American Publishing Company case in progress... Minnesota

I was sent a text today, saying that they were trying to contact me about a $250 gift card to walmart. I vaguely remember entering a contest for something like that, so I called the number. They offered me five magazines for five years, saying they're trying to circulate magazines in my area. The text had woken me up, so I wasn't quite awake enough to catch the subtle signs of a scam - first they said the magazines were free, then said it would be only $3.99, which I assumed was a processing fee. Then they said it would be $17 and some change every month, then went to $34.58 every month, but that price would pay for two months at a time, meaning I would only have to pay it for the first half of the subscription period and the rest of the period I could just "relax and enjoy the magazines." It still sounded like a decent deal, so I went ahead with it. They said the first payment would be made immediately, but since they don't allow multiple payments within the same 20 day period, my next payment wouldn't be until December 1st. They were very very nice, and thus I was persuaded easily.

Then I read the reports on here, and immediately I called their customer service number to cancel. The first guy who picked up sounded like he was about to cry before I'd even said anything. I told them that I had to cancel because I had taken another look at my finances and I wouldn't be able to afford it. I wasn't looking to start any conflict, I just wanted my subscription cancelled. So he transferred me to another person, who also sounded upset, but told me he'd cancelled my account. It seems way too easy though, he didn't ask for a confirmation on anything. I said, "I need to cancel my subscription." He said, "Can I ask if we did anything to change your mind?" I said, "No, I was just looking at my finances again and realized I couldn't afford it." He said, "Alright, I took care of it." I said, "It's cancelled?" He said, "Yep." Then we ended the conversation.

Honestly if not for the reports on here I would not have caught the scam. They still got my first payment, because I was feeling way too badly for the guy to ask for a refund. Honestly, if all your associates on your customer service line sound like their dog just died... that says something about the job conditions. I'm actually worried about the employees' wellbeing, in addition to my own concerns.

The name of the account that took the first payment from my bank account appears as "Magazines

XXXXXXXXXMN

XXXXXXXXXXXX9721" and the customer service number was 1-888-906-0162. The number that sent the original text was 1-800-340-0539.