On August 17, 2017, it was announced that a federal court had entered a temporary restraining order to put a halt to a deceptive work-at-home scheme. The defendants are accused of luring customers into purchasing an online system with false promises that they’ll earn thousands of dollars working from home in their spare time.
The defendants in the case were operating under various names, including Work At Home EDU, Work At Home Ecademy, Work At Home Program, Work At Home University, Work at Home Institute, and Work At Home Revenue. The defendants frequently claimed that consumers could earn “hundreds of dollars per hour from home, without any special skills or experience.”
The defendants relied on native advertising to reach consumers that were searching for work-at-home opportunities. Many of the programs were set up through the ClickBank and Offer Vault platforms. The Work At Home EDU site encourages members to become affiliates with both platforms in order to gain customers for their new Internet marketing business.
Despite the defendants’ claims, consumers that purchased the work-at-home opportunities and attempted to implement the Internet marketing techniques were unlikely to earn the income that is promised. The defendants in the case have been listed below.
- Bob Robinson LLC – A Texas LLC
- Mega Export 2005 Inc. – A Canadian corporation
- Mega Export USA Inc. – A Delaware corporation
- Netcore Solutions LLC – A Texas LLC
- Bobby J. Robinson – Manager of Bob Robinson LLC and Netcore Solutions LLC
- Michael Sirois – Officer of Mega Export 2005 Inc. and Mega Export USA Inc.
The Commission voted 2-0 to authorize the staff to file the complaint. The temporary restraining order was entered against the defendants on August 8, 2018. The FTC has also requested a preliminary injunction to halt the scheme until the trial. The court has set an evidentiary hearing for August 24, 2017.
At this point in time, the defendants are innocent. The case will be decided by a court in the future.