So I’m trying to sleep but can’t because I am seriously disturbed. I went to an Amway meeting earlier today, after someone approached me with a “business opportunity”. I immediately suspected that something was off, so I came into the meeting skeptical and even secretly took some videos.
They drew a pyramid scheme model during the presentation and tried to argue that it isn’t; they talked about income earners as Employees/Self-employed/Business owners/Investora and tried to argue that everyone in Amway is a business owner… the saddest part is that all these uni kids who have been brainwashed into thinking that they’re business owners are actually the very employees that they dissed on in their presentation. No, they’re worse actually, they’re the product.
There were quite a few attendees to the meeting, many of whom were students. One was even a business student… while I’m sure some of them caught on as the seriously dodgy Amway videos were being played, I noticed the majority were already being lured in. After the meeting, there was a chat session with the upline (the person who recruited you), and some of the clueless participants were expressing intense interest. A few more families are gonna be ruined and I really wish I had just shouted out to everyone that it was basically a scam.
I did try to argue with several of the uplines after the meeting was over. It went smth like this:
“How is this not MLM?” “Do you know what the Singaporean law defines as MLM? If not, you should do your homework and come talk to us again. But basically, MLMs require a large startup cost, but Amway doesn’t have that.” “But in order to join this business, I have to pay a subscribers fee and buy all my household products from Amway instead right?” “Yes, but the subscribers fee is only $70. Also, you need household products anyway, so it’s not a real cost”
After this point, they just kept repeating smth along the lines of “Ok, I can explain to you in detail, but it will take very long. Why don’t you come for the next meeting and we can explain further?”
Also, at the end of the presentation, the presenter stated that we can earn $4000 a month for working from home 10 hours a week. Of course, they didn’t state that that’s only possible when you have a shit ton of downlines. In fact they framed it in a way like as if that’s the starting pay when you join
What really made me sick was when they had a bunch of people go up and give testimonies, saying how their “mentor” helped so much with their life and transformed them into better people. Three around the words “integrity”, “honesty”, etc no less than 30 times. This is probably the closest to Scientology that I will experience in Singapore. It was like Christian Fellowship except the God is money and the Bible are the complete bullshit fluffass books written by the successful Amway “businessmen”. And instead of trying to do good, they’re trying to frame “scamming your friends and family” as good.
TL;DR: Witnessed first hand Amway’s recruiting tactics. Please be skeptical if anyone ever tells you about a “business opportunity”. If you hear “Amway” or see someone draw you a pyramid diagram, run.
People please share this. This is quoted from a friend. This is serious!
“I received a call from someone claiming that he was from my mobile Service provider and he asked me to shutdown my phone for 2 hours for 3G update to take place. As I was rushing for a meeting,
I did not question, but just shut down my cell phone.
After 45 minutes I felt very suspicious since the caller did not even introduce his name.
I quickly turned on my cell phone and saw several missed calls from my family members and the others were from the number that had called me earlier –
I called my parents and I was shocked that they sounded very worried asking me whether I am safe.
My parents told me that they had received a call from someone claiming that they had me with them and asking for money to let me free. The call was so real and my parents even heard ‘my voice’ crying out loud asking for help.
My father was at the bank waiting for next call to proceed for money transfer.
I told my parents that I am safe and asked them to lodge a police report.
Right after that I received another call from the guy asking me to shutdown my cell phone for another 1 hour which I refused to do and hung up.
They kept calling my cell phone until the battery had run down. I myself
lodged a police report and I was informed by the officer that there were many such scams reported. MOST of the cases reported that the victim had already
transferred the money! And it is impossible to get back the money. Be
careful as this kind of scam might happen to any of us!!!
Those guys are so professional and very convincing during calls. If you are asked to shut down your cell phone for updates by the service provider, ASK AROUND!
Your family or friends might receive the same call. ”
Be Safe and Stay Alert!
Please pass around to your family and friends !!!
People have been receiving calls from+375602605281, +37127913091 or any number starting from +375, +371 number one ring & hang up. If you call back it’s one of those Numbers that are charged $15-30 & they can copy yr contact list in 3sec & if u have bank or credit card details on your phone, they can copy that too. +375 is from Belarus From Afghanistan.. 371 is code for Lativa…
Don’t answer or call back. Please FORWARD
AND SHARE this to your friends and family
I am so disappointed. At how morally unsound some people can be. But putting my emotions aside, I would like to share my story on how I was a potential victim of a scheme by X.
The story goes…
I was asked out by an acquaintance for coffee last week. It was quite queer that he wanted to meet for coffee, but he told me he was involved in a travel project and wanted to get my input on it’s viability.
