PatrickPretty.com

Tag: ADV4U

  • FRIDAY HYIP ODDITIES: (1) Spammer Swipes PP Blog Graphic, Uses It In Bid To Promote LibertyReserve; (2) Other Spammers Target JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid Threads; (3) ‘MoneyMakingBrain’ Calls Blog ‘BIG Idiot’ And ‘Deceptive Unethical Lowlife’

    Here is an imponderable: Is there any ceiling to the absurdities in the HYIP sphere and the destructive force it exercises around the web?

    On Wednesday, the PP Blog received repeated spams from U.S.-based IPs. The spammer used the handle “invest liberty reserve” and targeted two threads, including this one about JSS Tripler 2, a purported “program” that purportedly based its name on JSS Tripler. JSS Tripler is a purported element of JustBeenPaid, an “opportunity” purportedly operated by Frederick Mann that claims it pays a return of 60 percent a month.

    Liberty Reserve is an “offshore” payment processor favored by HYIP schemes, including JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid. Wednesday’s spam bids used purported email addresses at AOL and Hotmail.

    One of the Wednesday spams featured a graphic swiped from PonziNews, once a sister site to the PP Blog. The spammer attempted to use the stolen graphic in his posting bid on the PP Blog.

    It was not the first time the Blog’s graphics had been used in a nefarious way online. On Dec. 12, 2010 — in commemoration of its 1,000th post — the PP Blog recounted a July 2010 story that its Breaking News graphic had been swiped and placed inside a promotion for Data Network Affiliates.

    DNA was a scam associated with huckster Phil Piccolo. The “opportunity”  traded on the names of Oprah Winfrey and Donald Trump and advertised a nonexistent cell-phone plan of unlimited talk and text for $10 a month, an offshore “resorts” scheme and a “mortgage-reduction” scheme — all while tying itself to Christianity, the  U.S. AMBER Alert system of locating abducted children and a purported bid to end world poverty.

    It’s worth noting that some JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid promoters also traded on Winfrey’s name.

    In the same December 2010 commemoration post, the Blog reported that Janet Napolitano, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, had been called names that would peel paint when DHS announced that Walmart had joined the “If you see something, say something” terrorism-awareness campaign. Meanwhile, the Blog reported that some online-fraud schemes had evolved to victimize participants by the tens of thousands — numbers America’s largest sports stadiums could not accommodate.

    The PP Blog no longer owns the PonziNews domain. The Blog suspended publication of the site in 2010, after thieves who used international IPs stole the domain’s content verbatim and posted it on other sites they controlled that had a higher Page Rank than Ponzi News.

    In short, the net effect of the theft was that the PP Blog was being used to create “free” content for thieves who intercepted the traffic of PonziNews. Such piracy schemes are hurting the publishing industry.

    In a separate spam bid on Wednesday, a would-be poster suggesting he represented an HYIP ranking site targeted this PP Blog thread on strange claims associated with “MoneyMakingBrain” in the context of JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid.

    The would-be poster purporting to represent the HYIP ranking site complained that the Blog had used the term “HYIP” in the linked story above “21 times” without explaining the meaning of the term.

    “Nice writing job!” the would-be poster jabbed. He provided no comment on the substance of the story.

    On RealScam.com yesterday, “MoneyMakingBrain” — who’d emailed threats repeatedly to the PP Blog on Feb. 29 — described the Blog as a “BIG idiot,” a “chicken,” a “deceptive unethical lowlife,” the user of “NONFACTUAL” sources and other names.

    Because of the emailed threats and “MoneyMakingBrain’s” subsequent ban from the PP Blog, the Blog will not engage with MoneyMakingBrain on RealScam.com, an antiscam forum that concerns itself with mass-marketing fraud and occasionally has been subjected itself to threats and menacing communications.

    “MoneyMakingBrain” has advanced various conspiracy theories about RealScam.com, the PP Blog and and some of their common posters.

    What he has not done is explain what his purported “due diligence” into the JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid “program” entailed or how purported operator Frederick Mann could pay an annualized return between 48 and 73 times higher than the purported “returns” of Bernard Madoff.

    Yesterday on RealScam, “MoneyMakingBrain” asserted that he has “recently read [about the PP Blog] on some scams forum, that he is a very deceptive reporter, well, that doesn’t surprise the MMB at all.”

