🚀 go-pugleaf

bd232@FreeNet.Carleton.CA (R. Findlay) wrote:

>Despite what the posters of "make money fast" that are making the rounds
>of the newsgroups may claim, these schemes *are* ILLEGAL (see below
>vis-a-vis Canada and the U.S.).  Don't participate, distribute or copy
>them!
>==========================================================================
You may be interested in the following that I have only recently come
across.  Unfortunately, it only pertains to the USA. One can only hope
that Industry Canada, RCMP and other agnecise can get together for a
day or few of fun surfing the Net:
================================================================
FOR 2 PM RELEASE, DECEMBER 12, 1996


    FEDERAL-STATE SURFING CATCHES A WAVE OF POTENTIAL INTERNET SCAMS

             OVER 500 PYRAMID OPERATIONS PUT ON NOTICE

  Four federal agencies and 70 state and local law enforcement
officials from 24 states have notified  operators of over 500 websites
that they may be promoting illegal pyramid schemes in violation of
state and federal laws. 

  �We�re putting scam artists on notice," said Jodie Bernstein,
Director of the Federal Trade Commission�s Bureau of Consumer
Protection, at a press conference where she unveiled the results of
�Internet Pyramid Surf Day.� "The Internet is not going to be a new
marketplace where scam artists roam free. We�ve sent the message,
'Clean up your act or close down your site.� And we plan to follow up
to see that they do," Bernstein said. 

  The law enforcement surveillance was coordinated by the FTC and
announced during the �Fourth Annual Fall Internet World '96
Conference� in New York City. On Monday, December 9, the federal,
state and local law enforcement officials surfed the Internet to
locate those sites posting possible pyramid scams. Participants
preserved the information found at each site for possible future law
enforcement action. 

  Various law enforcers identified Internet sites that contained the
telltale signs that they may be pyramid operations. Site operators
were sent e-mail messages warning them that pyramid schemes were
illegal, describing the characteristics of illegal pyramids and
providing the FTC�s home page address to help entrepreneurs and
consumers distinguish between illegal pyramids and legal multi-level
marketing plans. The web-sites will be revisited in the future, and if
evidence suggests that they are illegal operations, further actions
may be taken.

  "In just one day, we identified over 500 web sites that make offers
which may involve illegal pyramid schemes. These schemes now
constitute the fastest growing type of Internet scams by some
accounts," Bernstein said. "And there�s an alarming irony in this. Ten
years ago, pyramid scams were all but a thing of the past. Today, we
have a new marketplace, the Internet, which is hot and high-tech. And
here come the pyramid scams again, as old as Methuselah, disguised in
high-tech electronic garb and new-age jargon, trying to make a
comeback.�

  �Internet Pyramid Surf Day� was intended to complement the existing
law enforcement work of the government agencies. The FTC has brought
15 cases against on- line scams in the past. The effort�s objective is
to educate businesses using the Internet about the law on pyramids and
deter those who are violating the law from continuing to do so. 

  The Securities and Exchange Commission, Federal Communications
Commission, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, 20 state Attorneys
General, five state securities regulators and four District
Attorneys, participated in �Surf Day.�

  "At SEC Enforcement, our Internet program entails aggressive
surveillance, investigation and prosecution of Internet conduct that
violates the federal securities laws," said John Stark, Special
Counsel for Internet Projects at the SEC Enforcement Division. "We
also encourage self-policing through our Enforcement Complaint Center
<www.sec.gov>, and in conjunction with the Commission�s Office of
Investor Education and Assistance, we emphasize education and
cooperative efforts with federal, state, self-regulatory and industry
organizations. Joint operations like Surf day increase the
effectiveness of our Internet program to make the Internet safer for
all investors." 

  "Promoting chain letters on the Internet is simply putting old wine
in new bottles, " says Chief Postal Inspector Kenneth Hunter. "Even
though communicated via the latest telecommunications medium,
electronic chain letters are identical to old fashioned scams, in that
they are likely to profit only the originator," warns Mr. Hunter.
"Further, they run the risk of violating the federal lottery statutes
if they cause others to perpetuate the chain through the U.S. Mail." 

  Bernstein said that the agency has also developed education messages
for consumers. "We hope to help consumers avoid these pyramid schemes
by offering tips on what to watch for -- especially money making
schemes that claim that you will make money by recruiting new members
or 'distributors.��

  The consumer education campaign is being promoted by the Interactive
Services Association, primarily through Project OPEN (the Online
Public Education Network). The effort is supported by America Online,
AT&T, CompuServe, Microsoft and NETCOM who will be incorporating
hyperlinks to the FTC web site. The FTC web site will offer the
following advice for consumers: 

     Beware of plans that ask new distributors to spend money on
high-priced inventory. These  plans can collapse quickly -- and may be
illegal pyramids in disguise; 
     Be cautious of plans that claim you�ll make money through
continued growth of your  'downline� -- the commissions on sales made
by new distributors you recruit -- instead of through sales you make
yourself; 
     Beware of plans that promise enormous earnings or claim to sell
miracle products; 
     Don�t pay or sign any contracts in an "opportunity meeting" or
any other high- pressure situation; 

     Do your homework. Check out any plan you intend to invest in with
the local Better Business Bureau and state Attorney General. 

  The Better Business Bureau (BBB) system is distributing educational
materials through its BBB Web Page (http://www.bbb.org) and network of
Better Business Bureaus to advise consumers how to identify pyramid
schemes and other online scams. Local BBBs will also include tips on
avoiding online fraud in their monthly newsletter mailings to 240,000
businesses. In addition to helping educate consumers on how to avoid
potential scams, the BBB is launching a program to assist consumers in
separating the legitimate online offer from the dubious one. The new
BBBOnLine program, which will be operational in early 1997, will
assist consumers in identifying ethical businesses on the Internet,
and provide businesses with a means to demonstrate their commitment to
ethical standards in the online marketplace. 

Copies of the consumer and business education materials are vailable
on the FTC�s web site at  http://www.ftc.gov/pyramid (no period). 

Copies also are available from the FTC�s Public Reference  Branch,
Room 130, 6th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C.
20580;  202-326-2222; TTY for the hearing impaired 202-326- 2502. To
find out the latest news as it is announced, call the FTC NewsPhone
recording at 202-326-2710. FTC news releases and other  materials also
are available on the Internet at the FTC�s World Wide Web site at:
http://www.ftc.gov


                      --  30  --
  MEDIA CONTACT: 

  Victoria Streitfeld or Claudia Bourne Farrell
  Office of Public Affairs
  202-326-2718 or 202-326-2181

  STAFF CONTACT: 

  Eileen Harrington
  Division of Marketing Practices
  202-326-3127 

                        =======================

Karl Pollak <kpollak@portal.ca>
Richmond, British Columbia