The Iyovia pyramid scheme has collapsed.

No public announcement has been made but on May 15th, Iyovia quietly emailed promoters to advise MLM operations would be terminated on May 23rd. [Continue reading…]

Iyovia has received a pyramid fraud warning from Bolivia’s Autoridad de Supervision del Sistema Financiero (ASFI). [Continue reading…]

Apertum has launched a SportsFuture “staking” investment scheme spinoff.

SportsFuture solicits investment in its SFUT token. SFUT was created through Apertum with a few button clicks.

Once invested in, SFUT is parked with SportsFuture on the promise of passive returns.

SFUT is the native token of the SportsFuture ecosystem. It enables participation in governance decisions, staking for rewards, direct funding of athletes, and access to premium features.

Specific staking ROI rates and investment tiers have yet to be announced.

As per a May 19th post on SportsFuture’s official Telegram group; [Continue reading…]

Suspected money launderer Christopher Scanlon has had his indictment dismissed.

Scanlon was arrested back in 2023. Following failed plea negotiations, Scanlon was then indicted back in March.

As per an amended order for dismissal filed on April 30th; [Continue reading…]

The Kolkata Directorate of Enforcement (ED), has made a number of seizures following raids on May 16th.

As reported by the ED on May 20th, raids were connected to an ongoing criminal case targeting TM Traders & M/s KK Traders. These entities are cited as alter-egos of iX Global and TP Global FX. [Continue reading…]

Nextera Quantitative fails to provide ownership or executive information on its website.

Nextera Quantitative’s website domain (“cryptocurrencybrain.vip”), was registered with bogus detail son April 3rd, 2025.

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…]

Side Hustle Income fails to provide ownership or executive information on its website.

Side Hustle Income’s website domain (“sidehustleincome.net”), was registered in March 2023. The private registration was last updated on March 18th, 2025.

In the FAQ section of Side Hustle Income’s website an email address corresponding with “Mountain Marketing” is provided:

Mountain Marketing publishes a monthly magazine called “Side Hustle Guru Magazine”. In the magazine Dawn Kathryn Lander is cited as Mountain Marketing’s owner and publisher.

It follows that Dawn Lander thus also owns and operates Side Hustle Income.

In the same cited magazine, Mountain Marketing’s corporate address is a PO Box in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Through Mountain Marketing, Lander appears to have promoted numerous mail fraud schemes over the past few years.

FAB50, one collapsed scheme circa 2019, is a classic mail fraud gifting scheme:

Side Hustle Income is probably more of the same but, to be sure, read on for a full review of the Side Hustle Income MLM opportunity.

[Continue reading…]

Josip Heit has been ordered to attend an upcoming Texas hearing in person. [Continue reading…]

DP Quant AI fails to provide ownership or executive information on its website.

DP Quant AI’s website domain (“dpquantplatform.com”), was privately registered on April 30th, 2025.

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…]

Cirrus Networks fails to provide ownership or executive information on its website.

Cirrus Network’s website domain (“cirrusnetworks.io”), was privately registered on July 18th, 2024.

In Cirrus Networks’ compensation documentation, we find reference to “Gnodi”;

The Cirrus Networks Cloud-9 Compensation Plan is crafted to recognize and reward the efforts of our Affiliates and Associates in empowering individuals to embrace the Gnodi Decentralized Ecosystem.

Further research reveals Juuva pitching itself as “a marketing arm of the Gnodi Blockchain”:

Juuva is a dietary supplement MLM company run by co-founders Grant Pace and Frankie Kiow.

In BehindMLM’s 2020 Juuva review, we found kooky products combined with a recruitment focused compensation plan.

Juuva’s Grant Pace is at the center of Juuva’s Gnodi marketing:

Juuva’s Gnodi marketing website is hosted on the domain “juuvagnodi.com”, privately registered on February 14th, 2025.

On Juuva’s Gnodi marketing website we find a video titled, “Interview – Founding Visionary of the Gnodi Blockchain”.

In the video Craig R. Pickering is presented as Gnodi’s founder:

This tracks with Pickering filing a US trademark application for Gnodi in October 2024:

With this information I was able to confirm Pickering is also the CEO of Cirrus Networks:

Pickering is best known in the MLM industry for defrauding consumers through iMall in the 1990s.

