Do people MS that aren't on FT/other sites?
 

I hear stories about how there are people in the Kate line who are even opening up the GC's they just bought...and they have a lot...basically ruining it for "the MS community".

Made me think...are there people who MS that don't use FT or reddit or browse blogs/etc? Are they not in it for signup bonuses/points?

I feel like I often hear horror stories about how some people are going overboard with loading and being so obvious and will eventually ruin a certain location because they aren't being smart about MS...

Semi-sarcastic: maybe it's good that they don't come on these kinds of sites. FT has actually proven to be one of the nicest (and that's saying something), but wow, some of these places are outright caustic. Whatever. I won't go further on about that.

Semi-serious: I think those people you're hearing about could be money launderers. Even though it's rare, there's still a realistic chance.

Anyways, I highly doubt that there are people who outright don't go on any of these kinds of sites. More likely they just don't care to read up on "accepted" practices. Credit card hacking is usually a very daunting thing to an outsider, so I doubt that anyone wouldn't at least read a few sites.

If they don't post anywhere, how would we know anything about them? I'm sure there are some people not in the loop, but so what?

I've only seen a few such claims here on FT, and not often. You make an unprovable and unsupported conclusion.

Opportunities go away, new ones appear, and we usually don't know why. No need to invent scapegoats or point fingers. Just enjoy the benefits.

There are lots of people who are not into forums and posting.

Maybe they read a blogger article somewhere about how to get a MILLION POINTS, absorbed just enough of it to get by, and off they go. As long as what they have learned seems to be working, they don't research it any further and certainly wouldn't be daily FT readers.

BINGO!

I don't read ft for info anymore. Reddit is better. Ft is more entertaining - u guys crack me up, intentional or not.

Point out where you "heard" about this--specifically. Just because someone buys a GC at WM and loads it on Kate doesn't mean they did anything in "the Kate line." Inconspicuously opening a GC and loading it on Kate will not ruin MS for anyone. The Kate I use rarely has anyone in the room so you are loading Kate by yourself.

Yikes!

Here's one example: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/25580042-post487.html

I've seen other datapoints/stories here on FT and also on /r/churning.

Do you need the last 4 digits of my social and my security word too? :D

One post? One gift card? Did anyone from WM even notice? And how did that ruin MSing for you?

I have loaded at Kate hundreds of times and no one from WM gives a hoot.

I'm not gonna dig through FT and Reddit and find all the posts. I'm sure others have seen or heard stories themselves about the people who do MS and don't do it smartly (like buying multiple GC at Walmart, taking those multiple GC to the machine, and opening the packages to try and load all in the same trip).

Which also goes to why others seem to be speculating where these people are instead of questioning if they even exist?

Also, I'm not saying loading at Kates in general, I'm talking about the people who don't load at a Kate in a smart way. You even said it yourself:

The people this thread is really about are the people who AREN'T inconspicuous about it, and bring more attention to MS and therefore stricter policies.

Don't appreciate the comment about seeking help; I don't think I'm giving off a paranoid tone, just prompting discussion.

I've seen people standing at the Kate, with what appeared to be a small handful of VGCs, still in the purple/grey packaging, while they unwrapped one at a time, setting and leaving the wrapping on top of the machine, then loading $500. Repeat 4x. Then walk off.

The Kate is next to the RedBox at one of my places, so I stayed there, pretending to peruse movies while Kate announced, "No Charge! Five. Hundred. Dollars." multiple times.

I don't know how prevalent it is, but I've seen it ~3 times in recent weeks. Add to that the fact that the Kroger one block down has had empty VGC racks for about a month as well and it may actually be a growing problem.

Or not. Who knows.

what subreddits? I'm in r/churning and r/awardtravel...