Bucket Culture LLC

A summary of what happened?

Bucket Culture LLC, a men’s clothing brand based in Jackson, New Jersey, has faced a series of complaints from customers regarding its service and product quality. While the company specializes in clothing products aimed at sports enthusiasts, particularly basketball fans, its business practices have drawn criticism, as reflected in multiple negative reviews.

Top 3 Complaints Against Bucket Culture LLC

1. Delayed Shipping: One of the most frequent complaints is about long shipping times. Customers have reported waiting weeks or even months for their orders, with many expressing frustration over the lack of communication about delays. Some customers stated that after placing their order, they received no updates on the status of the shipment, leading to uncertainty about whether the product would ever arrive. This has resulted in poor customer experiences, particularly for those expecting timely delivery for gifts or time-sensitive purchases.
2. Product Quality Issues: Another major concern raised by customers is the discrepancy between the advertised quality of the products and what they receive. Many buyers reported that the clothing they received did not match the images or descriptions on the website. Some noted that the material felt cheap, the designs were subpar, or the items were smaller or larger than the sizing charts indicated. For a brand that markets itself as a premium provider of basketball-themed clothing, this has been a significant source of disappointment for customers.
3. Poor Customer Service: Many customers also pointed out the company’s inadequate customer service as a major issue. When customers experienced problems with their orders—whether due to delayed shipping, incorrect items, or poor product quality—they frequently found it difficult to get in touch with the company. Many reported that the customer service team was unresponsive, with emails or phone calls going unanswered. Some who managed to get a response were left dissatisfied, as their issues were not fully addressed or resolved in a timely manner. This lack of support has exacerbated the frustrations felt by many customers.

Additional Concerns

Aside from these top three complaints, some customers have expressed dissatisfaction with Bucket Culture LLC’s refund and return policies. Customers claimed that getting refunds for canceled or returned orders was often challenging, with the company either refusing or delaying refunds for long periods. Furthermore, some buyers indicated that they were forced to open disputes through their payment provider to recover their funds after receiving no cooperation from the company.

In summary, Bucket Culture LLC has faced significant criticism from its customers. The most common issues include delayed shipping, poor product quality, and inadequate customer service. These problems have led to negative reviews and frustration among buyers, many of whom warn others to be cautious when ordering from the company. Improving communication with customers, addressing product quality concerns, and enhancing customer service could help the company mitigate some of the negative feedback it has received.

Analyzing the Fake Copyright Notice(s)

Our team collects and analyses fraudulent copyright takedown requests, legal complaints, and other efforts to remove critical information from the internet. Through our investigative reporting, we examine the prevalence and operation of an organized censorship industry, predominantly funded by criminal entities, oligarchs, and disreputable businesses or individuals. Our findings allow internet users to gain insight into these censorship schemes’ sources, methods, and underlying objectives.

What was Bucket Culture LLC trying to hide?

Bucket Culture LLC‘s attempts to hide unfavourable content through the misuse of copyright notices while allegedly engaging in perjury present serious legal concerns. These actions suggest a calculated attempt to manipulate legal systems to suppress free speech, a fundamental violation of copyright law principles and an abuse of legal processes. The use of such tactics not only undermines the integrity of copyright protection but also potentially constitutes perjury, further entangling Bucket Culture LLC in legal accountability. Let’s examine the information Bucket Culture LLC may be trying to remove from the internet –

These complaints largely center around delayed shipping, product quality issues, and poor customer service, contributing to a tarnished reputation.

Delayed Shipping

One of the most prevalent complaints about Bucket Culture LLC is the significant delay in shipping orders. Customers have reported waiting weeks, and in some cases months, for their purchases to arrive. In many of these instances, customers were left without communication from the company, leading to heightened frustration. Numerous buyers noted that they did not receive any updates regarding the status of their orders, leaving them uncertain as to whether they would ever receive their products. For those making time-sensitive purchases, such as gifts, the prolonged delivery times have been particularly problematic.

