HEADLINE: Advertising Scam "Search Engine Data Merging".
BODY: Online Advertising Scam "Search Engine Data Merging"
Article by James Warholic
Downloading free Web software to do keyword searches in your Web
browser address bar can get you more Online advertising than what you
asked for.
Unethical spyware/adware companies are promoting themselves as: "get to
the top of Google, Yahoo, and MSN search guaranteed for your keywords."
Believe it or not, they do get websites to the top of whoever has this
special tracking software installed on their computers.
How do they do it?
Software Step One: Laying the Web Trap
When someone, including children, have downloaded this online free
tracking software onto their computer and do any type of search in the
browser address bar, side bar, or even in the browser itself the
program takes over and in a millisecond before the actual results are
displayed, the information is data merged and manipulated with other
pay-for-keywords data feeds. Then, when the search results page is
displayed to the user it looks like the natural results or even large
site targeted Banner Ads at the top of the leading search companies.
Depending on who you talk to in these organizations, they claim to have
10 or 20 million network users. Their idea of a network user is anyone
who has downloaded this special software onto their computers.
Once these spyware programs are downloaded and installed it can be
extremely difficult to remove them. Many times they will not even show
up with a logical name in the Windows control panel for add/remove
programs. Since they attach themselves to the Internet Explorer
Browser, which is integrated directly into the Windows Operating
System, there is no way to click un-install to reload a clean Internet
Explorer.
People do not have a clue that this downloaded software is changing the
relevant results of their searches, plus potentially monitoring all the
keywords they type in their browsers. Maybe it is buried in Web
Semantics or the FinePrint as to what the applications program is doing
but most users, I suspect, think they are downloading this nifty
software application to do keywords searches in their Internet browser
address bar. This is the first part of the scam.
Step Two: Springing the Trap
Enter Attorneys, Realtors, Insurance Agents, and any other type of
professional businesses looking for leads in the hot consumer market
place. An agent gets a cold call from a very nice and sincere sounding
sales representative asking the agent if they are interested in getting
hundreds and thousands of leads and website visitors guaranteed? The
agent is told a very glossy story about how they can place the agent's
website at the top of certain keywords searches from the 10 to 20
million network users. Of course with numbers like that, anyone would
want to hear more information.
The agent asks, "How does it work?"
Sales person answers, "Let's say someone is doing an online search for:
'San Ramon Homes For Sale' or 'San Ramon homes.' We can place your real
estate website at the number one position for anyone looking at Homes
For Sale in San Ramon, plus, the hits to your website will prove that
we are sending traffic your way. You will be getting thousands of hits
monthly with people searching for your keywords and you will be number
one! And, to prevent over selling this new technology to too many
Realtors in your area we are limiting it to the first three that sign
up for it right now. Imagine being number one. We even have a demo that
we can show you. Just type in your keywords and your real estate
website then return and see how it works yourself. Get a picture of
what it looks like on our networks."
How much Revenue does this Pay-For-Keywords advertising scam Net?
A single real estate agent can pay hundreds or thousands of dollars
annually depending on how many keywords are requested. There is no
telling as to the extent of how many American and International
Professionals, for all professions, are captured by this net and how
much revenue is being taken in. The gross sales figures could be in the
tens of millions. The tentacles of this illegal operation could be much
greater than anyone could imagine. In fact, multiple websites are being
created under different working ownership groups to go after new
targeted professional working groups of individuals and revenue. The
branding features of the websites are the same for all except with
different names at the top.
One representative at one of the companies told a source, who was
approached by a second brand type, stated when pressed, "each is a
different company."
Owner of: Search Elevators, Link Positions, Window Billboards Network,
Winspeed Network, Real Positions Network
On another day the same source when asking for his money back from the
scam, was told by the owner of: Search Elevators, Link Positions,
Window Billboards Network, Winspeed Network, Real Positions Network,
and others, "yes, we are all the same company... We have hundreds of
thousands of clients in all different industries. Whoever told you that
we are not the same company I would fire if I knew their names."
The professional person was taken in by the scam several months before
this second one called. This individual was even able to go into a
private area and verify that the contact was updated to reflect a new
saleswoman as the customer service contact who had just called from the
second company.
The owner of this company had refused to give my source back his money.
The owner had stated, "with hundreds of thousands of clients, you are
the first to complain. Also, we have had our attorneys look this over
and there is nothing wrong in what we are doing."
Verify, do searches on each of the company names, read the complaints
in the forums, confirm for yourself and learn more about this now: see
search engine results for this new technology of "Search Engine Data
Merging" G Y M
What are the Legal ramifications?
From a legal standpoint it is important to understand that all major
search engines have some sort of terms of use agreements.
Here is the actual quote from Google, (hyperlink
added).
