Is research-polls.com legit or a scam?
A four-year-old polling site that uses unsolicited SMS spam to conduct biased surveys and collect personal data.
These checks passed — but they don't clear the site. A clean antivirus result, valid SSL, and a calm server only mean it isn't hosting malware; they say nothing about whether the business is real. This verdict is based on the site's conduct and content, not a malware detection.
Analysis Summary
Warning signs detected
3 of 92 antivirus engines flag this page. Several risk indicators suggest caution. This site might be legitimate — but treat it as unverified until you can independently confirm.
Website Preview
Automated page render — captured in a safe sandbox. What an ordinary visitor would see when loading the site. See full visual analysis →
Visual Screenshot Analysis
We capture a fresh screenshot of the live page and ask a vision model to look for scam visual patterns — fake trust badges, countdown timers, overlay pop-ups, and visual clones of legitimate brands.
Visual red flags detected in the screenshot
The website presents a professional and legitimate appearance for a research or polling organization with no visible scam indicators or deceptive design patterns.
What our vision model saw
5 signalsProfessional layout with consistent branding and high-quality imagery
Standard navigation menu with Home, About Us, What We Do, and Contact
Clear call-to-action button labeled 'Get started'
No visible countdown timers, fake trust badges, or urgency tactics
Content appears fully rendered with no signs of being a clone
MT Intelligence
The domain has been active for over four years and uses legitimate hosting infrastructure, which distinguishes it from temporary scam sites. However, our analysis shows a high volume of unsolicited SMS messages used to drive traffic to the page. Multiple independent reports and news outlets identify the site as a 'push-polling' operation, where questions are designed to influence rather than measure opinion. While some local governments have used the service for legitimate outreach, the lack of transparency regarding ownership and the high volume of spam reports lower its trust profile. We have adjusted the score to reflect these aggressive data-collection practices.
Web Research Findings
Our live research agent queries scam-report databases, consumer-review sites, news coverage, and general web search for research-polls.com, then cross-checks business-registration records and look-alike domain patterns. Everything below is pulled from what it actually found.
- Domain registered April 21, 2022; approximately 4 years old with valid SSL certificate hosted on Amazon infrastructure.
- Operates from (or lists address at) 508 Hendricks Isle, Fort Lauderdale, FL; described as a small market research/polling firm with revenue under $5M.
- Sends high volumes of unsolicited SMS texts inviting users to 'local issues' or political polls, often with partisan-leaning or leading questions according to multiple Reddit users and news reports.
- Frequently accused of push-polling (messaging disguised as research) for Republican-leaning clients/campaigns, e.g., testing messages for South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem in 2022 and other races.
- Scamadviser rates it 'Very Likely Safe' and legit due to age, SSL, and no major red flags; however Scamdoc gives a poor 28% trust score with average user rating 1.6/5 from 31 reviews citing bias and spam.
- Some local governments (e.g. City of Lake Oswego) have publicly stated that specific Research-Polls surveys they commissioned are legitimate and not scams.
- WHOIS owner identity is hidden; site provides no specific team names, detailed contact phone, or verifiable client list on its pages.
- ScamDocopen
"Poor Trust Score: 28%. Average rating of 1.6 out of 31 Reviews. Comments include: 'This opinion poll is clearly biased against the Democratic and Independent', 'THIS IS NOT A LEGITIMATE SURVEY SITE!', 'Scam site.', 'Does not acknowledge SMS"
- Reddit r/Scamsopen
"Multiple users received unsolicited texts linking to research-polls.com polls described as biased, push-polling, or scam-like. One comment: 'I'm going to say this poll is a scam or so highly politically motivated as to be a joke.'"
- Reddit r/RBIopen
"Who is behind the push-polling, text-spamming research-polls.com ? You may have gotten text messages linking you to a poll on this website. If you search their name, very little is known."
- Dakota Free Pressopen
"Research-Polls.com purports to be a market research company from Fort Lauderdale, Florida... The poll does not appear to push for the No votes... suspected as push polling for Noem's campaign... not scientific."
- Scamadviseropen
"In summary, we think research-polls.com is legit and safe for consumers to access. Very Likely Safe. Positive highlights: valid SSL certificate, site set-up several years ago, DNSFilter labels this site as safe."
- Instagram (City of Lake Oswego)open
"You may have received a call or text stating that the City (Research - Polls) is conducting a study about local issues. This is not a scam. Please take a few minutes to complete the poll."
- Reddit r/Scams (comment)open
"They're not a scam, but they're not exactly a neutral polling firm either... They're not going to rip you off and steal your money, they're trying to help a certain type of politician win elections."
Listed at 508 Hendricks Isle Apt 8, Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33301. Associated with opinionspoll.com. Domain registered April 21, 2022 (approx. 4 years old as of 2026). WHOIS owner hidden via proxy (whoisproxy.com, address in Alexandria VA). No formal business registration details found beyond addre
Antivirus Engines
Security Scans
Checked against the major public blocklists used by browsers and security tools — no hits.
Domain & Encryption
Server Reputation
Proceed with caution
Our automated review flagged enough risk that you should treat this site as unverified.
- Treat research-polls.com as unverified
Do not enter credentials or send money until you have independently verified the business.
- Verify the business through independent channels
Check the company's social profiles, registry records, and search for recent news or reviews that are not hosted on the site itself.
- Never use irreversible payment methods
Crypto, gift cards, wire transfers, and cash apps offer zero buyer protection. Use a credit card or PayPal if you must pay.
- OpenShare your experience
If you have additional context, drop a comment below or post on the MalwareTips forum.
Reputation Sources
How this domain rates across independent threat-intelligence and blocklist providers.
Safety FAQ
Common questions about this site, answered directly from the scan data above — so the answers always reflect the latest verdict on this page.
- Our automated security review marked research-polls.com as suspicious. Several warning signs were detected; it may still turn out legitimate, but you should verify it through independent channels before trusting it with money or credentials.
- research-polls.com currently scores 55/100 on our trust scale. We found enough warning signals to recommend caution. Verify the site through independent channels before entering credentials or money.
- Yes. research-polls.com presents a valid TLSv1.2 certificate issued by Amazon · Amazon RSA 2048 M04, expiring in 232 days. Note that SSL only encrypts the connection — it does not guarantee that the site itself is trustworthy.
- research-polls.com is 4.2 years old, registered on 4/21/2022 through Amazon Registrar, Inc.. Scam domains are often freshly registered — a site under 6 months old warrants extra caution.
- 3 out of 92 antivirus engines in our malware network flagged research-polls.com as malicious or suspicious. Even one detection is a meaningful signal.
- No. research-polls.com is not currently listed on the major browser blocklist feeds that modern browsers use.
- research-polls.com resolves to an IP operated by Amazon Technologies Inc. in US (usage type: Data Center/Web Hosting/Transit). Hosting location alone doesn't make a site good or bad, but unusual geography for a brand's claimed country is one of many signals we weigh.
- This is a permanent record of the scan run on June 28, 2026. The verdict and evidence above reflect that scan and do not change on their own. If circumstances around research-polls.com have changed, MalwareTips staff can run a fresh scan, which re-runs every check from scratch and publishes an updated report.
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