Pickering and business partner Mark R. Comer settled iMall fraud allegations brought by the FTC in April 1999.

Internet commerce site iMall and two former principals have agreed to pay $4 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that they made false earnings claims for Internet-based businesses they promoted and that they violated the Franchise Rule.

Craig R. Pickering and Mark R. Comer, two past presidents of iMall, also would be barred for life from selling any Internet or pay-per-call business opportunity; barred for 10 years from selling franchises; required to post a $500,000 bond before selling certain types of business opportunities; and barred from violating the Franchise Rule.

iMall will pay $750,000 and Pickering and Comer will pay a total of $3.25 million in consumer redress.

iMall would be permanently barred from violations of the Franchise Rule and from misrepresenting material facts about any business opportunity it promotes.

The iMall Opportunity Program offered investors the opportunity to become “consultants” and make money selling webpages on the iMall site.

The Internet Yellow Pages (IYP) program offered investors the opportunity to make money selling advertising space on the IYP website contained within the iMall site.

Typically, the seminar presentations claimed that for a $2,995 fee and as little as five to 10 hours investment a week, iMall consultants could make between $2,000 and $20,000 a month.

Potential IYP investors were told that for a $2,000 investment and a five to 10 hour commitment a month, they could earn between $2,000 and $5,000.

According to the FTC, the earnings claims were false and misleading in violation of federal laws.

“A deceptive claim is a deceptive claim, whether it’s on the Internet or in your local newspaper,” said Jodie Bernstein, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.

“This case sends two important messages: Marketers, back up your earnings claims. It’s the law. Consumers, don’t buy a pig in a poke. Check out business opportunities to make sure they’re everything they claim to be.”

We learn more about Pickering in a 2021 KwikClick SEC filing;

Craig Pickering is an affiliate of the Company through indirect ownership of 16,668,035 shares of our common stock which constitutes 14.38% of our outstanding stock.

For at least the past 20 years, Mr. Pickering is a self-employed angel investor and business consultant.

For several years between 2012 and 2018, Mr. Pickering served as the Company’s CEO.

Mr. Pickering served on the Company’s board of directors until June 10, 2020 when he resigned from the board in connection with the Company’s acquisition of KwikClick, LLC. Mr. Pickering was closely involved with the acquisition of KwikClick, LLC.

Mr. Pickering was closely involved in the founding of Ariix International in 2011.

Ariix was a dietary supplement company that was sold to NewAge Beverages in 2020.

NewAge filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September 2022. KwikClick was at the center of sabotage and extortion allegations by NewAge’s then Chief Restructuring Officer.

Pickering wasn’t a named defendant in legal proceedings initiated against NewAge executives in 2023.

In addition to Pickering, other Cirrus Networks executives include Bob Steed (CMO), Craig Smith (COO), Dewey Mackay (CFO), Cat Bonhar (Advisory Board, Compliance) and David Hunt (Advisory Board, Legal).

In 2019 a BehindMLM reader tied Craig Pickering to Ormeus Global founder John Barksdale.

I wasn’t able to verify a direct connection between Pickering, Barksdale and Ormeus Global, so I wasn’t going to mention it.

Bob Steed, Cirrus Networks’ CMO, however was Ormeus Global’s Chief Mining Consultant:

Ormeus Global was a $124 million plus MLM crypto Ponzi built around Ormeus Coin (ORME).

Barksdale was indicted on Ormeus Global fraud charges in March 2022. The SEC filed civil Ormeus Global fraud charges against Barksdale the same month.

As of May 2025, Barksdale remains a wanted fugitive hiding out in Dubai.

Prior to US authorities going after Barksdale, Bob Steed’s name came up in a report to Thai police in 2019. The report led to Barksdale’s detainment and subsequent fleeing to Dubai.

This is from the description of a Cirrus Networks marketing video;

Mr. Pickering, Bob Steed and a few partners put together one of the largest bitcoin mining operations in the world.

We know Steed was heavily involved in the marketing side of Ormeus Global. How deep Pickering was involved has not been publicly disclosed.

If a BehindMLM reader brought up Pickering’s Ormeus Global involvement in 2019 however, it appears the information is out there.

Other than Dewey Mackay being tied to Ariix, I didn’t find anything of particular interest with the rest of Cirrus Networks’ executives.

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…]