A Folsom couple says they are concerned that the mysterious packages they have recently been receiving from Amazon could be part of a scam.
Michelle Carroll told KTLA sister station KTXL in Sacramento on Monday that it all started a few weeks ago when she and her husband received a stuffed, talking hamster. They thought maybe a friend had sent it as a joke.
But then package after package from Amazon showed up. So far, they’ve gotten a dozen knee support pillows in just a few weeks.
After doing some research, the Carrolls realized they might be victims of a strange international scam called “brushing.”
Brushing is a way for companies to boost their online reviews by beating the system. A fake account is set up and products are mailed to random addresses. This allows the account to leave a glowing review for the product, and help it succeed on the online retailer’s site.
There have been several reported brushing cases across the country in the past few months.
The Carrolls say all of the products sent to them were apparently paid for using a gift card.
Amazon says they are investigating the case, and the Carrolls are free to keep or donate any of those products.
Meanwhile, the Carrolls aren’t sure how this all started but suspect it could be because they ordered phone cases from a vendor in China about six weeks ago.
An Amazon spokesperson sent the following statement to KTXL:
“We are investigating inquiries from consumers who have received unsolicited packages as this would violate our policies… We remove sellers in violation of our policies, withhold payments, and work with law enforcement to take appropriate action.”