The Google Services are made available for your
personal, non-commercial use only. You may not use the Google Services
to sell a product or service, or to increase traffic to your Web site
for commercial reasons, such as advertising sales. You may not take the
results from a Google search and reformat and display them, or mirror
the Google home page or results pages on your Web site. You may not
"meta-search" Google.
The other search engines have similar published terms of use agreement
items related to displaying their search results. From a legal
standpoint I can not imagine any search company giving approval for
allowing their results to be tainted, modified, manipulated, or any
other action that would deface their pages. Any company caught doing
this type of activity runs the risk of having major lawsuits from every
search company they are doing this to.
Consider the false and deceptive advertising claims that could be laid
out against the companies. Operating this way is totally ignoring
proper representation of their product. It has the air of arrogance
that no one is going to do anything about it. A representative of one
of the companies even stated, "What is Google, Yahoo, or MSN going to
do about it? They have bigger issues than this to deal with."
Online Privacy Issues
Additionally these businesses talk about monitoring what words you
search for online. If they are monitoring what keywords you type in a
browser that could be everything that is typed, including logging into
Web mail and reading emails online, not to mention the potential to
plant virus threats. With a company operating this way, are you really
going to believe them when they promise to protect your online privacy?
This, in your face, arrogant attitude by these companies are once again
ignoring all the state, federal, & international regulations
pertaining to: ethics, legal and regulatory issues, & privacy in
E-business and throwing it right out the window.
Children's Privacy: The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act
Do to the very nature of children being able to download these programs
online, many times without the parents aware of it, this type of
operation is a threat to our children. Since the monitoring of the
keywords is being done at the browser level, any information a child
might type could be monitored. This is a big Red Flag for Parents.
See: ftc.gov children's privacy
ISE Corp subsidiaries And RedZee New Search Engine Privacy Policy
Certain search results may be "sponsored" results,
which consist of websites who have paid for placement in the search
results. These listings are provided by our business partner, Link
Positions, which is a subsidiary of ISE. These premium results may
contain tracking URLs provided by Link Positions to identify clicks
from the search results page.
And this quote:
Children's Privacy
Redzee.com is not structured to attract children.
Accordingly, we do not knowingly collect Personal Information from
anyone under 13 years of age. If you are under the age of 13, please do
not provide any Personal Information to us.
As though an under 13 child is going to read the privacy policy.
See news press release for site information
What Victims Should Do
If you are a victim of either end of this type of criminal marketing
fraud or sales pitch activity, a complaint report should be filed at
the Internet Fraud Complaint Center. The Internet Fraud Complaint
Center (IFCC) is a partnership between the Federal Bureau of
Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C).
Victims need to report these incidents and start fighting back. Don't
let the Internet Search Engine Data Merging Keywords Flim Flam scammers
do this to other victims.
What the Internet Legal Issues Are and Laws Broken
With this type of illegal activity is a list, (miles long) of the legal
areas affected and the criminal laws broken from: Anti-trust /
Competition Law, Financial, Real Estate, Consumer, Corporate, European
Union & International, Federal And State Law, Government &
Public Sector, Information Technology & Telecommunications,
Regulatory, Internet, Privacy And Security Law, Insurance, Intellectual
Property, Media, Copyright, and other Law Areas of Practice.
Contract Law - What a Legally Binding Contract Is
If you find yourself having entered into a contract agreement with one
of those disreputable companies consider the following:
The State Bar Of California
To be legally binding, a contract must have certain
elements:
An offer by one person and an acceptance of that offer by the
other.
Mutual agreement to the terms of the contract-both parties
agree on
what is promised.
An exchange of consideration-something of value is given for
something else of value.
However, if a contract involves something illegal or
against public policy, even if all the elements listed above are
present, it is not legally binding.
Once being made aware of the legalities with materially changing the
displayed search results a person should demand their money back and
the contract considered no longer binding. Additionally, if you are
showing up in a banner ad, does not change the fact that the search
results are materially changed for anyone having the software on their
computer. The banner ad is just one inclusion application of the Search
Engine Data Merging" scheme. Search Elevators, Link Positions, Window
Billboards Network, Winspeed Network, Real Positions Network and the
others can implement any number of inclusion items at the same time,
thus actually changing the relevant search results.
Illegal Activity
Once becoming aware of the legal search policies for terms of use &
the Law, and do nothing, you would be implicating yourself in this
illegal charade activity also.
About What You Should Do
So if you happen to get an advertising call with a sales person on the
other end, with keywords promises they can place your website at the
number one position on 10 to 20 million network users, consider closely
the legalities & ethics that are employed and what this can do to
your brand.
Pass this Free, tuff hard hitting, honest & trustworthy "No BS"
technology sales and marketing AND Online advertising information
newsletter on to others before it happens to them. Email this
advertising scam link or email our new technology, Web marketing,
Online advertising, seo, Internet, corporate branding newsletters link
to them today.
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creativity, and maintenance contact Professional Web Services, Inc.,
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