I wish I had a nickel for every client who complained to his Internet lawyer about the so-called “gurus” who are getting away with breaking the law.
Here’s the truth. They don’t all get away with it.
Many are licking their wounds behind closed doors while putting on a happy face to the public in order to “sell the dream” of bad actions without negative consequences.
The government starts by going after the big fish, that is, the Internet con artists who hurt the most clients. If there is time, budget, and labor hours left to go after the smaller fish, the government does that too.
Yes, it’s unfair that some of the scammers at least temporarily are stealing money online and not being pursued for it. Some might get away with it entirely.
But most don’t.
Here’s what your Internet lawyer can tell you about in detail…the consummate scam artist would rather make a dishonest buck conning people than earn ten times as much by treating clients fairly and delivering value. These types of criminals are adrenaline junkies constantly looking for a new “high” that comes with pulling off a bigger scam than the current one.
Because of this, many will get caught more than once…just not all of the time.
Back to the bigger fish. Last month, I wrote about how the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) had gone after Jeremy Johnson and nine of his buddies for alleged Internet fraud.
The court handling the case has now frozen Johnson’s assets and appointed a receiver. Imagine trying to run a business with everything frozen…and what are the odds that Johnson’s lawyer is going to want to work for nothing if Johnson can’t pay for a legal defense?
Whether Johnson or any of these other “gurus” ends up losing everything won’t make one bit of difference to your success online. However, they do provide you with an example of what not to do when growing your Internet business.
Integrity is more than a personal decision. It’s also a smart business practice. Choosing to accumulate wealth by delivering value to others instead of profiting at their expense reduces your legal headaches, fattens your wallet, and lets you sleep easier at night too.
To your online success!
-Mike the Internet lawyer
