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Frontiers of Quantum and Mesoscopic Thermodynamics

27 July - 1 August 2015, Prague, Czech Republic

WARNING



Information on possible frauds related to the accommodation booking

In May 2015 the organizers of FQMT’15 were informed about several attempts of possible fraud actions regarding the accommodation of the conference participants in the Pyramida Hotel.

Briefly, some persons declaring themselves as representatives of EHS (Exhibitors Housing Services) company contacted several conference participants with the proposal to manage a cheaper accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel. These persons asked the participants for their personal and booking data, especially booking reference code, and also for credit card numbers. If the participant provided these data, they cancelled his/her original reservation (if such already existed). According to the current investigation, it appears that they could organize a new accommodation only in some cases. The EHS persons also informed convincingly but falsely about the conference program, e.g. about time of participant’s talk.

The EHS company is very suspicious not only based on the above practice, but also according to internet alerts - see below part A4. The organizers therefore strongly recommend to FQMT’15 participants to decline services of the EHS agency and not to provide any data to it. Please consider carefully proposals of the organization of your accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel also from any other agency. Only when you use the official FQMT’15 reservation link, the Pyramida Hotel can guarantee trustworthy reservation of the room and the reliably hotel services.

Please read carefully also more detailed description of the possible fraud actions and our advices and warning below.

A. Overview of the situation (probable scenario)

  1. Room reservations made via the FQMT’15 special link http://tinyurl.com/PYRAMIDA-2015-FQMT are completely O.K., safe and valid.

  2. The EHS company is using information from the www pages of the FQMT’15 conference (list of participants) together with its search on participants using google. Their representatives are also using clever questions: they are asking either participants or their secretaries or even reception staff at the Pyramida Hotel.

  3. The representatives of the EHS either call or send e-mails to the conference participants with the proposal to organize for them a discounted accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel. By phone or by insecure web forms they are also asking for credit card numbers and other participant details.

    IMPORTANT:
    When some invited speakers told to a representative of EHS that they are waiting for the program of the conference to make their reservation, this representative provided them immediately the false date of their talk pretending that she is an organizer of the FQMT’15 conference. Up to now (20 May 2015), no version (even some preliminary one) of detailed program of the FQMT’15 has been released. No slots are assigned to individual speakers up to now. So, these representatives are really providing completely false information regarding the conference program.

  4. It is now clear that the EHS company is involved in some fraud, or at least very suspicious, activities. It seems that they are professionals who are studying details regarding various events: for your information you can look at the following links:
    http://www.irmi.com/conferences/crc/info/hotel-fraud-alert.aspx
    http://www.nstp.org/newsfeed/scam_alert.php
    http://www.iups2013.org/node/360
    http://www.physiology2014.org/exhibition-and-sponsorship/warning-exhibitors
    http://www.scambook.com/company/view/129876/EHS-Exhibitors-Housing-Services
    http://internationalpipelineexposition.com/exhibition/exhibitor-warning-notice/

  5. EHS can, however, under some circumstances, organize some accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel. It seems that this EHS company is at least sometimes using some contacts to companies, which are renting several standard rooms in the Pyramida Hotel through the whole year independently on whether they manage to occupy these rooms every night. Therefore the rent of these rooms for the whole year, which they are paying, is much lower than the sum of all 365 nights costs. And so they can then offer limited number of rooms for some low prices and can still gain some money from it.

  6. Independently on investigations related to the actions of the EHS company, both the software system of the Pyramida Hotel including the special link for the FQMT’15 participants and the software systems of the FQMT’15 conference were thoroughly checked and it is sure that there was no leakage of any information from their databases – so both sides are completely safe. No information on credit cards used for both accommodation booking and for conference fee payment are accessible to the FQMT’15 organizers.

B. Advices and warnings

  1. We strongly recommend you not to provide any personal data to the EHS company. Please also consider very carefully to inform any other person or company not related to the conference about your intentions and data related to the FQMT’15.

  2. Information about the FQMT’15 program
    As mentioned above, there were cases when somebody was pretending that she or he is an organizer of the FQMT’15 and was providing incorrect information on the conference program. To avoid possibility that you will be following advices given you either by phone or by E-mail by some false organizer of the FQMT15 conference, please, do not take seriously any information, which is not either from Vaclav Spicka, Peter D. Keefe or from the official conference E-mail.

  3. Accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel
    In the case that you provided your booking reference code to somebody and agreed with the cancellation of your original reservation and with possible arrangement of your accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel via different company, please be aware that the Pyramida Hotel cannot issue any confirmation of your accommodation and you should check status of your accommodation yourself.

    For the reservation of your accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel please use only the link provided at the FQMT’15 conference www pages: http://tinyurl.com/PYRAMIDA-2015-FQMT.

    Following your reservation via the above link you should receive the confirmation e-mail sent by the bookassist system (using the Norton security system, which is considered as extremely secure). This e-mail is an official confirmation from the Pyramida Hotel.

    IMPORTANT: Booking reference code you obtain from the bookassist system is your personal information which should not be passed to any other person or company except of the Pyramida Hotel.

    Only when you use the official FQMT’15 reservation link, the Pyramida Hotel can guarantee trustworthy reservation of the room and the reliably hotel services. The rooms reserved by the FQMT’15 link are extra checked before the participant arrival to assure they meet the declared quality.

    To summarize: In the case of any doubts or difficulties regarding your accommodation in the Pyramida Hotel, please contact Vaclav Spicka or even better directly Jindra Fiserova of the Pyramida Hotel.