    It is possible that “MoneyMakingBrain” is referring to this September 2009 thread on Scam.com. The thread was started by a PP Blog poster known as “little joe” who’d been banned for harassment. The poster, who later was banned from Scam.com, claimed the PP Blog would be “scrambling to put out fires” from multiple IPs.

    The threats and intimidation campaign from “little joe” began after the summer 2009 collapses of AdViewGlobal (AVG) and Ad-Ventures4U (ADV4U), both of which claimed an ability to provide preposterous returns in the wake of the government seizure of tens of millions of dollars in the AdSurfDaily Ponzi case.

    Frederick Mann, the purported operator of JSS Tripler/JustBeenPaid, has described himself as a promoter for both ASD and ADV4U.

    On Aug. 18, 2009, antiscam commentators on the PP Blog were called “idiots” and the PP Blog itself was asked by an ADV4U promoter whether the author was a “fag.” After launching his ad hominem attacks against the PP Blog and its posters, the ADv4U pitchman asserted he was a  longtime businessman and that criticism about ADV4U on the PP Blog was about “as unprofessional as it gets people.”

    “I’m out of here.You bunch of idiots make me sick!!!” the poster railed.

    ADV4U ceased member payouts about 10 days later.

    Less than a year later — in May 2010 — Professor James Byrne, an expert hired by the U.S. government to assess the alleged HYIP Ponzi scheme of Nicholas Smirnow of Pathway To Prosperity — observed that HYIPs were not “noted for their internal consistency.”

    One of the inconsistencies that became part of the ADV4U story was the assertion by the “defender” that he was a longtime, professional businessman — while the same “defender” asked the PP Blog if he was a “fag” and declared ADV4U critics who questioned a purported payout rate of 1 percent a day “idiots.”

    Both assertions occurred a year after the U.S. Secret Service brought Ponzi allegations against ASD, whose payout scheme was similar to ADV4U’s.

     

  • PARTIAL LIST: Gold Nugget Invest (GNI) Just Latest Failed Scheme Promoted By AdSurfDaily Members; One Program After Another Pushed By Promoters Has Collapsed

    EDITOR’S NOTE: This list summarizes several programs pushed by members of AdSurfDaily, a Florida company implicated in an alleged $100 million Ponzi scheme. In some cases, the programs were pushed prior to the seizure by the U.S. Secret Service in August 2008 of 15 bank accounts linked to ASD or Golden Panda Ad Builder, one of the companies implicated in the ASD scheme. Each of the programs listed below came to a dubious end or continue to exist in an unclear, shadowy form. This list is presented in no particular order and does not include every HYIP/autosurf pitched by ASD members.

    UPDATED 3:16 P.M. ET (U.S.A.)

    Gold Nugget Invest (GNI): Collapsed Friday. HYIP. Government of Belize issued warning in November. Ownership hidden behind proxy. Business model unclear. Presented as betting arbitrage, but perhaps was involved in forex. Advertised payout of 7.5 percent per week. Possibly linked to European banking investigation. Changed rules on the fly. Still collecting money after “Re-organization.” Purportedly launched in October 2006, the same month ASD was preparing for launch.

    Genius Funds/Cash Tanker/Saza Investments: Pushed by ASD member “joe” in a post on the ProASD Surf’s Up forum just prior to collapse of GNI. CashTanker, which used a graphic depicting Jesus, now has tanked after advertising payouts of 2 percent a day. “joe” pitched GNI, Genius Funds, Cash Tanker and Saza Investments in an egg-themed promotion in which the word “egg” was used in domain names that redirected to the HYIPs. “joe’s” egg-themed domain that redirected to Cash Tanker now redirects to a program called PTV Partner, an HYIP that bills itself “The Ultimate High Yield Asset for your Financial Portfolio!” “joe’s” egg-themed pitch was based on the screaming notion that “ALL MY EGGS ARE NOT IN ONE BASKET. I MAKE $2000.00 A WEEK.” A street address for the egg-themed domains corresponds to an address in a federal lawsuit involving cell-phone trafficking.

