"People in a gold rush often get so caught up in the dream of quick riches that they over invest in the obvious areas and ignore subtler or long-term opportunities" Bill Gates The Internet has been dubbed the great equalizer. Small business can compete with corporate giants and come out ahead. An entrepreneur can build an empire or even just make a few extra dollars. On the Internet the proverbial "American Dream" is alive and well, even among non-Americans. The idea that through hard work and determination one can achieve prosperity is alive and growing online. But, if you're not careful, the opportunity of a lifetime might not be what you planned, according to the chairman of the FTC. "The dream of owning a business is as American as apple pie, but business opportunity scammers spoil the recipe for success," said FTC Chairman Deborah Platt Majoras. "Scam artists have a choice - get out of the fraud business and stay out - or you, too, will have an opportunity of a lifetime: doing time behind bars." reference: http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2005/02/bizoppflop.htm What's a Scam? The majority of people participating in and promoting scams aren't deceiving anyone intentionally. Quite the opposite. They have been deceived into thinking that they're participating in a legitimate money making opportunity. The majority of scams online are pyramid schemes. The problem is that pyramids are difficult to spot because many of them are set up to look like Network Marketing opportunities. So, what's a pyramid? Well, who better to ask than Uncle Sam? Uncle Sam's Definition of A Pyramid This is posted on the US Government Securities Exchange site: In the classic "pyramid" scheme, participants attempt to make money solely by recruiting new participants into the program. The hallmark of these schemes is the promise of sky-high returns in a short period of time for doing nothing other than handing over your money and getting others to do the same. The fraudsters behind a pyramid scheme may go to great lengths to make the program look like a legitimate multi-level marketing program. But despite their claims to have legitimate products or services to sell, these fraudsters simply use money coming in from new recruits to pay off early stage investors. But eventually the pyramid will collapse. At some point the schemes get too big, the promoter cannot raise enough money from new investors to pay earlier investors, and many people lose their money. The chart below shows how pyramid schemes can become impossible to sustain: click to see chart Read that carefully. A pyramid uses money from incoming members to pay existing members. In a legitimate MLM, your pay/profit will come from sale of products or services. But - What If You Didn't Know? So what if you joined a pyramid and started building a "downline" or recruiting - but you didn't know it was a pyramid? Surely you're not responsible if you didn't know. Are you? Well, here's what the American government has to say about it; ...you are legally responsible for the claims you make about the company, its product and the business opportunities it offers. That applies even if you're repeating claims you read in a company brochure or advertising flyer. The Federal Trade Commission advises you to verify the research behind any claims about a product's performance before repeating those claims to a potential customer... reference: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/alerts/pyrdalrt.htm In the profit forums, we've been discussing "business opportunities" online. We are on a fact finding mission. We have already saved 106 people from getting their paypal accounts shut down. Why not join us? The next dream we save just might be yours! 1: Strange Ways to Make Money 2: Paypal Randomizer (HOT thread) 3: Pay to Surf Programs 4: Autosurf Programs 5: Network Marketing Q/A ========================================= QUESTIONS: Thoughts? If you're participating in a Network Marketing program, how "sure" are you that it's legal? If you had to bet jail time on it, how "sure" are you on a scale of 1-10? =========================================

Hi Linda, "...Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry..." heh, heh - just had to say that. Silliness aside: In the eyes of the law IGNORANCE is NO EXCUSE. Though almost every lawyer will attempt to mitigate using it. Gary Simpson

Good post Linda, I remember that one! Them good old boys were drinking whiskey and . . . It would be interesting to see what other governments are saying as well about this subject. Especially when it comes to the internet. On a scale of 1-10? I have to say a 10 for both businesses that I have.