Shopping Online But Don't Have Time To Read The Fine Print?

While searching for the contact information of an old friend on Google, I came across a public records website that claimed to have the full dossier of him including his phone number and postal address. It was a paid site, the fee was very reasonable and anyone with a credit card could request access to that record.

This got me excited but there was a small problem though. Since this site required my credit card details and it was my first transaction with them, I decided to Google them to confirm if it was a legitimate service or any sort of a scam.

The results suggested that, somewhere hidden in the fine print, the company had a policy where they could automatically charge your credit credit card every month if you are subscribed to some particular services.

I had two options – either spend the whole night reading their 100-page service agreement to ensure that I don’t get charged extra for services that I didn’t use or skip them and try another service.

As I was not too keen to miss this opportunity of regaining contact with a long lost friend, I tried something else – I created a new virtual credit card and set the maximum limit of that card equal to the amount that I was initially asked to pay for access to that record.

I made the transaction using this new credit card and the site immediately granted me access to all the information I was looking for. And, to my surprise, it was quite accurate.

Hours later, after the transaction appeared in my bank statement, I deactivated that virtual credit card and also cancelled my account with the ‘public records’ company. Everything went smoothly and I no longer have to worry about getting charged later.

Amit Agarwal

Amit Agarwal

Google Developer Expert, Google Cloud Champion

Amit Agarwal is a Google Developer Expert in Google Workspace and Google Apps Script. He holds an engineering degree in Computer Science (I.I.T.) and is the first professional blogger in India.

Amit has developed several popular Google add-ons including Mail Merge for Gmail and Document Studio. Read more on Lifehacker and YourStory

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Awards & Titles

Digital Inspiration has won several awards since it's launch in 2004.

Google Developer Expert

Google Developer Expert

Google awarded us the Google Developer Expert award recogizing our work in Google Workspace.

ProductHunt Golden Kitty

ProductHunt Golden Kitty

Our Gmail tool won the Lifehack of the Year award at ProductHunt Golden Kitty Awards in 2017.

Microsoft MVP Alumni

Microsoft MVP Alumni

Microsoft awarded us the Most Valuable Professional (MVP) title for 5 years in a row.

Google Cloud Champion

Google Cloud Champion

Google awarded us the Champion Innovator title recognizing our technical skill and expertise.

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