    Regenesis 2×2: Matrix in Seattle area. Records seized by U.S. Secret Service in July 2009. Operators kept under surveillance for five weeks. Multiple search warrants issued. Discarded records found in Dumpster. Sold “commission centers” for $325. Touted itself the “THE ECONOMIC STIMULUS PLAN FOR YOU.” Site appears to have been registered behind a proxy in Europe. Jeffrey William Snyder, one of the individuals kept under surveillance, was a convicted felon on probation for a previous securities scheme.

    GoldenPandaAdBuilder: So-called “Chinese” version of ASD. Assets seized in two forfeiture complaints in ASD case. Operated by Clarence Busby of Georgia. Records in now-dismissed RICO lawsuit against Busby identified him as “Rev.” at least 120 times. Busby was implicated by SEC in 1990s in three prime-bank schemes that promised enormous payouts. Purportedly became Golden Panda president after going fishing with ASD President Andy Bowdoin in April 2008. Federal judge ordered forfeiture of more than $14 million from Golden Panda in July 2009. Busby now purported “chief consultant” of BizAdSplash (BAS). Ceased payouts in July 2009, after declaring “crisis” and claiming members were overpaid. Went offline. Returned online. Went offline again for about two weeks during 2009 Holiday season. Now back online.

    BizAdSplash (BAS): (Also see GoldenPanda entry above.) BAS launched in aftermath of seizure of assets in ASD/GoldenPanda case. Assets seized in civil complaints in ASD/GoldenPanda case total about $80.52 million. Clarence Busby purported to be chief consultant of BAS. BAS touted purported offshore registration in Panama. Georgia corporation records show version of surf’s name used address of UPS Store No. 2644 in Kennesaw, Ga.

    Noobing: Pitched as alternative to ASD after seizure. Noobing targeted deaf people. Deaf member says she reported Noobing to FBI and sheriff’s department in California. There are recent suggestions that deaf members also reported Noobing to SEC. FTC and attorneys general of Minnesota, Kansas and North Carolina joined in suing Affiliate Strategies Inc. (ASI), Noobing’s parent company, in alleged scheme offering guaranteed government grants from economic stimulus funds. Illinois now has joined the FTC action. Original lawsuit filed in July 2009. Like ASD, ASI owned a jet ski. Court-appointed receiver sold it at auction. Receiver performed a preliminary exam of Noobing’s records and determined surf was upside down by approximately $550,000. Noobing gathered money in aftermath of seizure of ASD’s bank accounts. Surf slashed payouts in early 2009, citing unclear ruling in ASD case. Site offline since FTC lawsuit, which did not name Noobing.

    DailyProSurf (DPS): DPS is a largely unknown and mysterious surf site registered by ASD President Andy Bowdoin in August 2006, about two months prior to the formal birth of ASD. Records suggest DPS operated prior to registration, although its ownership was unclear. (NOTE: The story in the DPS link in this paragraph also contains information on 12DailyPro and PhoenixSurf, two surfs sued successfully by the SEC.)

    AdVentures4U (ADV4U): Surf tanked in August 2009. Reportedly had more than 60,000 members. Members identified Steve R. Smith as owner. Smith also purported owner of venture called TradingGold4Cash. In confusing note to ADV4U members, Smith purportedly said his family received threats. Used ASD-like “rebates aren’t guaranteed” excuse upon payout suspension. Urged members not to contact payment processors. Site reportedly conducted business with hotmail address.

    CEP: Judicially declared Ponzi scheme. Smashed by SEC. ASD once advertised it accepted funds through CEP Trust, the payment processor associated with the CEP Ponzi scheme.

    MegaLido: Pushed by ASD members in aftermath of seizure of ASD’s assets and positioned as a safe, “offshore” alternative, MegaLido tanked late in 2008, during the Christmas season, a few months after the ASD seizure. MegaLido purportedly had 27,000 members. MegaLido might have had a tie to Instant2U, another surf that tanked during the 2008 Holiday season. “MegaLido Rocks!” one ASD promoter blared, noting excitedly that it paid 12 percent a day and “It’s Offshore!” Instant2U advertised 14 percent a day.

    Frogress: Pitched by ASD members in aftermath of seizure. Frogress tanked in January 2009, just after the Christmas holiday in 2008.

    DailyProfitPond: Another surf pitched by ASD members in aftermath of seizure. DailyProfitPond tanked in December 2008, in the days leading up to Christmas. One DailyProfitPond promoter said it was possible to start with $12 and turn it into $12,000. The “return” was listed as 150 percent over 30 days.

