ZoomInfo has probably collected information about you and others who share your name: is what’s there accurate?
It was in the course of researching and authoring a book on LinkedIn for recruiting with my colleague Bill Vick that I first learned about the online business information service ZoomInfo. Why it came up at the time was that it was commonplace for the recruiting specialists we were interviewing to mention using ZoomInfo as one of the tools they used to find out about candidates.
Since then, when I have mentioned ZoomInfo during presentations, it usually seems to be only people with experience in recruiting who know about it.
What I found particularly interesting once I looked into ZoomInfo was the fact that, unlike sites such as LinkedIn where you need to join and then provide information about yourself, ZoomInfo does not wait for anyone to upload their own information and, as my experience and that of others attests, stores and displays information about people who do not even know of its existence.
In my non-technical parlance, it just scoops up information about people and displays it. If that is not of sufficient concern for someone in business that they would go and check out what is on ZoomInfo about them, I don’t know what would.
When I first looked, there were several “identities” under my name which were all, in fact, my own, mixed up with links about other people of the same name, such as the Herbalife guy, the playwright and the parish priest.
Claiming identity and editing the profile data
What I was able to do was to claim my own identity, consolidate the different links for under the one item and then edit the information. To do that I had to join ZoomInfo and supply credit card details. I was not charged anything at the time or since – it was from memory a “good faith” checking system. (Note: this is not a recommendation that you happily provide your credit card details: just sharing my experience.)
And today, in the process of bringing myself up to date on ZoomInfo, I realized that even the information I had provided to fill out my profile was out of date. So as I had registered previously I was able to go in and update my information and the picture of myself on the site.
Alert about alerts
One challenge I had in signing in to the ZoomInfo site was that I had the warning message: “There is a problem with this website’s security certificate” and a recommendation not to proceed. I chose to proceed and had no problems, but of course I am not recommending that. It does seem that the ZoomInfo site owners might have a problem there, as I had the warning on two separate browsers.
Have you checked out your profile on ZoomInfo? Have you edited it? Or were you put off by the warning message on the site’s security?
So what if a person didn’t ask to put in their database? Some people neither like or want their life published on the internet. I didn’t ask for these jokers to steal my information from someone’s address book and then share it with the world.
Today I received an email from this zoominfo telling me that I was listed in their all so important directory and I went over to search for my name. I couldn’t believe that they had absolutely everything wrong … listed me as an estate agent on one page and a company that does branding on another. I am neither being a sole entrperenuer with a blog on ethical business and green living.They also have totally out of date information dating back several years when I once owned a CIC.
This site can do a lot of damage to a business reputation if they are adding stuff that is totally incorrect. Who knows what or who they could be linking us to?
On top of that I am informed I will be receiving updates on various company news etc … with a tiny link for me to unsubscribe if I wish. Unsubscribe to what? I haven’t even subscribed in the first place to anything from them so this is all total spam or schould I say a scam. To unsubscibe it appears I have to add my email address then tick unsubscribe????
Surely this so called directory should be closed down?
I went to their site today because they have emailied “Paul” at our domain name – we have never had that email address and there’s nobody here of that name. The company background and description gives
Revenue: $10 mil. – $25 mil.
Employees: 50 – 100.
If only!
We are a couple working from home and though we like to think we punch above our weight that revenue is in the land of fantasy. There is nowhere they can have sourced that information outside of their own fertile imaginations.
Like others, I was emailed today by this scam site, telling me I had an entry in their directory, which I’d never heard of. The only links given in their email were ones that I could see would “validate” me. Hmmm – so I went direct to their website and searched for myself, only to find – to my horror – they have my name and email address linked to completely bogus information, wrong address, wrong information altogether, and saying I have a huge company with a turnover of millions of dollars! Given that the internet is a happy hunting ground for people who don’t realise how wrong information can often be, what are others going to think? That I am a fraud and a liar? That I’m scamming the welfare services? Because I am just a pensioner living on welfare. If anyone from the Government offices clicks on that supposedly correct information about me, they will send the police round to arrest me for benefit fraud!!! And THAT is the knock-on effect of this scam website. To whom can I report them – because as sure as eggs is eggs, I’m not giving them my credit card details!!
I feel bad for anoyone who interacts with these obvious phishing emails and the sites behind them. The best thing you can do is delete+add the sender to your spam filter.
Do NOT click unsubscribe
Do NOT reply
Do NOT go to their bs site and enter all of your info to correct it (and give them your CC info!? Jesus, man!)
Just ignore, delete, and move on.