The company’s inability to provide accurate shipping updates or respond to inquiries about delayed deliveries exacerbated customer dissatisfaction. Even when customers tried to reach out for clarity, responses were either delayed or not provided at all. Some customers have taken to public forums like the Better Business Bureau (BBB) to express their frustration, with many warning others about the long shipping times and lack of communication.

Product Quality Issues

Another significant issue raised by customers is the inconsistency in product quality. Many buyers have reported that the clothing items they received did not match the descriptions or images on the Bucket Culture LLC website. Complaints range from poor material quality to incorrect sizing, with some stating that the products felt cheap or poorly manufactured. Customers who expected high-quality, durable products based on the brand’s marketing found themselves disappointed with the actual items they received.

For a brand that markets itself as a premium provider of basketball-themed clothing, the disconnect between advertising and the delivered product has led to significant customer dissatisfaction. Some customers mentioned that they ordered apparel based on the professional look of the website, only to receive items that appeared low-end or did not fit as advertised.

These product quality issues have also been compounded by the difficulty in obtaining replacements or refunds. Customers who tried to address product defects or return items were often met with resistance or non-responsiveness from the company, which contributed further to negative reviews.

Poor Customer Service

The complaints regarding customer service are perhaps the most consistent across multiple review platforms. Many customers reported that contacting Bucket Culture LLC’s customer service was a frustrating and often fruitless experience. Those who attempted to resolve issues related to delayed shipping, incorrect orders, or poor product quality frequently found themselves waiting long periods for responses, or receiving no response at all.

When customers did manage to get in touch with the company, they often found the responses insufficient. Some noted that their issues were not fully resolved, whether it involved delays in processing refunds or failure to provide clear answers about product shipments. The overall consensus among dissatisfied customers was that the company lacked effective communication and accountability when it came to customer concerns.

Additionally, some customers mentioned that the company’s return policy was restrictive, making it difficult for them to get refunds or exchanges for defective or unsatisfactory items. This has further led to frustration, with some individuals feeling trapped in transactions they regretted.

Additional Concerns and Negative Reviews

Beyond the main complaints about shipping, product quality, and customer service, several customers have raised additional concerns about the overall trustworthiness of Bucket Culture LLC. Some have questioned the legitimacy of the company due to its repeated failure to fulfill orders or provide appropriate customer service. Others have expressed concerns that the company may be deliberately withholding information or failing to act in good faith when addressing customer complaints.

On the Better Business Bureau (BBB) website, Bucket Culture LLC has a low customer review score, with the majority of the reviews being negative. The common themes in these reviews include accusations of poor business practices, including failing to honor refunds and providing misleading advertising. These negative reviews are available for public view on the BBB’s website, where many customers have shared their frustrating experiences.

Lack of Legal Action or Sanctions

At this time, there is no public information indicating that Bucket Culture LLC has faced any lawsuits or official sanctions. However, the accumulation of customer complaints suggests that the company could face potential legal or regulatory action in the future if the issues remain unresolved. The company’s business practices, particularly related to delayed shipping and poor customer service, could draw attention from consumer protection agencies if they continue to generate negative feedback at the current rate.

Customer Advice

Given the consistent pattern of complaints, customers are advised to exercise caution when dealing with Bucket Culture LLC. Those who are considering purchasing from the company should be aware of the potential for delayed shipping, product quality inconsistencies, and difficulties in contacting customer service. It may also be wise to review the company’s return policies closely before making a purchase to ensure there are clear options in place if issues arise.

Customers who have had negative experiences with Bucket Culture LLC are encouraged to document their issues and escalate them through proper channels, such as filing complaints with the BBB or contacting their credit card provider for assistance in disputing charges.

Bucket Culture LLC has developed a negative reputation due to its delayed shipping, poor product quality, and lack of effective customer service. These recurring issues have led to numerous complaints and unfavorable reviews across various platforms. While the company continues to operate, its consistent failure to address these concerns could potentially result in further consumer backlash or regulatory scrutiny. For now, the company’s standing among customers remains poor, and it will likely need to make significant improvements to restore consumer trust.

How do we counteract this malpractice?