So well.. I said yes. I had the time to spare after work today, and it was rather near my workplace. I thought it would be nice to see an old acquaintance as well.
But for him, his intentions were different.
For all the wrong reasons.
To cut the long story short, he did not meet me with the intention to share an idea with me.
In fact, he met with me because he wanted to sell me a package. A very nicely packaged but dubious package.
I don’t blame him, because I know very well how thesePyramid/Multi-Level Marketing companies work.
They paint you a beautiful picture of how much you can earn in cash, how easy it is for you to do it part-time, how effortless it will be with their guidance, and how it is NOT their intention for you to buyANYTHING from them.
We are glad more and more people are coming out to share their stories on these Get-Rich-Quick schemes (GRQ). Without these brave souls, many would still believe those empty promises. We can’t thank you enough for creating this public awareness.
Stand firm. Speak up. Don’t let anyone fool you.
Are you a victim too? Share your story with us at Rilek1Corner.
Credit: Berita Harian SGhttps://www.facebook.com/galaxytrioterbaik
At first when Rilek1Corner published articles on a MLM/Pyramid/Ponzi/GRQ company, I was furious becos I had just joined in and it would affect my prospecting.
True as it is, the prospects started canceling meetings and there were even people who stood me up. I just had a newborn baby and had to leave her for this meeting every night to accompany prospects to view the presentations. I took cabs there. I needed to pay for the trainings that they provided which is just to teach you how to use the website and how to persuade your family, friends and strangers to join in as well which requires you endless of postings and the annoying random tagging Facebook friends (Ya that was taught in the training).
And if you need flyers that only published some Caucasian family with USD notes in it (it was said that the company is branched out into Asia regions and the base is here so why not picture our locals and not some photo ripped off from Google) and name cards, you also need to pay for that. They are all not inclusive in their expensive membership fees. The application forms for your prospects are also DIY and you need to print them on your own. Rich company with cheap ideas.
It was a requirement to have such huge capitals to join. There were small and big boards. Sound like a money game right? That is why some individuals have views that it is similar to gambling which is quite true to me now. You risk thousands of dollars in it and if your board is stuck and no one in your board recruits anyone, you will forever be at the same position you joined in and don’t get any returns at all.
The people who take photos with lots of money make it looks so easy. They are people who already have connections with people who have money. Thus they can create their own network bigger and faster than the ones who do not have connections. Sometimes it is also becos they were from a different MLM company and dragged the others to join in the new ones. It is like a fad. These group of people will keep changing their attentions and try all other platforms in MLM industry to make money out of others’ hard earned money.
This particular MLM company has their members posting that you need not sell anything when their membership is inclusive with “motivational” ebooks written by an author who is a Minister in the United States in the 16th century. They said it is not an MLM company becos it is not like other companies that requires you to sell various products with targets and the uplines profiting in your sales.
How can it be not an Multi-Level Marketing company when they have 4 levels in each board?
And in order for you to get your payout you have to be at the top and it does not matter if the vacant boxes are filled up by you or other members in the board. Once you are at the very top, and the empty boxes are filled, you get your payout.
So aren’t you profiting on other member’s efforts? If it is not pyramid scheme, why is the board in a shape of a pyramid?
A matrix board system is a modified pyramid scheme. They claimed that the company originated from Canada for 26 years but the company registry was done in 2013, also in British Virgin Islands. Contradicting isnt it? When asked where the other members in other parts of the world other than Asia, they will say we can only access the website which is only in our region. Strange isn’t it now? Members also asked who the founder in Canada is. No one has the answers and instead we were told that we are not allowed to acknowledge who the founder is becos afraid that competitor companies will spoil the market. More question marks now.
Till date, no one cld tell any truth about it. When someone tries to speak up, they will threaten you that they file a lawsuit against you for defamation. If it is legal and lawful, why is the company not registered in Singapore itself after so many commotions? They will tell you it is becos SG will tax us and we will receive low payouts. So? If anything happens, you have no one to turn to becos it is not a registered company here.
The thing is with people who are involved in MLM, they will fish you in by sweet talking, be it family members, relatives, friends or just strangers. Telling you that there are no other “good” platforms as such anywhere in the country. When you join, they leave you 100% on your own and expect you to do your work. If you don’t get to recruit anyone, they will accuse you of sleeping or not doing your work. Trust me, it had been dozens of times me going up and down their office to accompany prospects and many turned me down.
Criticisms over the social media on what I was doing. It was a waste of so much money. People joining in with hopes to get rich but in the end losing money. What the pioneers or the successful ones are doing, they just keep going and leave the unlucky ones behind. Telling you it is all rezeki/fate that you dont get your money back. If you give up, they even block you in FB becos they deem you as a negative person.