    AdViewGlobal (AVG or AVGA): Surf with ASD/Bowdoin ties. Formally debuted in February 2009, with a push from the now-defunct Pro-ASD Surf’s Up forum and ASD members. Tanked in June 2009 after collecting untold millions of dollars.

    Perhaps one of the most bizarre autosurfs ever to enter the “industry.” Switched to “private association” structure after reportedly meeting with felon convicted in a 1990s securities scheme. Cited U.S. Constitutional protection despite purported headquarters in Uruguay.

    AVG disclaimed any ties to ASD, despite fact its CEO was a former ASD executive who submitted a sworn affidavit in the ASD case. Issued news release disclaiming ASD ties; release was signed by an ASD employee who had testified in federal court for ASD in 2008. Said the fact AVG’s graphics appeared on ASD-controlled website was “operational coincidence.”

    Announced bank account “suspension” in March 2009, blaming it on members who wired too many transactions in excess of $9,500. Announced CEO resignation, saying CEO would remain in “accounting” department. Announced new wire facility as done deal in May 2009. Company it identified as wire facilitator issued public denial, suggesting AVG was trying to funnel money to itself through a shell company.

    Shell company operated by man with two large bankruptcy filings, including one in which an address listed as an apartment was the address of a mail drop. Purported AVG “compliance” department head was sued twice in 2008 for noncompliance with federal law. AVG claimed to own eWalletPlus payment processor. Actual eWalletPlus ownership far from clear. At least two people close to AVG money had spectacular bankruptcy filings. Andy Bowdoin, whom members later said was AVG’s silent head, was arrested for felony securities violations in the 1990s and entered guilty pleas.

    AdGateWorld (AGW): Now-defunct surf launched after ASD seizure. Later purportedly sold to interests in the “Middle East.” Claims cannot be verified. AGW linked to ASD member Jack Schrold, a Florida attorney once suspended from the Florida bar for misconduct. Schrold was sued successfully by the FTC for the actions of his credit-repair firm, and also was convicted separately of knowledge of the commission of conspiracy and wire-fraud. AGW announced its death as “End of Dream.” Blamed members in announcement: “This honest and legitimate approach using the advertising rebate model apparently did not meet the expectations of the herd mentality.”

    PaperlessAccess: Mysterious upstart surf. ASD President Andy Bowdoin appeared in a video for Paperless Access in 2009, after the ASD seizure. Video appeared online in March 2009 — during time frame in which AVG was announcing bank-account suspension and the departure of its CEO. PaperlessAccess positioned as way for ASD members to regain money seized by the government. Bowdoin did not identify the owners of Paperless Access, describing them only as a small group of people. Nor did Bowdoin mention that the government was establishing an ASD refund program.

    PremiumAdsClub (PAC): Tanked in February 2009. Members said it collected money right up to the end.

    AggeroInvestment: Had PAC ties. Advertised 60 percent a month, plus bonuses. Collected money to the bitter end.

    QBusinessSolution: Surf with purported ties to former ASD executive Juan Fernandez, who took the 5th Amendment in the ASD forfeiture case. # # #

  • PP HOLIDAY READING: AdViewGlobal Stories Dominated Reader Interest In 2009; ASDMBA And ADV4U Coverage, Bowdoin Proffer, Guest Columnists Commanded Attention

    PPtop10UPDATED 1:25 P.M. ET (U.S.A.) AdViewGlobal-related stories comprised eight of the 10 “Most Popular” posts on the PatrickPretty.com Blog in 2009, as determined by a software scoring system that measures a range of data. The result suggests that readers were intensely interested in coverage of the controversial autosurf.

    The finding also suggests that AVG members were worried about the future of AVG and their participation in it. At the same time, the data suggest that AVG members were turning to the PP Blog to monitor AVG developments because they were not satisfied with the information provided by AVG and sought a “Big Picture” analysis, as opposed to relying exclusively on AVG to form their opinions.

    AVG-related stories and conversations dominated reader interest, largely beginning in the second quarter of the year. The most popular PP story of 2009 — weighing a range of factors beyond the single metric of post views — was an AVG story published June 3, under the headline, “AdViewGlobal Promoter Says Prospects Can Bypass Company And Purchase Ad-Packs Directly From Sponsors To Ensure They Get Credited With 200 Percent Match Before Deadline.”