Once we ascertain the involvement of Bucket Culture LLC (or actors working on behalf of Bucket Culture LLC), we will inform Bucket Culture LLC of our findings via Electronic Mail.

Our preliminary assessment suggests that Bucket Culture LLC may have engaged a third-party reputation management agency or expert, which, either independently or under direct authorization from Bucket Culture LLC, initiated efforts to remove adverse online content, including potentially fraudulent DMCA takedown requests. We will extend an opportunity to Bucket Culture LLC to provide details regarding their communications with the agency or expert, as well as the identification of the individual(s) responsible for executing these false DMCA notices.

Failure to respond in a timely manner will necessitate a reassessment of our initial assumptions. In such an event, we will be compelled to take appropriate legal action to rectify the unlawful conduct and take the following steps –

Since Bucket Culture LLC made such efforts to hide something online, it seems fit to ensure that this article and sensitive information targeted online by these events get a lot more exposure and traffic than what it would have received originally

We hope this becomes an excellent case study for the Streisand effect…The key idea behind the Streisand effect is that efforts to restrict information can backfire, often causing the information to gain more attention than it would have otherwise. This effect is widespread in the digital age, where users quickly notice and spread censorship efforts on social media and other platforms. Trying to suppress something can unintentionally lead to it becoming more visible, which Bucket Culture LLC is finding out the hard way.

Potential Consequences for Bucket Culture LLC

Under Florida Statute 831.01, the crime of Forgery is committed when a person falsifies, alters, counterfeits, or forges a document that carries “legal efficacy” with the intent to injure or defraud another person or entity.

Forging a document is considered a white-collar crime. It involves altering, changing, or modifying a document to deceive another person. It can also include passing along copies of documents that are known to be false. In many states in the US, falsifying a document is a crime punishable as a felony.

Additionally, under most laws, “fraud on the court” is where “a party has sentiently set in motion some unconscionable scheme calculated to interfere with the judicial system’s ability impartially to adjudicate a matter by improperly influencing the trier of fact or unfairly hampering the presentation of the opposing party’s claim or defense.”  Cox v. Burke, 706 So. 2d 43, 46 (Fla. 5th DCA 1998) (quoting Aoude v. Mobil Oil Corp., 892 F.2d 1115, 1118 (1st Cir. 1989)).

Is Bucket Culture LLC Committing a Cyber Crime?

Yes, it seems so. Bucket Culture LLC used multiple approaches to remove unwanted material from review sites and Google’s search results. Thanks to protections allowing freedom of speech in the United States, there are very few legal ways to do this. Bucket Culture LLC could not eliminate negative reviews or search results that linked to them without a valid claim of defamation, copyright infringement, or some other clear breach of the law.

Faced with these limitations, some companies like Bucket Culture LLC have gone to extreme lengths to fraudulently claim copyright ownership over a negative review in the hopes of taking it down.

Fake DMCA notices have targeted articles highlighting the criminal activity of prominent people to hide their illegal behavior. These people, which include US, Russian, and Khazakstani politicians as well as members from elite circles including the mafia and those with massive financial power, are all connected – and alleged corruption ranging from child abuse to sexual harassment is exposed when exploring evidence found at these URLs. It appears there’s a disturbing level of influence being exerted here that needs further investigation before justice can be served. Bucket Culture LLC is certainly keeping interesting company here….

The DMCA takedown process requires that copyright owners submit a takedown notice to an ISP identifying the allegedly infringing content and declaring, under penalty of perjury, that they have a good faith belief that the content is infringing. The ISP must then promptly remove or disable access to the content. The alleged infringer can then submit a counter-notice, and if the copyright owner does not take legal action within 10 to 14 days, the ISP can restore the content.

Since these platforms are predominantly based in the U.S., the complaints are typically made under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which requires online service providers and platforms to react immediately to reports or violations. Big Tech companies rarely have systems in place to assess the merit of each report. Instead, all bad actors need to do is clone a story, backdate it, and then demand the real thing be taken down.

Reputation Agency's Modus Operandi

The fake DMCA notices we found always use the “back-dated article” technique. With this technique, the wrongful notice sender (or copier) creates a copy of a “true original” article and back-dates it, creating a “fake original” article (a copy of the true original) that, at first glance, appears to have been published before the true original.

