PayPal in Cahoots with scammers

[wdfifteen]

My wife clicked on an ad for Cerebrum IQ that she saw online somewhere. She paid for what she was expecting to be a one-time little IQ quiz for $.99 and paid with PayPal. The link was deceptive and was actually for a subscription at discounted price of $9.99 A WEEK.
In spite of a screen full of scam alerts when you Google Cerebrum IQ, PayPal treats them like a legitimate business.
Her account is linked to our bank account, so Cerebrum IQ charges her PayPal, and PayPal charges our bank.

The dilemma is:
1. Cerebrum IQ's customer "service" is unreachable, so we can't cancel with them.
2. PayPal refuses to let us refuse payment of the recurring charge (because they are in cahoots with the scammers.)
3. PayPal refuses to let her close her PayPal account because there is a recurring charge from Cerebrum IQ.
4. We have another checking account, so I inquired with our bank about just emptying the one linked to PayPal. That won't work, because the bank will go ahead and pay any charge under $10 and charge us a $35 overdraft fee EVERY WEEK.

The solution was:
1. Update all of our direct deposits (ss, etc) to the new checking account
2. Update all of our direct payments (water bill, insurance, etc) to the new checking account
3. Close the old checking account down completely.

It took all morning Wednesday and all of this morning to put all the changes in place. My July SS check will be delayed until some time in August because it takes SS that long to process a change. I'm not totally sure I got all the payment accounts update. I guess they'll let me know.

What a fking pain in the ass! Scammers will be scammers, but I am pissed to find out that PayPal actively enables them. I'm canceling my PayPal account of course, but she can't cancel hers because of the scam recurring payment. Her account is now linked to a dead bank account, so I don't know what will become of that.

This is one of the reviews of Cerebrum IQ. It pretty much mirrors our experience with them.
"SCAM! The test is unreliable and I was billed for a monthly sub even though I just paid for the $.99 trial and did not approve a monthly sub. It says it can’t find my email to logon, and their phone info is disconnected. SCAM. I couldnt even het results.. no trace of me on their system, but they are able to take my money. Cant even cancel because i cant log in"

[Steve Carlton]

Can you log onto your account and cancel it?

[cabmandone]

This is exactly why I don't have a bank account associated with PayPal. They can charge my credit card and all it takes is cancelling the card. I think I probably would have linked a credit card, deleted the bank account as a payment option for PayPal then reported the transaction to my credit card company as fraud.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Steve Carlton

Can you log onto your account and cancel it?

1. Cerebrum IQ's customer "service" is unreachable, so we can't cancel with them.
2. PayPal refuses to let us refuse payment of the recurring charge (because they are in cahoots with the scammers.)
3. PayPal refuses to let her close her PayPal account because there is a recurring charge from Cerebrum IQ.

[Mahler9th]

Sounds terrible.

"PayPal refuses to let us refuse payment of the recurring charge (because they are in cahoots with the scammers.)"

"PayPal refuses to let her close her PayPal account because there is a recurring charge from Cerebrum IQ."

This seems strange to me.

If you have such statements in writing, that might provide some leverage.

I have not used Paypal a lot.

I would be surprised if their terms and conditions allow this.

They have a CEO and they have a board of directors.

And they are a public company.

One of my classmates is on their board.

[rfuerst911sc]

My PayPal account is tied to a CC . I would never link to my bank account . I hope you eventually get satisfaction . Good luck

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

1. Cerebrum IQ's customer "service" is unreachable, so we can't cancel with them.

I'm talking about logging in vs calling them.

https://cerebrumiq.com/sign-in

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Steve Carlton

I'm talking about logging in vs calling them.

We tried both. “Send us your email address and someone will get back to you within 7 days.” Assuming they actually do get back to us, before the 7 days is up they will have removed more money from our account. Numerous scam alerts report that they claim they can’t find your email address in their records, and the cycle repeats, more delays, more withdrawals from our account.
You seem to be defending them. Why?

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

We tried both. “Send us your email address and someone will get back to you within 7 days.” Assuming they actually do get back to us, before the 7 days is up they will have removed more money from our account. Numerous scam alerts report that they claim they can’t find your email address in their records, and the cycle repeats, more delays, more withdrawals from our account.
You seem to be defending them. Why?

I was just clarifying you didn't try to log into the account. You just mentioned being unable to reach customer service, twice. Vague.

I'm trying to help you, not to defend them. Fool.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by Steve Carlton

I was just clarifying you didn't try to log into the account. You just mentioned being unable to reach customer service, twice. Vague.

I'm trying to help you, not to defend them. Fool.

As I stated in the OP, the issue has been resolved. I don’t need any help.

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by wdfifteen

Her account is now linked to a dead bank account, so I don't know what will become of that.

This, plus you spent a few hours solving it your way. Sorry I asked if you could log in.

[speeder]

Did she at least get an IQ test out of this? I’d love to know the results of that.

[Crowbob]

Originally Posted by speeder

Did she at least get an IQ test out of this? I’d love to know the results of that.

Ouch.

[IS300]

I had the same type of thing happen with paypal took some time , lost some dollars,
then shut down paypal and the bank account

[IS300]

I had the same type of thing happen with paypal took some time , lost some dollars,
then shut down paypal and the bank account

[Synchro Joe]

You can also get to them thru Trust Pilot to leave feedback and request refund.
https://www.trustpilot.com/review/cerebrumiq.com

"The combination of misleading pricing, unauthorized subscriptions, questionable test validity, and inadequate customer support suggests that Cerebrum IQ operates with a lack of transparency and ethical standards. Prospective users are advised to exercise caution and thoroughly research before engaging with the platform to avoid potential financial and personal data exploitation."
Beyond unexpected charges, there are numerous accounts of users being enrolled in subscriptions without explicit consent. A user on a Google Play support thread expressed frustration after being billed $69.99 for a subscription they did not intend to purchase, having only sought a simple certificate following an online test for $0.99. Such practices suggest that Cerebrum IQ employs a model where users are automatically subscribed to premium services without clear disclosure, leading to significant unauthorized charges."

[Steve Carlton]

How are they not put out of business?

[cabmandone]

Has anyone considered farting in their general direction or waving their private parts at them?

[Pazuzu]

Originally Posted by cabmandone

Has anyone considered farting in their general direction or waving their private parts at them?

If you take a picture of that, pmax will post it with no words, reference, explanation or description.

[wdfifteen]

Originally Posted by speeder

Did she at least get an IQ test out of this? I’d love to know the results of that.

That’s more cruel than you know, but I won’t go into it.