    The June 3 story, however, was not the PP story that attracted the most readers, using “Single Post Views” as the only factor weighed by the software. That honor, if it can be called that, belonged to a March 24 post titled, “BREAKING NEWS: AVG Loses Banking Privileges.”

    The only two posts in the “overall” Top 10 — as weighed by several factors — that were not largely or exclusively about AVG were an April 18 column by guest writer Roxy Lewis and an Aug. 28 article about a claim by the AdVentures4U (ADV4U) autosurf that it was suspending cashouts amid reports that its purported owner, Steve Smith, had been threatened.

    Lewis’ column, titled “GUEST COLUMNIST: ‘Shocked’ And ‘Scared’ To See Her Name In Friedman Lawsuit Paperwork; Says She Was Told To ‘Examine Your Finances’; Sees Move By Dallas Lawyer As ‘Intimidation Tactic’ And Says She Won’t ‘Roll Over’ — was the 9th Most Popular post overall, as weighed by several factors.

    PatrickPretty.com has published 521 posts in the past year.

    In the Lewis guest column, the self-described member of the AARP generation told her story about various email interactions concerning her attempt to get a refund for her contribution to ASDMBA, an organization whose de facto head is ASD story mainstay Bob Guenther. Some ASDMBA members complained about obnoxious behavior by Guenther in their interactions with him, saying ASDMBA provided accounting that was less than transparent and bullied members who questioned its operation.

    ADV4U’s announcement, meanwhile, put the Ponzi forums in an uproar — and provided yet another compelling example of the “wink-nod” nature of autosurfs. On one hand, people throw money at the surfs to collect surfing “earnings” and sales commissions, and deny they are illegal. On the other hand, they become paranoid when a surf begins to show signs of trouble and then demand refunds or flock to Ponzi forums to complain, even though no autosurf has ever passed the test of time and demonstrated legality and mathematical sustainability.

    The story about the ADV4U announcement was the 2nd Most Popular Post, as weighed by several factors. Because ADV4U was known to be popular among members of AVG and AdSurfDaily — and because autosurfs in general are known to have common promoters — the data suggest that many people raced from one autosurf disaster to another in 2009.

    In the bizarre world of the autosurf, the people who entice others into joining one disaster after another — and pocket commissions for doing so — are known as the “leaders.”

    The Top 10 ‘Overall’ Posts As Measured By A Range Of Factors

    Here, in reverse order of popularity, is a list of the Top 10 Overall Posts on the PP Blog since December 2008, as measured by a range of factors, as opposed to the lone one of “Single Post Views.” To give you an idea of how the software works, consider that Tiger Woods may not lead the PGA Tour in all statistical categories, but may be the “overall” statistical leader when a range of variables are considered and averaged. Readers should view these results as a somewhat reliable estimate, as opposed to a scientifically pure one.

    No. 10: (July 1, 2009): AdViewGlobal Withdraws Announcement Of New Payment Plan; Initial Announcement Baffled Members

    No. 9: (April 18, 2009): GUEST COLUMNIST: ‘Shocked’ And ‘Scared’ To See Her Name In Friedman Lawsuit Paperwork; Says She Was Told To ‘Examine Your Finances’; Sees Move By Dallas Lawyer As ‘Intimidation Tactic’ And Says She Won’t ‘Roll Over’

    No. 8: (Aug. 5, 2009): DID SURF FIRM JUST MAKE HISTORY? AdViewGlobal Says It Filed State, Federal Complaints About $2.7 Million Theft; Surf Wants New CFO, Compliance Officer, Department Managers; Asks Members To Keep Surfing

    No: 7: (June 25, 2009): AdViewGlobal ‘Surf’ Firm Suspends Member Cash-Outs, Threatens Media With Copyright-Infringement Lawsuits

    No: 6: (July 10, 2009): AdViewGlobal’s June 1 News Release Had Typo That Directed Traffic Away From Website Firm Was Showcasing

    No. 5: (Aug. 7, 2009): And The Ponzis Will Die As One . . .