Then, based on the claim that this backdated article is the “original,” the scammers send a DMCA to the relevant online service providers (e.g. Google), alleging that the ‘true’ original is the copied or “infringing” article and that the copied article is the “original,” requesting the takedown of the ‘true’ original article. After sending the DMCA request, the person who sent the wrong notice takes down the fake original URL, likely to make sure that the article doesn’t stay online in any way. If the takedown notice is successful, the disappearance from the internet of information is most likely to be legitimate speech.

As an integral part of this scheme, the ‘reputation management’ company hired by Bucket Culture LLC creates a website that purports to be a ‘news’ site. This site is designed to look legitimate at a glance, but any degree of scrutiny reveals it as the charade it is.

The company copies the ‘negative’ content and posts it “on the fake ‘news’ site, attributing it to a separate author,” then gives it “a false publication date on the ‘news’ website that predated the original publication.

The reputation company then sent Google a Digital Millennium Copyright Act notice claiming the original website infringed copyright. After a cursory examination of the fake news site, Google frequently accepts the notice and delists the content.

In committing numerous offences, Bucket Culture LLC either premeditated actions or were unaware of the consequences. Despite hiring an agency to make Google disregard any negative information about Bucket Culture LLC, ignorance does not excuse this wrongdoing.

Fake DMCA notices have targeted articles highlighting the criminal activity of prominent people to hide their illegal behavior. These people, which include US, Russian, and Khazakstani politicians as well as members from elite circles including the mafia and those with massive financial power, are all connected – and alleged corruption ranging from child abuse to sexual harassment is exposed when exploring evidence found at these URLs. It appears there’s a disturbing level of influence being exerted here that needs further investigation before justice can be served. FSMSmart is certainly keeping interesting company here.

The Reputation Laundering

Rogue Reputation agencies use spurious copyright claims and fake legal notices to remove and obscure articles linking clients to allegations of tax avoidance, corruption, and drug trafficking. Most of these reputation agencies are based offshore, mainly in Russia, India, and Eastern Europe, and they do not worry about complying with US-based laws.

The content in all of the articles for which the fraudulent DMCA notices have been sent relates to allegations of criminal allegations, including corruption, child abuse, sexual harassment, human trafficking and financial fraud against businesses and individuals with ultra-high net worth.

In addition to the misuse of the DMCA takedown process, there is a notable absence of enforcement concerning perjury violations. The statutory requirement related to perjury is designed to deter copyright holders from submitting fraudulent or knowingly false takedown requests, as they may face legal consequences for making false declarations under penalty of perjury. However, to date, there have been no known instances of any individual being prosecuted for perjury in connection with the submission of false DMCA takedown notices.

This lack of enforcement has emboldened copyright holders to exploit the DMCA takedown process to suppress dissent, criticism, or other unfavorable content, without fear of legal repercussions.

Some of the people and businesses who have employed this tactic to remove legitimate content from Google illegally include a Spanish businessman-turned-cocaine-trafficker, Organised crime, an Israeli-Argentine banker accused of laundering money for Hugo Chávez’s regime, a French “responsible” mining company accused of tax evasion, child molesters and sexual predators. Bucket Culture LLC is in great company ….

What else is Bucket Culture LLC hiding?

We encourage you to ‘Dork‘ Google by searching for keyword combinations such as [Bucket Culture LLC] + {Negative Keyword, such as Scam, Fraud, Complaints, Lawsuit, Sanction, etc} on Google. It’s likely if you scroll down to the bottom of this Google search results, you’ll stumble upon this Legal Takedown notice (pictured below)

To make such an investigation possible, we encourage more online service providers to come forward and share copies of content removal requests with industry experts and researchers. If you have any information on Bucket Culture LLC that you want to share with experts and journalists, kindly email the author directly at [email protected].

All communications are strictly confidential and safeguarded under a comprehensive Whistleblower Policy, ensuring full protection and anonymity for individuals who provide information.