PHOENIX — Have you or someone you know received a random package in the mail addressed to you but you never ordered it?
It turns out it may not have been an accident.
“The first time I got one I opened it and I was like I didn’t order that," said Hannah Maskulka of north Phoenix.
Hannah Maskulka was sure it was a mistake. An Amazon package showed up to her door with her name and address but she had never ordered it.
“I had to run to my Amazon account and have to like search through like, 'Did I order this?'” Maskulka said.
She didn't. Then, the random packages kept coming. From blackout curtains and ice trays to fake eyelashes and a nose hair trimmer.
“I can tell you the last one I got. It was a cat hair brush and tights. And I can tell you I’ve never ordered those before on Amazon," Maskulka said. "I just got batteries and I was like, 'Thanks whoever you are, because I could always use these!'”
While Maskulka didn't mind the free merchandise, she wondered where these senders got her personal information, so she started digging.
“It’s just really creepy the amount of weird stuff you get in the mail," Maskulka said.
“We definitely classify this as a scam," said Tierra Terry, a business outreach and communications coordinator at the Better Business Bureau.
According to the BBB, Maskulka is not alone. In fact, she's one of many targets of a new scam called brushing.
“The main reason behind these scams is so the third party retailers can create false verified reviews on behalf of the product to make it seem like the product has great reviews," Terry said.
And the better the reviews, the better the sales.
“It’s false reporting to consumers and it’s falsifying information," Terry said.
Amazon is well aware of the problem.
In a statement, a spokesperson told 12 News, “Third party sellers are prohibited from sending unsolicited packages to customers and we take action on those who violate our policies, including withholding payments, suspending or removing selling privileges, or working with law enforcement.”
As for Maskulka, she says the packages have not stopped, making her a more skeptical shopper.
“I’ve definitely double thought everything on Amazon now for sure," Maskulka said.
If this does happen to you, Amazon recommends you contact their customer service department.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, you are legally allowed to keep the merchandise.