    No. 4: (June 30, 2009): BREAKING NEWS: AdViewGlobal Cited As Extension Of AdSurfDaily In RICO Complaint Against Andy Bowdoin

    No. 3: (June 23, 2009): Members Say AdViewGlobal Problems Are Mounting

    No. 2: (Aug. 28, 2009): BREAKING NEWS: AdVentures4U, New Darling Of Surf World, Says It Was Threatened; Note Says Cashouts Will Be Suspended Soon And Members Will Have To Make Do With Their ‘Advertising’ Purchases; Ponzi Forums In Uproar

    No. 1: (June 3, 2009): AdViewGlobal Promoter Says Prospects Can Bypass Company And Purchase Ad-Packs Directly From Sponsors To Ensure They Get Credited With 200 Percent Match Before Deadline

    ** Finishing just out of the Top 10 overall — in 11th Place — was this story about a dramatic announcement by the government in the AdSurfDaily Ponzi forfeiture case, published April 24, 2009: PROSECUTION BOMBSHELL: Bowdoin Signed Proffer Letter Prior To Submitting To Forfeiture And Told Investigators That Government’s Material Allegations Were ‘All True’

    *** No. 12 went to this post, published May 19, 2009: Patrick Pretty ‘Poof’ Penalty Plagues Portal Posters

    **** It is possible that the Bowdoin story now in 11th Place could eke its way into the Top 10 by the end of the year, as it currently is in a virtual tie for the No. 10 spot. Adjustments involving other stories also could occur.

    Sampling Of Top 10 Stories Scored By ‘Single Post Views’ Since December 2008

    No. 1: (March 24, 2009): BREAKING NEWS: AVG Loses Banking Privileges

    No. 2: (Sept. 23, 2009): WHO’S IN CHARGE? AdViewGlobal Surf Domain Now Resolves To GoDaddy; Registration Appears To Have Expired

    No. 6: (Dec. 13, 2008): Giant Wall Street ‘Ponzi Scheme’ Collapses; Potential Losses In Madoff Fraud Pegged at $50 Billion Amid ‘One Big Lie’

    No. 8: (Dec. 13, 2008): Two Friday Bank Failures Will Cost FDIC $212.5 Million

    No. 9: (Dec. 14, 2008): Judge Orders Freeze Of Madoff’s Assets; Investigators Will Try To Determine If Funds Were Co-Mingled In Ponzi Scheme

    No. 10: (Dec. 15, 2008): Madoff Victims Include Foundations, Business And Entertainment Icons, Mom And Pop

    ** Four of the other Top 10 stories measured by Post Views since December 2008 were updates instructing readers about our progress in switching to the WordPress publishing platform. It seems readers missed us when we were offline or down for maintenance. :-)

    *** The Most Popular Story in the past 90 days is this one, published on Sept. 30, 2009: ASD Mainstay Bob Guenther Lectures Federal Prosecutor, Says He’ll Call On ‘Political Connections’ To Embarrass Justice Department; Claims Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio Not Tough Enough On Crime

    **** The 2nd Most Popular Post in the past 90 days is this one, published on Oct. 1, 2009: Guenther Softens Comment That ‘Sheriff Joe’ Arpaio Was Soft On Crime; Says Recent Email Lecturing Veteran Federal Prosecutor Was Sent At Behest Of Crime Victims

    ***** The 3rd Most Popular Post in the past 90 days is this one, published on Oct. 12, 2009: Site That Used ASD’s Name And Made Odd Claims While Bowdoin Was Negotiating With Prosecutors Goes Offline

    ****** The 4th Most Popular Post in the past 90 days was this one, published on Oct. 14, 2009: EDITORIAL: Our Best Wishes To ‘Gomer Pyle,’ AUSA

    ******* The 5th Most Popular Post in the past 90 days was this one, published Sept. 29, 2009: OBSTRUCTION? ASD Spokeswoman Whose Name Appeared In Secret Service Filing Says She Instructed Members NOT To Fill Out Government Form; Now Appears To Be Advising Members To Clam Up If Contacted By Agents

    ******** This post, published on Sept. 28, 2009, is in a virtual tie for the 5th Most Popular Post in the past 90 days: BREAKING NEWS: Prosecutors Go Back To Court, Provide Judge Copy Of Transcript From Bowdoin’s Call Last Week

    ********* This Jan. 3, 2009, post by guest columnist “Entertained” scored very well overall for the year and finished in the Top 20 overall posts for the year: ‘Black Box’ Method Exposes ASD Sustainability Myth

    ********** This July 9, 2009, post by guest columnist Gregg Evans also scored very well overall for the year, finishing in the Top 30: GUEST COLUMN: Payment Processors That Give Refunds Unilaterally Help Surf ‘Industry’ Live To See Another Day

  • EDITORIAL: ‘Meanwhile, Andy Bowdoin Was Negotiating’

    Perhaps you’ve read that the AdVentures4U (ADV4U) autosurf suspended payouts on or about Aug. 28. The surf, which purports to be a professional communications firm, butchered its announcement message to such a degree that professional Ponzi promoters began to email their lists to explain what they thought ADV4U was saying.

