Perhaps the largest enabler of junk email in the world? Last year I sent (over two or three weeks) over 300 emails targeting email abuse from the Amazon AWS servers. Yes, they responded to my complaints, but it took them far too long to stop the junk from coming my way. (Blocking spoofed and faked email addresses accomplishes nothing. The pigs that do this stuff are way ahead of that.) A few days ago, the emails started again, this time from Amazon "ses" servers. In the last six days I have sent 40 emails targeting the abuse and asking it to stop (complete with raw header information). I have yet to receive a single response from the "ses" side that even acknowledges my complaints. And the daily quantity of junk emails is still growing. Sure I could change the email address but I have had it for over twenty years and I want to KEEP IT.
Wait, there's more. Yesterday I looked at an item on their site that I knew the manufacturer wasn't making any more. I have used the specific model of that item for years and wanted to buy it before the particular one that I wanted was gone. The price was $49.95 and there was supposedly one left in the color and size I wanted. Multiple sites were out of this item (the exact model) as was the manufacturer. I had to leave to help a family member out and didn't order the item yesterday. Today I pulled it up and the lowest price offered was $97.71. I deleted all Amazon cookies and went to the site again. Voila, the item was back at $49.95 and I ordered it.
Yes, there's more. I am not a prime member. They offered me a 30 day free trial. They have done this before and I have never taken it. I also chose the other shipping option today. When I clicked though to order the item, the site told me I had signed up for a thirty day free trial of Prime. But I didn't. After going back and trying to change this, I had no luck. So I followed through with the order. When I got the confirmation email about "signing up" for the trial, I logged in to look at the details. Of course, at the end of my free trial I would be automatically enrolled at the monthly price of $12.99. And, of course, this was NOT IN ANY WAY made clear when the trial was offered. AND, there is more. I had replaced one of my credit cards and it had a new number and new expiration date. I updated the card info for this order. Magically, Amazon tells me that they were going to start charging this card for the $12.99 monthly fee, WITHOUT ME BEING TOLD THIS OR AUTHORIZING IT! I took care of the problem.
I have great respect for Amazon and what they have accomplished. But this is a bunch of sleazy, scummy garbage. Come on Amazon, you are better than this. The worst part of the above.......to me....is the pricing issue, I had been through this before and knew what to do. But it's scummy. Trashy. If reflects a lack of pricing integrity. It reflects a lack of respect for the customer. Keep this up and you will gradually lose the respect of a ton of people and will be at risk of being taken to the woodshed by an upstart competitor(s). Oh yes......it can happen.
