Online Mall World -- do they look legit?

[pianowizard]

Has anyone heard of this online store:

http://www.onlinemallworld.com

I couldn't find ANY information about them on Google or Resellerratings. Does it look legit? I emailed them about shipping charges and they said they ship for free to anywhere in the world.

[Orevin]

I don't know... since there is no phone# to call and absolutely no information on Google, I would not order from them. And free shipping worldwide? Sounds suspicious.

[RUSH2112]

They take paypal, so it would be much more difficult to run a scam operation.

[pianowizard]

If I purchased from them, I would be using my Discover card which provides buyers protection (I actually needed that protection once, and it worked better than PayPal's.) So, I guess I shouldn't worry too much?

[underclocker]

I also found this site a short while ago and was suspicious. I don't believe it's a legit site. Prices are too low, no way to get in touch with anyone there. Be careful.

[leoblob]

I'm certainly not recommending these guys (I know nothing about them), but all their contact info is in the About Us section.

[pianowizard]

I posted the same question on resellerratings.com and got the following response from nomaxim:

WhoIs info;

---Quote---
Domain Name.......... onlinemallworld.com
Creation Date........ 2006-10-10
Registration Date.... 2006-10-10
Expiry Date.......... 2007-10-10
Admin Name........... Jaime Mcallister
Admin Address........ 8204 Fairbanks North Houston Road
Admin Address........
Admin Address........ Houston
Admin Address........ 77064
Admin Address........ TX
Admin Address........ UNITED STATES
Admin Email.......... acuratlll@yahoo.com
Admin Phone.......... +1.3055920931
Admin Fax............
---End Quote---
Only registered for one year, contact e-mail is a yahoo account, and
area code 305 is for SE Florida not Texas.

---Quote---
(305) 592-0931
The name and address associated with this phone number are unlisted or
private.
Phone Details
Type: Land Line
Provider: South Central Bell
Location: FL
---End Quote---
And the address comes back too;
---Quote---
Texas Arai
8204 Fairbanks N Houston Rd
Houston, TX 77064
(713) 937-1800
---End Quote---
From the website;

---Quote---
Online Mall
4 Sterling Way
London N18 1QX
United Kingdom
Warehouse Code: A25
Fax / +44-20-7691-7131

Online Mall
5300 East FR
Houston
TX (TEXAS)
77020 United States
Warehouse Code: D47
Fax / +1 (763) 374-7624
---End Quote---
Neither the USPS or whitepages.com can find this address in TX.

---Quote---
We cannot process orders with a value less than US $501
---End Quote---
Means;Makes it worth our time.

---Quote---
We try to keep our costs to a minimum so we can offer the products to
you at lower prices. If we had to staff a toll-free number with sales
people, this would increase our costs and we would have to raise our
prices. Also we have learned that many companies with toll-free numbers
receive unwelcome calls from other companies abusing the toll-free number
to offer unsolicited goods and services, thereby increasing costs even
further.
---End Quote---
Means; We don't want to be bothered when you wonder where your order
is.

---Quote---
We accept payment by all major UK credit cards, including MasterCard,
Switch, Solo, Maestro, Visa Debit, and Visa Electron.
OnlineMallWorld.com also accept payment by Bank Wire Transfer , Western Union Money
Transfer , Paypal Payments . However, we reserve the right to select payment
option for every customer order due the high fraud activity over the
internet.
---End Quote---
Means; Wire-transfer only, and just to make sure you got all that;
---Quote---
All prices on our site are shown in U.S. Dollars (US$). All foreign
payments should be made in this currency.
---End Quote---
Means:Even thou we take Uk CC's all transactions are in USD, Oh, and
did we mention that we are located in Texas.
---Quote---
No. We do accept prepayments in the form of money orders or cashier
checks ( no personal or company checks accepted).
---End Quote---
Means; Gotta make sure you can't trace the payment.

---Quote---
Enjoy no sales tax on every order. OnlineMallWorld.com pays all
applicable sales tax for you.
Take advantage of limited-time FREE SHIPPING on select items at
OnlineMallWorld.com .
---End Quote---
Means; That's right, 2% in WV in the US or 7.5% VAT in the EU, FREE
SHIPPING to Australia, Japan, Brazil, or Mars, we'll eat that loss.