    Perhaps the only thing not ambiguous was a plea to members not to contact the offshore payment processors. The processors had the ability to trap the money and cripple operations, meaning ADV4U would not be able to dictate the haircut members were about to receive and that all financial decisions would be placed in the hands of the processors.

    Trapping the money also meant that ADV4U also would not be able to get its hands on its own cash. Money needed to pay the bills could be trapped. So could money needed to carry out the master plan, irrespective of the fact members cannot say for certain what the master plan is. They can repeat GIGO only. Garbage comes in, and garbage goes out. Somehow it takes on a veneer of high truth.

    Third-party accounts from “insiders” or people who know other people “in the loop” are never high truth. All you need to do to test this theory is read the Pro-ASD Surf’s Up forum.

    Surf’s Up told you an insider with impeccable credentials knew for a fact that the government admitted behind closed doors that ASD was not a Ponzi scheme. The government then went out and mowed down ASD at an evidentiary hearing in which the prosecution did not call a single witness.

    So much for “insider” news.

    Not to be outdone, though, posters at Surf’s Up then wove the untrue tale that ASD was denied due process, that the government’s failure to call a witness at a hearing ASD specifically requested to present its evidence meant that it had no evidence. Over the months the untrue tale snowballed. It finally grew into a fantastically untrue tale in which the preposterous claim was made that the only reason Andy Bowdoin was not in jail and that Bernard Madoff was in jail is that the government had no evidence against Bowdoin. Zero. None.

    This claim was made despite the fact that Andy Bowdoin had acknowledged in his own court filings that ASD was operating illegally, had given statements acknowledging the government’s material allegations all were true and even had signed a proffer letter in the case.

    A few of Bowdoin’s most committed apologists then began to spin the fantastic tale that the rebirth of ASD might be only days away, that prosecutors had screwed up so royally that a federal judge issued an order commanding them to put up or shut up by Aug. 28.

    This claim was made despite the fact Bowdoin’s own attorney announced publicly that Bowdoin was negotiating with prosecutors. The prosecution hadn’t been ordered to do anything. In fact, Andy Bowdoin had been on the receiving end of an order to instruct the court in no uncertain terms how he intended to proceed.

    Still not to be undone, some ASD members spun the fantastic tale that:

    • The U.S. Government has failed to produce any EVIDENCE of alleged wrongdoing.
    • The U.S. Government has failed to produce any WITNESSES of alleged wrongdoing.
    • The U.S. Government has failed to produce any VICTIMS of alleged wrongdoing.
    • The action was based solely on the OPINIONS of the U. S. Government agents.

    Interesting choice of words — “has failed.” What’s most interesting of all is that a trial date has not even been set in the case. Why not? Because Andy Bowdoin submitted to the forfeiture in January, more than two weeks prior to the scheduling conference in the case. The scheduling conference was canceled because Bowdoin submitted to the forfeiture, meaning the case nearly was litigated to conclusion because Bowdoin had given up his claims to tens of millions of dollars seized in a wire-fraud, money-laundering and Ponzi scheme case in which it was alleged that ASD was selling unregistered securities.

    And he submitted to the forfeiture after signing a proffer letter and after telling the government that its material allegations were all true.

    It therefore follows that ASD members also were selling unregistered securities and, perhaps, becoming unwitting participants in a criminal enterprise. The case was brought as a conspiracy. About the only unknown right now is the true depths of criminality within the organization.

    The government plainly has acknowledged that there are thousands of victims. It announced a program to provide some degree of restitution after it had gathered all of the assets of the ASD enterprise, which very likely was hiding money in the individual accounts of co-conspirators as a hedge against the possibility that ASD was going to get caught.