Seriously? As uplines or pioneers, you should guide and help. Not leave us. Clearly shown how people can be nice to you for money and nasty when they receive your money. Instantly you become an enemy to them. Why show others photos of the same people? How about the unsuccessful ones? They tell you 1k-2k members has gotten their payouts so why is it less than 1% of the “successful” members’ testimonials published in the website?
Again Rilek1Corner would like to take this opportunity to remind dear readers about get-rich quick schemes (GRQ) and its many guises – MLM, Pyramid, Ponzi, Board, Matrix, Pigeon, etc.
Just like human beings, these GRQs come in many fancy names. But there will always be two constant characteristics: (i) the recruitment of new members, and (ii) you are required to pay some money upfront. This money can be in the form of membership fee, registration fee, or some admin charges. It is just a simple reason for them to take your hard-earned money.
Remember, your hard-earned money is your money. Learn to appreciate. Instead of giving to strangers, might as well spend it on your family and loved ones. Unless you strike a lottery, no one gets rich in an instant.
If people say they are wealth experts, why are they still staying in public housing? Why aren’t they employed as ministers and coming out with policies to help Singaporeans if they are really that great? Why aren’t they being headhunted by banks and other MNCs to help generate money?
Instead they target commoners like you and us.
Please save your money. Keep it for rainy days.
Ramadhan is approaching soon. Let’s not fool our friends, relatives and those poor elderly people who have little savings left to spend during their silver years.
Like many other concerned public who have written about Galaxy Trio and Ultrasonic on the Internet, I was threatened, my family was harassed, and we were thrown with numerous insults when discussing about the legitimacy of their money making business which solely requires recruiting new members. We have contacted the police regarding these harassments and threats. However, this does not mean I will stop trying to make people understand what they are getting themselves into.
MLM, pyramid, matrix board, pigeon chess, you name it – these are Get-Rich-Quick schemes disguised in many fancy names. The only common factor is recruiting new members and this cannot stop. Once recruitment stops, the entire business model will collapse.
If there are more reward based on recruiting than reward based on selling, then there is a high suspicion of a pyramid scheme. The reason is simple: where is the money coming from, if not from sales? The only other source of income is from the membership fees, and that makes this a Ponzhi or Pyramid scheme/scam. A pyramid scheme is an operation where you have to recruit two or more people into the system to get paid.
The “recruiting” angle uses a lot of fancy words like “forced matrix” “matrix board” or “cycling the matrix”. In truth, a “matrix” is just another name for “pyramid”. If you have come across phrases like “cycling out of the matrix” or anything along those lines, be suspicious because you can only “cycle out” by filling the matrix with members “promising” large bonus paid for “filling the matrix”.
As long as there is a recruitment of at least two members, it is a scam.
In other instances, new recruits or members were offered “golden opportunities”. Some even go to the extend of telling those who did not sign up as “lazy” or “idiots”. There is no mention of membership at all at first look. Another way to disguise recruiting is by “selling” the opportunity’s “joining gift”, and not mention the membership at all.
In other instances, some give you an impression that you are buying an “item X”, when in fact, you actually paid for the membership, which gets you item X. Before you join, you have no idea or in most cases were not informed about the need for new recruits to “cycle out” the matrix or the hassle of redeeming your bonuses.
Yet another way is to disguise the recruiting by making the compensation for sales very vague, but how you get the big payout, by recruiting a lot of people, is crystal clear.
Hard to sell products and services
Can you sell ebooks or videos or poor-quality non-consumable products/services to friends which costs a few hundred dollars? Don’t you find it hard to sell such items? Besides such products/services can be easily purchased online at much cheaper deal. These days, ebooks and online videos are easily downloadable either free or a small sum of payment usually less than $10.00. Take the time to browse through Amazon and you will be amazed at the awesome collection. Way much better than the ebooks or video sold to you by Ultrasonic and Galaxy Trio, judging by the quality of the products shoved at your face.
Membership fee
You receive some physical or virtual products to sell, or any equipment and such to sell the “service”, or some tangible training for your membership fee. If all the fee does is “qualify” you to get paid by recruiting, you are definitely a victim of a pyramid scheme.
If you just receive a bunch of links to video lessons of dubious value, or an e-mail, or a catalog, or dodgy ebooks which you asked yourself what is the worth in such badly created products, you are probably looking at a scam.
If you do get a worthwhile bonus, such as free vacation, check to see how you actually “use” or redeem the vacation. There have been scary sounding reports such vacations never existed, or the redemption process is so tedious, or it numerous excuses were given so that you will not be able to go for the free holiday trip. Many times, the company kept insisting that due to “explosive demand” they cannot send you for the free holiday trip. Don’t let that “bonus” be main reason to join, instead of the real business opportunity.
