02031375341

On the 31st of May I received a call from Benjamin Chrisford of a company called CWP.  He claimed to be calling on behalf of PWC in relation to an urgent & confidential business matter which could only be discussed with our CEO so I took his number and advised I would pass the message on.
I called my contact at PWC who knew nothing of the subject he referred to!  I decided therefore not to ask our CEO to call and waited.  A couple of days ago Benjamin called back.  I told him PWC were not aware of CWP and that our CEO would therefore not be speaking to him.  He advised that he would email me proof of the business matter and surprisingly nothing has been received.  He also could not even remember his company's website as I had informed him that neither he or is his company came up in a google search.
I have just called the number and asked to be put through to their switchboard where the helpful lady told me the company is www.cwcomms.com - a publishing company which would not have anything to do with the type of business matter he referred to.

The same person has just called me today (26th June 2012) and asked to speak to our Chairman. He said he was calling regarding PWC as well. Our Chair had never heard of him so he didn't get transferred. Asked for a call back on 0203 137 5341 which he won't be getting. Very smooth and confident sounding. Wonder what scam he's up to?

exactly the same call. been calling several times a day for 3 weeks!

I had the same call today and this company have approached up at least three times in the past 6 months with different opportunities - all costing the same money and with apparent letters of recommendation from PWC

Same call received today. Gave a message that sounded very legitimate. Get the feeling he will continue calling until he gets through, or is given a forceful no.

I have had the same experience - Kevin Quinn called to speak to my CEO - very smooth, confident person - PWC haven't heard of him either - but he keeps calling!

Same thing, this time asked for MD by name, this time the smooth confident person was called 'Paul Barclay', and it was a partnership with PWC ('his client') that he was proposing.

BSI received a call earlier today with regards to arranging a conference call with Ben Crisford and David Thatcher to discuss a collaboration with PWC for an environmental management system solution. It appears that there may be something dubious in the inquiry, as the phone number which Mr. Crisford called from and the URL of www.cwpg.com  is not at all associated with PWC. It is the website of CW Publishing Group.

My PA just left a message from "Kevin Quinn of PriceWaterhouse Cooper" (yes he used the full corporate name) who wanted to talk about referring us to their customers. Sounded funny, as PwC stopped using the full name after their rebrand a while back.  We did a reverse lookup of the phone number and came across this site.  He will not be getting a call back.

I have taken two calls from Mr Kevin Quinn of CWPG asking to speak to the CEO.  His technique is to be so aggressive and patronising that PAs are intimidated by him and put him through to their bosses.  It didn't work with me and I recommend you do not take his calls as it's not a pleasant experience.

I have received 3 calls from  George Passmore, today, and yes, on behalf of PWC, and no he will not be getting through to my CEO.

Same as above, we got a few dubious calls on a few occasions not leaving a number (helpful) only i got a call from Joel Barclay (no doubt a version on Acc Man's mentioned Paul Barclay), he was very well-spoken and i have to say nice and not aggressive or intimidating but pushy nonetheless!

After reading this forum i tried a sneaky tactic inspired by the forum by saying our CEO had spoken to a contact at PWC who has never heard of them and after that he was very apologetic and advised he would be someone clearly wasn't doing their job and he would look into this, i gave him my email if he wished to send written confirmation of what they are offering but as i have given him my details before i will see if i receice anything yet again...

I'm suprised these people haven't heard of the power of the internet, they need only google their own number to see they have been foiled!

These people (claims he was Tom Bolger) left a message for me with my PA and specifically claimed to be from Price Waterhouse Coopers, which is an outright lie.

The directors of this company CW Publications (link elsewhere in this thread), Dean Citroen and Oren Wolf, have a string of closed/dissolved/liquidated businesses behind them - make of that what you will!

I have notified a senior contact at PWC of this fraudulent use of their company's name and sincerely hope they prosecute to the fullest extent of the law.  I detest liars!!!

I think that these complaints are extreme. CWPG have helped us in positioning our products and contribute to 3 Initiatives that have brought us returns. It is a shame that an organisation such as CWPG is stained by disgruntled ex-employees and companies that simply do not appreciate the value of the opportunity. In our experience their staff have been charming and helpful in getting us what we wanted. I would recommend to consider the business case and to at the least think about how your company could be involved. These comments are a misrepresentation.

Stephen, CWPG may be a great business, but they are not representing themselves very well through their social prospecting techniques.  They represented themselves to me today as working on behalf of KPMG seeking information on business solutions when clearly it is quite the reverse - they wish to sell a product or solution to the company I work for.  

Cold calling is a fact of life and a way of generating sales leads, but this is blatant misrepresentation and their insistence on trying to speak with the CEO or Head of a Division or Region is not a well thought out strategy.  Surely they should be aiming to speak with someone in marketing?

Dear Sir/Madam,
The British Bankers’ Association (BBA) is the UK’s leading association for the banking and financial
services sector, representing the interests of more than 240 member organisations with a worldwide
presence in 180 countries. Our member banks make up the world's largest international banking
cluster, operating 150 million accounts for UK customers and contributing over £50 billion annually to
UK economic growth.
A key focus area for the BBA is to provide information and support to help Britain’s businesses in
their growth plans. The BBA undertakes a number of initiatives focused on providing help and
support to British businesses.
To complement the BBA’s work and assist in raising the awareness of these initiatives we have
engaged with B&Y to produce a series of reports, in both paper and electronic versions, which will
provide thought leadership and guidance on a range of core issues affecting SME and Midcap
businesses.
B&Y are handling the logistics of this in their entirety. Involvement is by-invitation only, and is strictly
managed by B&Y, in conjunction with us.
Though B&Y will be solely responsible for any approaches made in this regard, if you would like to
discuss this initiative further please contact me on Richard.herridge@bba.org.uk
Yours sincerely,
Richard Herridge
Head of Online and Publishing

Charles Slarkes from the British Bankers Association. Had this call twice in the space of a year, although his second call was unwitting because I was operating from a new company. I am of the mind that I will, after a brief disclaimer, record these calls so that they perpetrators can be taken to task for false claims.

Steven Archer AKA Ben Chrisford/Paul Barclay/Kevin Quinn/George Passmore/Joel Barclay/Tom Bolger/Charles Slarkes/Simon Phillips?

Such a multi-named person called me recently at home, so either the number is being used by a new potential scammer, or is being spoofed by other morons.Thankfully my telecoms setup blocked him and reported the 'issue'.

CWP also have another website for potential hoax victims to visit: http://www.cwcomms.com/

Have received a number of persistent calls from a Robert Harris who says he is from the British Bankers Association wanting to set up a call between his Director Neil Rose and our CEO.  I contacted the BBA and there is no one working there by that name.  I also asked Mr Harris to send me an email which I got our IT department to check.  The email address is suspect and does not have a registered domain so please do not engage with this person.    

We were contacted by Jonathan Garcia, who setup the call for Neil Rose representing COUNCIL OF BRITISH CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE IN EUROPE (COBCOE), attempting to speak with our CEO. Very persistent, and had our staff running around. Neil turned out to be very patronising (apparantly from a company called B&Y and not the COBCOE at all), annoying and a total waste of time. We have emails from admin@by-europe.com and have tracked the number to the one above, a telesales outfit. Have reported to the COBCOE.

Clever technique, don't be fooled.