Sorry, but I've seen a couple of dozen sites with that exact same FAQ
section in the last year or two. I just figured it was time to break it
all down.

[vanaya]

I live in the area. I will see if this is a real address or where the cows and horses roam...

As far as the area codes in the Houston area, there is 713, 281, 832. There are outlying area codes of 409 and 936. But none that match what any has given.

[pianowizard]

As far as the area codes in the Houston area, there is 713, 281, 832. There are outlying area codes of 409 and 936. But none that match what any has given.

It could be a cell phone number.

"8204 Fairbanks North Houston Road" does show up on Mapquest and it's near Beltway 8 and 290. If you happen to be in that area, perhaps you can take a look at that address?

[rkawakami]

Online Mall
5300 East FR
Houston
TX (TEXAS)
77020 United States
Warehouse Code: D47
Fax / +1 (763) 374-7624

Ah, my data says area code 763 is nowhere near Texas:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Area_code_763

And when that number is called: "This number is not in use. Thank you for calling."

(edit: A Google Map search on that address reveals what appears to be a small business just off Interstate 10. Could be a warehouse, but could also be a motel or small apartment complex.

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=5300+East ... ouston,+TX

Change to satellite view and zoom in.)

[pianowizard]

And when that number is called: "This number is not in use. Thank you for calling."

Ray, thanks for trying that number.

I got one more response on ResellerRatings.com, from videogamesrepair:

I made an order and guess what? they only take WU; here are the checkout details.

Payment Information

Thank you for choosing Western Union Money Transfer as payment method to complete your order.

Payment Instructions

1. Make payment for your order using the following details :

Full name : John Travis
Address: 2853 Piton Way
Zip: N18 1QX
City: London
State: Great London
Country: United Kingdom

2. Keep following details to provide us proof that payment has been done:

- 10 digits number from the payment receipt ( MTCN )
- Sender Name and Address
- Amount
- Order Number

3. Email payment info or receipt at : payment@onlinemallworld.com,
Western Union Money Transfer offers you 3 ways to send money :

1. How to Send a Western Union Money Transfer at a Location ?

Find nearest Western Union Agent Location. Fill out the required form. Then, simply show the Agent clerk your identification card, if requested. Give the Agent clerk the form, cash, or your debit card with Personal Identification Number (PIN), where accepted, and sign the receipt. Your receipt will have the MTCN (Money Transfer Control Number) that will allow you to track the status of your money transfer over the phone or online.

2. How to send a Western Union Money Transfer transaction by phone ?

Simply dial 1-800-CALL-CASH (1-800-225-5227). Customer Service Representatives will guide you through the process. Just have your credit or debit card, and your identification.

3. How to send a Money In Minutes money transfer online ?*

Please visit www.westernunion.com , select Send Money In Minutes payments enter your information and complete the registration process. You need a U.S.-based Visa or MasterCard credit or debit card.

*Note: The maximum send amount for a Money In Minutes Transfer is $2,999.99.

Your order will be shipped in maximum 24 hours after payment is received and confirmed by our agent.



Thank you for shopping with us
OnlineMallWorld.com team
www.OnlineMallWorld.com

[rkawakami]

So, are you going to order that nice Panasonic 65" plasma TV for my Christmas present ?

[rkawakami]

Sorry for a follow-up post to my own post, but this is interesting:

8204 Fairbanks, Houston, TX

Switch over to satellite view and zoom in. The picture could be a few years old, but what was there is an empty lot.

USPS.gov says it IS a deliverable address so maybe something was built there recently.

[bigtiger]

Look crappy to me. How did you find this site? They just registered a month ago.

Ping command returns IP address for onlinemallshop as:
68.142.212.121

If you put the IP to your address bar, nothing comes out. It seems that they are using shared hosting.

A business via shared hosting? that says a lot.

[pianowizard]

Look crappy to me. How did you find this site?

I was looking up "MM20" on shopping.yahoo.com.

[rkawakami]

Googling 763-374-7624 turns up this:

Yahoo! Answers