15 Comments »

1. Comment by Marine P

   Hey,
   Congrats Dr ! I don’t know if this email is true but I have not received it when I completed my PhD and I was also in a significant university. So can’t really help. But also, who cares about fish ???
   But a colleague of mine has received several mails (by post) from the Who’s Who so I don’t know. I don’t know if he’s already in it but he completed his PhD ~3-4 years ago. So maybe…
   But really can’t help !
   Cheers

2. Comment by admin

   That’s funny actually because I thought about you when I got this e-mail. I had the feeling, considering the place where you got your Ph-D, that you likely received this message as well… Maybe people don’t care about fishes indeed. -_-
   Anyway, several of my colleagues from Utrecht got that message and I think it is legit but not very important. Browsing on the website of Who’s Who, you can see that they sell their numerical data base of profiles with more than a million entries to companies and such. Having that kind of info with, among other things, the bio of an extended number of young scientists in fields that may be relevant for industry probably has some kind of value. They probably scan though websites of universities for engineers and Ph-D graduates in chemistry, informatics, economics etc… and contact them like that. This would also coincide with what I read on other blogs.

   I think my curiosity will definitely get the best of me and I will reply and answer their questions as long as I am not asked for money. Anyway, my CV is public (on this site and elsewhere) so they may well print in on the moon, I don’t really care. ^^

3. Comment by Draven

   The fact that your last name is included in the message could mean that the message is legit. In many of the dishonest attempts to people’s money included in emails, the name of the person is very rarely mentioned. But it is the only one thing that makes me think it is an honest proposal because several other things look strange to me.

   First of all, the photo you included above your message. If it is the exact same as the one you received, I find it strange because the quality is very poor and the year on the cover is 2007. What is the point of showing you a 3-year-old cover to invite you to be in the 2011 edition ? To me, the only aim of this picture is to lure you by making you think you are dealing with the real editors of the book.

   Secondly, the fact that they tell you in their first message that you won’t have anything to pay sounds to me like they want you to feel comfortable with their proposal. This is very common with dishonest attempts at your money. And of course, they give you little time (less than a month) to answer. How strange…

   I also tend to think that such a prestigious company would not contact people only by email. Maybe you’ll think that I’m going too far but I also think that such a company should be able to send someone to meet you for real before considering to include you in their book. I think you should ask for such a meeting if you want to go on with them.

   And even if they don’t ask you any money for now, be really careful when you fill in their form not to commit yourself to buy one of their expensive books someday in the future. For now, I think that it is what they are trying to do. I hope I’m wrong.

   Some links I have found about similar emails :

   http://www.hoaxbuster.com/hoaxteam/forum_contributions.php?idForum=3152&idMess=46287
   http://alertes-arnaques.blogspot.com/2009/07/jai-ete-considere-your-inclusion-to.html

4. Comment by tiggerdan

   As your grand mother used to say, the world has seen stranger things that never happened… (I always liked that one.)

   In your shoes, my curiosity would get the better of me too, with the exact same caveat: so long as they don’t ask for money.

   I’d think it a real hoot if you ended up in Who’s Who!

   Who’s Who?, anyway? Well, I am I, for one.

5. Comment by admin

   Maybe I should have mentioned that, the picture was not sent with the e-mail, I just added a picture I found on the internet to have something to “illustrate” my post. For the rest, I decided to reply and I’ll see what it is by myself. I agree though that it is strange that they put so much emphasis on the “you don’t have to pay” part but time will tell anyway. ^^

6. Comment by John

   It is legitimate to the extent that they do what they say. Marquis is “the” Who’s Who book. On the other hand they follow up with not just “cheap” offers on the book, but plaques and scrolls and all sorts that testify that you’re recorded in the book (at much cheaper prices than the actual book).

7. Comment by Imran Ahmad Dar

   With Due All Respect,
   I have ready all this! I am totally confused if you are right. And I donot think they are cheaters.I also got an email as a nominee for the comming 2011 Edition.
   I have completed my PhD yet, but i am having some great international publications.
   I got an email which read as:

   Dear I. DAR,

   This is a final reminder that you are being considered for inclusion in Who’s Who in the World, 28th Edition (2011).

