another thread about the same company only they call themselves "Sensate Technology" on our billings. This company is stealing our credit card numbers every time we place an order through a site that is hosted by FreeMerchant.Com (which has been bought out now by Digital River so they are the same company). If you look at any sites you ordered from in the three week period leading up to getting these strange charges, you will see the pattern. You should have been given a confirming e-mail like most sites give you to confirm that you just placed an order (look at any and all orders you placed and those confirming e-mails from that three to four week period because I will bet you it's there and you will also see the connection like most of us have already).

If you scroll to the bottom of that confirming e-mail you will probably see FreeMerchant.Com listed and that is the common denominator for us all. I placed an order to a small mom and pop candy company in Washington State. A guy on our thread placed an order with a baseball collectors site. A woman placed an order at a jewelry store site and all hosted by FreeMerchant.Com as their credit card processor. This company is stealing our credit cards as we enter them into any number of sites hosted by Digital River (FreeMerchant). It angers me to see this thread because now I realize this has been going on for longer than we thought (and still Digital River has not done anything about this problem)!

If you go to SensateTech.Com you will see that it's the same people and the same company that's doing this to you from this site:

http://mvwebtemplates.com/

http://sensatetech.com/

These are dummy web sites set up to make it look like they have a real business. They steal your card number off of FreeMerchant.Com's server than hit you with a clever nasty little "fly under the radar" charge that most people won't notice so they make a fortune. They figure that most people won't notice that small a charge and if they do no problem they will just reverse it back to you or not contest it to buy themselves more time. Some of us have notified the Ventura Police because Sensate Technology's so called business number (which is a dummy number-an unlisted residential land line of sorts) is located in Ventura California.

You really need to check out this thread and read what's going on but I find this one here VERY Interesting. I guess I should not be surprised that these people are doing this under other names as well.

I placed an order at a candy company that I had never used before and literally within a week I got this $10.65 charge from Sesnate Technology (unlisted and with the same recording all of you are getting when you call the phone number listed next to the transaction on your statement). It's the same company with the same set up. I didn't make the connection at first. I really didn't because they are this sweet little mom and pop candy store and apparently they had been in business for some time. Well we had a bunch of birthdays coming up so while I awaited my new card that I had to cancel because of these people, I placed another order using a BOFA card that has not been used in two years at that same candy company in Washington State. All of a sudden just like clockwork I got a charge from this other company for $10.65 so it was CRYSTAL clear what the common denominator was! I felt like an idiot because had I even remotely suspected them, obviously I would not have placed another order using a different card!

I called the company and they got defensive about it yet I knew it was from their server they are using. Now everyone is waking up and making the same connection and it all leads back to little stores hosted by Freemerchant or Digital River (same company). Here is our thread so you can catch up on whats going on. You know it makes me see red that Digital has known about this for so long and is sitting on their laurels probably terrified that the fact they have a breach will get out meanwhile people are still innocently entering their credit card numbers into their server!

Here is our thread.....

http://800notes.com/Phone.aspx/1-805-275-2235

Same thing here: I open up my VISA bill this afternoon, there's a $12.95 charge on there for Hot Sites LLC, listing that phone number. I'd never heard of them before, never visited the site before, and certainly never bought anything from them before.

I'm not doing anymore online commerce.  It's the industry's problem -- they can clean it up or lose business.

I have had a charge of $12.95 reported as "HOT SITES LLC 2025587562 DC" on my Citibank Credit card statement. It was a use once virtual generated card number. A website that I purchase from regularly reported that my card number was unusable at about the same time so I am assuming they somehow intercepted the card number before the vendor could use it.

I alway use firefox for my browsing with the noscripts plugin to block unknown scripts from running. I am pretty good at keeping up with all patches and antivirus updates (McAfee).

i got my money back and i got no problems from my bank citi....but other banks have been involved with the problem including BoA and MaWu.

mp

aek:

Since you work for the gov.. I hope they investigate this crime.  My card was also on Citi -- and Citi has given me a hard time over disputing a $12.95 charge.  I've spent $25; and made 3 trips to the post office to use priority mail -- and to a notary.  Plus, I put a 90 day fraud notice in my credit files.

I used a Virtual Account Number generated at their site...  one time use, protects the true card number.  I now know I used that VAN to purchase 2 CDs from the Sons of the American Revolution.  They use a second party checkout service -- who collects the account numbers and sends the info on to them to actually process the charges.  The SAR could not use the number -- it was already hit by the fraud before they could process it.  I'm not saying either site is involved in fraud -- but I have alerted them to a possible leak in their process.

Still -- I, as you do, suspect Citi of covering a compromise.

I assume at work you have IT pros and are behind an industrial strength firewall.  Seems unlikely your computer is compromised -- ergo, the compromise is in the process external to your work site.  ( I used to work for the USG also)

I also have a charge on my card from the hot sites company as well for $12.95.  heres the strange thing though, it was on my work credit card, I work for the government I do the office supply purchasing in the office so I mainly use it for office depot but thats about it.  However it is a citibank card and I do see a common thread that most of the ppl with the charge are citibank customers?  Maybe they had an internal theft of card numbers?  Either way i only use this card at work and we have huge security measures so I'm very worried as to how someone got my card information.  If any of you hear anything else please post back thanks!

Hotsites LLC may be just an innocent receiver -- or they may be part of the fraud as a receiver.  They are not likely whom stole your data.

Guaranteed your number was compromised during internet activity.  MicroSoft is still finding exploits and vulnerabilites in their software.  On line commerce is NOT SAFE -- even with a hardware firewall and a security suite.  Legitimate websites get compromised and feed malware to your computer to take advantage of exploits before MS issues a patch.  MS should be sued -- but, their license terms allow them to make beta testers out of their customers and they are indemnified.

I've paid $25 to dispute a $12.95 charge -- I'm not requesting a new card; and I am pulling my money out of the issuing bank.  I expect a little respect when I call to dispute a charge.  I'm not the crook!!!!

If you have a bidirectional software firewall such as Norton Internet Security 2007 -- set a general rule to monitor traffic from IP 216.255.176.28 -- then check your activity log.  You may have your criminal.

If anyone gets the crooks ID'ed -- please post it!!!!

I got the same results as everyone else.  My account was charged on 9/5/2007 for 12.95.  It is a scam.  Probably from online ordering.

my phone, cable, and electric bills are paid on line.

I too have been charged 12.95 from Hot Sites. I have never looked into web designing not have I ever bought anything from this company. I tried calling them and it was a recording that said the mailbox was full. This totally sounds like a scam.

i use aol and i use broadband and have the mc affe security center.
mp

I bet everyone used MS Internet Explorer which had several critical security patches issued in August.  These patches covered flaws that allowed intrusion.

The CC number they hit was a virtual CC number I generated on-line -- BUT, did not use on-line.  I intended to use it by phone to the records office in Paulding County OH.  But, the record I wanted was before 1908 -- and they didn't have it.  So, I never entered that VAN into a web form; or gave it out.  The intercept had to happen when I was on-line generating the VAN.

BTW -- how many people are on broadband?  How many have a bi-directional firewall?

I am on ATT DSL -- and run Norton Internet Security -- I apply MS patches as soon as they are available.

It's safe to say that it's does not depend on what on-line activity you did the last time.

Yes, my CC has also been charged $12.95 by Hot Sites. I have called my CC company, canceled the card and filed a fraud report.

Here is a "shot in the dark."  Has anyone done business with XARA.com lately?

It appears that someone else has had the same problem, i found this thread. i'll try to find more

http://www.valkyrie-owners.com/forums/showthr ... 4&threadid=5683