Why am I getting so many spam invites on LinkedIn?

Over the last few days I've received several LinkedIn requests that don't look real. Typically they are from "people" with the title of Research Associate  or something similar. When I view the profile there is almost nothing there. However, they usually have at least one other connection with someone in my network. Here are a few examples -- I've left off the connections we have in common so as not to embarrass anyone who's blindly accepting LinkedIn invites. My best guess is this is some sort of spam or phishing attempt. I've been reporting these profiles to LinkedIn but so far no acknowledgment from them and no way to connect with them by phone.Anyone else seeing this? Leave a comment or tweet to @HealthBizBlog.

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By healthcare business consultant David E. Williams, president of Health Business Group.