   From the publisher of Who’s Who in America since 1899, Who’s Who in the World is relied upon by business leaders, journalists, academics, and other professionals for its accuracy and currency of information. It continues to be recognized as the world’s premier biographical reference source, and is found in the collections of many of the world’s leading libraries and corporations.

   To be considered for inclusion as a listee in this prestigious publication, you need only complete our Biographical Data Form by June 21, 2010.

   If you are selected for the new 2011 Edition, we will contact you prior to the book’s release in November 2010.

   I congratulate you on the achievements that have brought your name to the attention of our editorial committee. We look forward to hearing from you.

   Sincerely,

   Fred Marks
   Editor-in-Chief ;
   After that i got second email as:
   You have successfully submitted your data as of 6/17/2010 06:27:10:067.
   If you pass the first round of screening you will receive notification
   via email to add more information for us to further review your
   biography.

   Regards,

   Lauren Tong

   Content Editor
   Marquis Who’s Who LLC.
   890 Mountain Ave
   New Providence, NJ 07974
   908-673-1179 (main fax)
   Another email As;
   Good Morning,

   You passed the first round of screening as of 6/18/2010 09:05:50:49.
   Please expect an notification from us within the next month to
   add/change any information about yourself.

   Regards,

   Lauren Tong

   Content Editor
   Marquis Who’s Who LLC.
   890 Mountain Ave
   New Providence, NJ 07974
   908-673-1179 (main fax)

   In this connection, i donot beleive that they are cheaters.

   With Regards,
   Imran
   Editor:
   IJHS

8. Comment by admin

   I am now convinced that the messages are legit and that the who’s who is just broadening its database. I also think they have every right to sell the book to the people they just included. It’s their business and I have no problem with that.
   I understand, though, that people can be doubtful at first, just the way I was myself.

9. Comment by Imran Ahmad Dar

   I am a Research Scholar

10. Comment by Ravi

    ya…me too got invitataion for this “Who is Who” And am also suspected that, whether it is a spam or not? Moreover i am an M.Tech student, thats why i surprised so much…but i thought that the only positve thing from my side is i have 4 publications for this year….anyway i just filled the form and replied, but still i didn’t get any reply from them.

11. Comment by Marquis Listee

    I am very curious now. So are you finally selected for inclusion? What about Imran Ahmad?

    FYI– My inclusion in Marquis Who’s Who was confirmed in Sept 2010.

12. Comment by admin

    Yes, as far as I know, I’m in. I won’t check in the book though, even if they tried to sell it to me a couple of times. They offer me a substantial discount but it’s still too expensive for the sheer pleasure of reading my own name in a giant book.

13. Comment by Imran Ahmad Dar

    Yes, dear Marquis Listee,.
    Finally, my biography got enlisted in this great book. Since i am doing PhD and my phd is yet to be completed, but i got 15 impact factored resaerch articles since from past one and a half years (by the grace of Almighty Allah).And i got some pages of my biography (hard copy) via post. if you have any doubt, you can email me at wonder_env@yahoo.com
    Sincerely,
    Imran Ahmad Dar.
    Biographee:
    Worlds Who`s Who (2011)
    Editor:
    Journal of Economics and International Finance
    International Journal of Water Resources and Environmental Engineering
    Int. Jour. of Hydrologic Sci.
    Int. Jour. of Water Qual. Monitoring
    Int. Jour. of Hydr. Modeling
    Reviewer:
    Journal of Hydrology
    Journal of Environmental Management
    Environmental Monitoring and Assessment
    Cost Engineering Journal
    African Journal of Science and Technology
    **************************************************

14. Comment by amit kansal

    Hi friends,
    I just received a similar mail and I am not a Mtech or a Phd guy. Yeah, I did complete my Bachelors from a very reputed institute of India ,but that was 14 years back. I was suspicious , but going through the posts here, it seems , its not a spam (in the strict sense).

    regards,
    Amit

15. Comment by Dennis

    It’s probably a legit business (as in they say what they will do), but I think the key question is really whether there’s any significance or prestige to be included as a “who’s who”. A giant book with thousands of names that will be collecting dust somewhere… Who really cares?

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