No real money yet
To convert all your credit into “real dollars” you have to pay all sorts of crazy fees, like wire transfer fee, debit card fee, transaction fee, conversion fee, and so on and so forth, and wait weeks or months. That is a sign of a scam. Some companies pay you vouchers which you sell to new recruits, and you are actually getting paid by new recruits. This is a pyramid scheme. What’s worse, that actually makes YOU a part of the scam, as you benefited from it. It is basically a money transfer scheme.
Lastly, look out for businesses operating offshore (British Virgin Islands, BVI) and only accepts “payment processors” who will take your money for “conversion” and send it off. Once you’ve transferred the money, you cannot rescind the transfer, no matter what valid mode of payment you have done. The payment processors, such as AlertPay, Solid Trust Pay, Liberty Reserve acts like banks. You pay the processors money to open a temporary account, and you pay someone else from that temporary account. Once the money is gone from the temporary account it cannot be rescinded, even if you have a complaint. By adding that extra layer, the offshore company can be sure that even if you had second thoughts you will have a hard time getting your money back.
No info on management
If the opportunity is run by an unknown, with no background information for you to check, or there is no name anywhere attached to this “opportunity”, you should run away. Logically speaking, you simply don’t loan money to total strangers and expect it to be returned.
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The investor may have asked – if this is really a ponzhi scheme, why is the Monetary Authority of Singapore or the Commercial Affairs Department not taking any action to stop it?
Do not be disheartened by the lack of action by our authorities. The MAS has already put an alert on their website and asked the public to lodge a complaint with CAD, if they suspect any fraud. I do not know why MAS expects the public to do the investigation. It is quite easy for MAS to engage an investigator, at the cost of the Government, to see if there is any risk of a fraud, rather than wait for it to happen. Same goes to the Commercial Affairs Department. They have the power, authority and the resources to carry out an investigation. They only need to have reasonable grounds to make an investigation into a potential ponzhi scheme.
Here are some signs that you need to watch for, to make sure that matrix board opportunity you may be thinking about joining is not actually a pseudo-MLM/pyramid scam designed to take your money.
Warning Signs
If it looks too good to be true—it probably is.
Use your common sense: the offer may be a scam.
Do not let anyone pressure you into making decisions about money or investments: always get independent financial advice.
You can contact Commercial Affairs Department (CAD), CASE or the Singapore Police Force if you notice something is amiss.
Beware of products or schemes that claim to guarantee income or winnings.
Remember that family members and friends may try to involve you in a scam without realizing that it is a scam: you should seek independent advice (from a lawyer or financial adviser).
How you can Protect Yourself
Do not let anyone pressure you into making decisions about money or investments: always get independent financial advice.
Read all the terms and conditions of any offer very carefully: claims of free or very cheap offers often have hidden costs.
Make sure you know how to stop any subscription service you want to sign up to.
Be very careful about offers for medicines, supplements or other treatments: always seek the advice of your health care professional.
Remember there are no magic pills or safe options for rapid weight loss.
Beware of products or schemes that claim to guarantee income or winnings.
If someone offers you an investment or other financial service, ask for their Financial Services Licence number.
Be wary of investments promising a high return with little or no risk.
Beware of job offers that require you to pay an upfront fee.
Authored by Zainal Ariffin
Photos: Readers’ contribution
EDITOR’S NOTE
More and more readers are writing to Rilek1Corner to share information about the Get-Rich-Quick scams. We thank you for the contribution and we assure you that identities will be kept secret. We were also informed that readers who had openly share their grievances/concerns were harassed and threatened. We urged those affected parties to contact the authorities immediately. If you are uncertain on how to go about doing it, please do contact Rilek1Corner and we will gladly be of assistance to you. Otherwise you can do so by:
You can lodge a complaint with the Commercial Affairs Department either in writing or in person:
Director
Commercial Affairs Department
391 New Bridge Road #06-701
Police Cantonment Complex Block D
Singapore 088762
The following information should be contained in the report:
An account of the relevant facts;
Copies of the relevant documents, if available; and
Your name, NRIC / passport number, contact number and address.
Complaint in Person
You may appear in person at the above address. To avoid any inconvenience, you are advised to call the Department at 1800-325 0000 (Toll-Free) to make an appointment. Our office hours are as follows:
Monday – Friday (8.30am to 5.30pm)
Complaint via Electronic Police Centre
Alternatively, you may lodge an online complaint via the ePC at the following web-site:
