Inside an Online Camera Store’s Bait and Switch Scam

Photographer Nasim Mansurov’s friend recently ordered Canon 5D Mark II from online camera store AjRichard for just $2,350, but was then called by a sales rep and told that the battery and charger weren’t included. The final order came out to $2,629, which included some unneeded accessories and 3-day shipping. When the order finally arrived in 2 weeks, he found that it was a 5D Mark II + 24-120mm kit box with the lens removed.

Nasim then decided to call the retailer himself to see first-hand what the purchasing process is like, recording the resulting conversation. Here’s a funny snippet of the salesperson trying to sell him an “error free” memory card:

[Nasim]: So when you say “error free”, what does it mean?
[Salesperson]: Error free means you are not going to get any glitches if you do action shots and someone running, you are not going to get any blur in the picture or anything like that. And you are not going to lose any pictures.

He ended up having a $2,499 sneakily increased to $3,549 (including a quick $150 for “insurance”), but luckily he was using a fake name, address, and credit card. Head on over to Mansurov’s blog post to read the full account and a transcript of the conversation — just remember: if something seems too good to be true, it probably is!