90 replies to this topic

[ChipJohns]

I had a conversation with this guy about a year ago.. One of my web clients who is a
friend hired him. (We live a few states apart and he didn't know that I had started to do
seo.) Any Way my client called me all worried. he wasn't goiogn to renew his contract
and this guy told him that he better or else they were going to make sure that he was
banned. hey told him that they could get all of his rankings to disappear. They told him
that he was in breach because they now own the copyrights to everything they did to his
site -- Which was only changing the title tags.

I called him and talked to him for about 45 minutes. He was as much of a jerk with me.
He told me about the copyright and I told him that he was a liar, You can't copyright title
tags.. He eventually backed down on everypoint. But he advised me that the rankings
were going to drop and he was going to do everything in his power to make it happen.
My response was .. 'bite me..!'

Anyway, This guy is making some bucks I am sure of it.. he does need to be shut
down...!

[Leann_Pass]

Do you have full copies of the emails Leann? With headers and stuff? I'm even thinking about allowing you to out who they are on this forum because this is simply disgusting.

Jill, Yes, I have his emails in full. I would really like to post his info, especially after reading that ChipJohns friend/client fell for it and went through the same. This guy is criminal.

Just let me know.

Leann

[Betty]

Based on the quotes, I think I found the guy you are referring to.

I love how, on one of his pages is says:

Top positions for they key words:

(companyURL)
(companyURL)
(companyURL)
(companyURL)
(companyURL)

"We've done it on Our website, why would you think we wouldn't be able to do it on Your's..."


Meaning what - that they can get top placement if you search for their URL and nothing else? What a deal!

Another page has a mysterious note to go pay paypal $99 - but no reference as to why and what you get for that. Just a link to paypal.

There are several sites with the same garbage - I'm guessing he owns them all?

[Sarah]

So I decided to find these people and checked out their client list of ONE site and it really is very amusing. To me anyway

I don't know where any of the meta data is in the code - it may be my totally awesome to the max n00b skills though....

[torka]

From what I can tell (and keep in mind IINAL; I don't even play one on the Internet), he might be in violation of the Hobbs Act. If I'm not mistaken, that would come under the jurisdiction of the Department of Justice to prosecute, with investigative authority going to the FBI.

You can submit a crime tip to the FBI here: https://tips.fbi.gov/

I suspect, though, you might have better luck getting attention for your complaint by calling your nearest local FBI office and asking them the best way to report the activities of this (ahem) "gentleman." I don't know, but I'm guessing the national-level online reporting form gets a lot of activity. Not sure how quickly (if ever) a tip from there might be acted upon. Somebody local looking to make a name for himself might be more inclined to give your story a listen. (Again, this is just speculation on my part. I've never actually had all that much contact with the FBI. )

But just imagine the satisfaction if you could get the entire weight of the US government landing on his sorry

--Torka

[Leann_Pass]

oops!

Okay, I thought I was PMing the stuff to someone - but somehow I accidently posted it - it was only there for a split second. Sorry!

[Comtrad]

Using "Search engines will also sort in the order of relevance - called search results." I went to the movies and found the site. I think we should send the guy the link here, and have him back up his "great service".

[ChipJohns]

We all need to go visit our favorite blogs (and our own) or on our site
and make a post about black hat seo and give his site as an
example of what RIP-OFF and CONS are going around,
using all of HIS keywords... in our posts...

This would bring attention to him...

This is a tactic that WebGuerilla Greg Boser uses, It works pretty good

[kid disco]

OFFTOPIC:

Hey, kid disco, if you're the 2nd best looking internet geek (as you oh so immodestly claim), who's the best lookin'? YOU are, redsonia!

Do you have full copies of the emails Leann? With headers and stuff? I'm even thinking about allowing you to out who they are on this forum because this is simply disgusting.

DO IT! DO IT!!!

[SearchRank]

We all need to go visit our favorite blogs (and our own) or on our site
and make a post about black hat seo and give his site as an
example of what RIP-OFF  and CONS are going  around,
using all of HIS keywords...  in our posts...

This would bring attention to him...

This is a tactic that WebGuerilla Greg Boser uses, It works pretty good

Like this?

[Leann_Pass]

AWESOME DAVID! I just read your blog - Now, everyone with a blog - time to go a bloggin'!

[SearchRank]

I love outing these rotten tomatoes, at least when they are really bad. If I were to try and out all of them, it would be a full time job I suppose.

I enjoyed writing about Traffic Power's tactics before Google lowered the boom on them and then reporting on their downfall afterwards.

[Jill]

Cool...now the legal heat is on you, David.

[Leann_Pass]

Jill, LEGAL? This guy is anything but legal - I think David is just fine.

[Connie]

For those that don't read the on Google's sites to often, they are taking a new approach. Google will not recommend a SEO but they will tell you what to avoid, and link to an article with an example. The article is in regard to a lawsuit published in the Seattle Times. Scroll down to Choose wisely and click on the link.

Google also provides information at the bottom of the page on how to report these kind of companies if a webmaster get hurt by one of them.

Leann thanks for the information. Gives me another scumbag Company to write about.

I like to expose them and name them so there is no doubt who the scumbags are.

Edited by Connie, 15 March 2006 - 02:38 PM.