Mysteriosly receive an unordered package of seeds or a parcel? It's called a Brushing Scam.

[thewayne]

I've heard about these deliveries, and hadn't heard an explanation until I came across this new article via the BBC and Slashdot.

It's quite simple. The cost of a packet of seeds is crazy low. I buy names from a hacked database or get them from other online sources, create accounts for them in an online store like Amazon, and mail the product to those people. Then I post reviews from those people that I write. Instant algorithmic high!

Low cost, high return. And yet still very scummy.

As the article points out, if you receive an unsolicited product in the mail, it's yours to keep. But if it's mis-delivered, it has to be returned.

Still, I wouldn't plant seeds that arrived anonymously.

https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-54055669

Comments

[dewline]

It's been reported by CBC News (and likely other services) in Canada as well. We're not immune here.

[draconis]

Yeah, I wouldn't plant them, either. My suspicious brain looks at that and says, "Invasive species!"

[rain_gryphon]

The best misdirected thing I ever got was a Neilson box, for TV ratings. The address I lived at was just awful for misdirected stuff. There was a street and an avenue with the same name, at right angles and intersecting, with duplicated numbers. I called the number on the box, got basically an 'Oh shit!' response, and they sent a guy to pick it up that same afternoon.

[thewayne]

That is funny!

My folks house was a Neilson household for a while. It was inconvenient if you wanted to use the phone late at night because that was when the box wanted to phone home. The good thing about it was that if any equipment needed to be serviced while it was connected to their gear, they paid for it.

[delibby]

Thank you!

I'd been seeing things about these seeds, but hadn't seen anything about what they were or why. So basically, ditto. And now I know.