Despite the following message appearing on the Private Access Online website:

There are 5 things most people believe are important pieces of the puzzle when you look for a home based business.

1. Owner’s

There is no information on the website indicating who owns or runs the business.

This is somewhat worrying, considering Private Access Online affiliates are required to submit their

street address, Social Security Number (if US), date of birth and a copy of a Government Issued ID.

The Private Access Online website domain (“privateaccessonline.com”) was registered on the 10th of May 2015, with a “Jennifer Rodgers” of “Airline Promotions Inc.” listed as the owner. An address in Florida is also provided.

At the time of publication, Rodgers is listed as the “General Manager”on Airline Promotions Inc.’s Better Business Bureau profile page.

The address used to register the Private Access Online domain is present on the company’s website in the FAQ section:

The same address also pops up on a page advertising something called “Global1Entertainment Hotel & Resort Savings”:

Global1Entertainment launched mid last year and offered affiliates investment options in a token-based Ponzi scheme.

Global1Entertainment itself was a reboot of Infinity2Global, the initial failed attempt at the business model.

Last we heard Global1Entertainment was under FBI investigation, but as of yet nothing concrete has materialized.

There’s mention of “Global1Entertainment Escapes” on the Global1Entertainment website, but nothing specifically about Global1Entertainment Hotel and Resort Savings.

Whether or not Private Access Online is being run by Airline Promotions Inc. (who control the domain) or Global1Entertainment (who share the same address) is unclear.

As always, if an MLM company is not openly upfront about who is running or owns it, think long and hard about joining and/or handing over any money. [Continue reading…]

As per a fake news video featured on the BeOnPush website, BeOnPush is purportedly a “UK and Luxembourg based company”.

Luxembourg is a known tax-haven and registration in the UK requires little more than a fee and a UK-based address on paper.

No address in the UK is provided on the BeOnPush website, with a search of the Luxembourg address bringing up a number of businesses using it.

This is typical of rented virtual mailboxes, which is probably also the case in the UK.

Identified as CEO of BeOnPush in the video is a “Ferki Demirovski” (right).

On his Facebook profile Demirovski lists his location as Brussels, Belgium. Rather than the UK or Luxembourg, this is likely where BeOnPush is being operated out of.

I wasn’t able to dig up a concrete MLM history for Demirovski, but according to his LinkedIn profile he’s been a Macedonian political adviser, runs his own consulting firm and performed political analysis for the EU.

Demirovski took up his CEO position with BeOnPush in August and is presumably also the owner of the company.

Read on for a full review of the BeOnPush MLM business opportunity. [Continue reading…]

As per the uFlip website:

UFlip is a company officially launched in August 2015.

The registered office of the Company and the operational office is located in Montreal, Canada.

Unfortunately that is the only information about the company provided, with there being nothing further as to who owns or runs the business.

The uFlip website domain (“uflip.ca”) was registered on the 17th of July 2015, however the domain registration is set to private.

As always, if an MLM company is not openly upfront about who is running or owns it, think long and hard about joining and/or handing over any money. [Continue reading…]

The battle between Zeek victims and those who stole $1000 or more from them inches closer to resolution, following a proposal to appoint legal counsel.

If approved, Zeek Rewards $1000 or more in winnings net-winner class will be represented by Kevin Edmunson. Edmunson was representing Aaron and Shara Andrews, Rhonda Gates and Innovation Marketing LLC – all Zeek Rewards net-winners. [Continue reading…]

Lyconet are gearing up to release what they’re calling “Customer Cloud” in Europe.

The basic idea is that “organizations” sign up to Lyoness and in turn sign up shoppers (typically members of the organization).

Through Lyconet’s “Cloud Sponsor” program, shopping points generated by the shopping activity of these members are allocated to Lyconet Premium affiliates.

The Customer Cloud in itself isn’t a problem, but qualification for shares in the Cloud Sponsor program do raise unregistered securities concerns. [Continue reading…]

Following court-approval to establish a victim claims process, news from the WCM777 Receiver that a claim portal has been established.

This means that those who lost funds in WCM777 can file a claim against their losses. [Continue reading…]

In direct response to Vemma’s raised objections to a preliminary injunction being granted next Tuesday, the FTC filed an “omnibus reply” late Friday.

In their reply the FTC cover the reclassification of affiliates as customers, the focus of the Vemma business opportunity, pay to play concerns within the Vemma compensation plan, the failure of Vemma’s anti-pyramid compliance policies, deceptive income claims and “woefully inadequate” disclosures.

Below you’ll find each of the FTC’s responses, along with my own commentary. [Continue reading…]

At the core of the FTC’s pyramids scheme case against Vemma is the issue of a lack of significant retail activity, along with deceptive income claims.

Thus it was surprising that one of the first moves we saw Vemma’s attorney’s make, was to solicit affidavits from the general public.

To this day I don’t know what they have to do with demonstrating Vemma has significant retail activity, or that the income claims they made weren’t deceptive.

(Vemma) suggest that because they have some satisfied consumers, they cannot be found to have violated Section 5 of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. § 45(a).

However, several federal cases have held that the existence of “satisfied” customers is not a defense under the FTC Act.

Turns out neither do the FTC… [Continue reading…]

Income Disclosure Statements have become somewhat of a joke these last few years.

Rather than present the general public with an accurate snapshot of the business, MLM companies instead seek to manipulate the data such that they exclude as many affiliates as possible.

Here’s Lyoness doing it in 2012 and Empower Network and Herbalife in 2013. They’re hardly the only ones mind, with the practice now fully entrenched across the board.

So why are MLM companies manipulating the data to exclude affiliates?

The reason is to downplay affiliate losses and artificially bump up retail sales revenue. At the most egregious end of the manipulation scale, companies like Vemma even go so far as to reclassify affiliates who haven’t recruited affiliates as retail customers.

This despite said affiliates signing an affiliate agreement that makes them part of the income opportunity.

Enter the FTC, who are looking to put an end to MLM Income Disclosure Statement deception. [Continue reading…]

Founded in 2004, WellStar is based out of Germany and headed up by Founder and CEO, Christian Weisner.

Utilizing his vast specific expertise, Christian founded WellStar in 2004 and has been heading the company since then as CEO and Chief Strategist.

Kari Wahlroos joined WellStar in 2014. Rising to the rank of Crown Ambassador and frequently cited as a “top leader” of WellStar, Wahlroos recently departed the company.

That prompted Weisner to turn around and accused Wahlroos of “criminal behaviour”. [Continue reading…]