Credentials of Izzy Goodman

Unlike many other posters on the forums, I don't hide behind a phony name. If you go to my web site and read my pages, I spell it out. I accepted credit cards directly and then had a rude awakening with charge back attempts which fortunately failed. I also believed the promises of some payment services and later learned (not directly - I have never had a reversal) how little protection they really provided. When I got tired of sending the same message over and over again to everyone who asked why I didn't take this form of payment or that form, I created a page with a few links showing why I consider certain services unsafe. As more folks emailed me with their problems, it grew into this.

The original info I provided was public knowledge anyone could have gotten with an email or phone call. As more folks linked to my site and reporters started contacting me (and I referred them to folks who were really scammed since I personally have never had a problem with any service) some of the services started contacting me directly to ask what they could do to attract customers. Some did it by email, most by phone. C2it and one other bank which never launched a service actually had a face-to-face meeting with me.

In an attempt to get accurate facts, I used the "6 degrees of separation" rule to meet officers at credit card departments of major banks. I have a good relationship with one of the chief fraud prevention officers at a major bank (not a bank which has ever been involved in payment services) who provided me with a lot of good information on credit cards and their problems.

Incidentally, I was also contacted via phone by someone who claimed to represent major paypal investors. Because he provided some information which did not become public until later and from other emails I received from him, I believe he is genuine. We discussed some steps Paypal could take to make their service better and he agreed with most of my suggestions and promised they would be implemented. Some of them eventually were almost a year later. One of those suggestions was to provide a hotline specifically for folks whose accounts were restricted because Paypal flagged possible fraudulent activity. In the wake of all the complaints about Paypal's lack of customer service, I am really surprised that this simple step took so long to be implemented. However, it has been implemented and for the most part, Paypal has come a long way in providing solid customer service.

Paypal Damon insinuated that because I signed an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) with C2it, I am in some way affiliated with them. To clarify, an NDA just means I could't reveal anything we discussed. We spoke about protection plans for buyer and seller, fraud prevention, fee structure, etc. Naturally, C2it did not want me telling anyone else the details of these talks. We also discussed fraud and if I revealed some of what I learned, scammers could declare open season on sellers. Other services which contacted me by phone (and this includes the possible Paypal-affiliated person) also asked me not to reveal anything we discussed and I agreed. As far as I am concerned, this is a verbal NDA. If I had met with them in person, I would have signed a paper NDA. That does not make me an affiliate of any of these. So once again, I am in NO way affiliated with ANY payment service. I have received nothing of any value (other than the same referral fees offered to anyone) from any payment service with the exception of lunch from C2it and some T-shirts from Paypal, back when I was a cheerleader.

Folks have asked why they should believe my posts over those of Paypal Damon. The logical answer is that Paypal Damon works for Paypal. He is being paid to say what he does. I am not. I have no personal stake in this. Whether you choose to use Paypal or not, whether you choose to use any other service, it doesn't put one extra dime in my pocket. If you choose to think about the information I provide and take caution when accepting payments, you are doing yourself a favor - not me. If you choose to ignore me, that is your decision as well. I hope you never have a problem with a scammer. But if a scammer does charge you back after getting your merchandise or if some seller you pay with paypal ships you an empty box or empties his Paypal account and Paypal says, "too bad," at least you will have entered into the transaction with your eyes open. Maybe next time you could try keeping an open mind. But as posts on the forums indicate, there are still folks who have the attitude, "My mind is made up. Don't confuse me with the facts."

For those of you who are interested in the facts as I believe them to be, they are posted on my site http://ccs-digital.com. Those who disagree, are free to do so. It's a free country, particularly for the scammers using some of the payment services.