    Ever see these words?

    “Don’t call it an investment. We can get in trouble for that.”

    Those are the words that demonstrate the conspiracy. They show consciousness of guilt, especially when uttered by veteran players. The newbies don’t understand it’s a wink-nod conspiracy. If they discover later that they’ve been drafted into a conspiracy of silence and accept wink-nod as their duty to the enterprise, then they, too, are co-conspirators.

    Various rebukes by the co-conspirators to the unknowing that they purchased “advertising” and that “rebates aren’t guaranteed” also are evidence of the conspiracy. What it really means is, “Don’t tell. All of us, including YOU, could get in trouble.”

    Which brings us back to ADV4U.

    It announced yesterday that payouts due yesterday to plenty of members would not arrive because somebody had blabbed to one of the offshore processors and the account was restricted.

    There were stinging rebukes posted in various online venues by various ADV4U members to the blabbers.

    Meanwhile, members said the compensation they had received from ADV4U via other offshore processors had amounted to only about 20 percent of their exposure to loss. They had been assured that they would be made whole and placed in profit — sort of. No one really knows what ADV4U is saying because the message is so mangled and because the purported owner’s words did not comport with what members were being told by customer service.

    Which brings us back to ASD.

    One of ASD’s purported customer-service reps also purportedly works for ADV4U. That, in itself, makes ADV4U downright dangerous.

    Meanwhile, the name of one of the 25 recent pro se filers in the ASD case who claimed “The U.S. Government has failed to produce any EVIDENCE of alleged wrongdoing” popped up in a Skype chat last night about the ADV4U debacle. If it was, in fact, the ASD filer, it means she also has money in ADV4U and did not want to see it go missing.

    If one looks at the transcript of the Skype chat, there is virtually no discussion about how disappointed members are about the prospect of losing their “advertising” outlet. Most of the discussion was about money and retrenchment plans of the same sort both ASD and AdViewGlobal had announced.

    Some members were angry that other members had the unmitigated gall actually to contact AlertPay and subject the entirety of the ADV4U membership group to a haircut. Only a handful of people know what is real and what is fiction in this incredibly toxic, incredibly tangled web.

    Meanwhile, Andy Bowdoin was negotiating with federal prosecutors.

  • BREAKING NEWS: AdVentures4U, New Darling Of Surf World, Says It Was Threatened; Note Says Cashouts Will Be Suspended Soon And Members Will Have To Make Do With Their ‘Advertising’ Purchases; Ponzi Forums In Uproar

    UPDATED 11:57 A.M. EDT (U.S.A.) There are widespread reports this morning that AdVentures4U (ADV4U), the new darling of the autosurf world, is suspending “revenue sharing” and that its owner was threatened.

    The reports come on the heels of various reports that the surf slashed payout rates and poured money into a gold-buying business known as TradingGold4Cash. ADV4U purportedly had more than 60,000 members and positioned itself as a “marketer’s dream.”

    These remarks were sent members today and were attributed to Steve Smith, the purported owner of AdVentures4U.

    Smith purportedly acknowledged that he put his family in danger by starting an autosurf.

    “We have been threatened and my family is more important to me than most will know,”  Smith purportedly said. “We Never (sic) ever said the revenue share was a set % and in order to move other income forward I made a decision that put my family in danger and I will not tolerate that.”

    “99% of the members understood where we were going but the small % that I am scared of I just cannot risk because we really are who we said we are and we really did intend to move us into the future,” Smith purportedly said. “We will not be answering scary support or answering the phone anymore until we have completed the cashout requests.”

    Smith purportedly urged members not to contact offshore payment processors to file complaints, saying any suspension of offshore accounts would result in members getting lower refunds.

    “We cannot control the Members so please give us to Aug 4th (sic?) to process all payments because if members complain to the payment proccessors (sic) and they Freeze our accounts we will not be liable for any of the cashouts and the Revenue Share monies will held by the payment processors and we will not have control and they will only pay a portion of the monies back to the members,” Smith purportedly said.

    It was not immediately clear why the message cited the Aug. 4 date — a date in the past.

    AdVentures4U purportedly conducted business with a Hotmail address. The gold site purportedly is a subsidiary.

    The ADV4U website appears still to be functional, although an audio message that once started up upon the loading of the page appears to have been disabled.