May 23, 2013 17:43

Breaking Zeek Rewards Update: Zeek Rewards CEO Paul Burks Clarifies Blockage Of Countries & Deactivation of Affiliates Accounts

Apr 8 2012 in Paul Burks, ZeekRewards by Troy Dooly

Yesterday I wrote wrote about an article on Zeek Rewards Oz over at Behind MLM wrote where he stated “Zeek Rewards Banning Members Due To Politics”

Well it seems both Oz and I were both on the right track as to what was going on, however neither of us had it all down. Today Paul Burks the CEO of Zeek Rewards made a public statement at Zeek News clarifying exactly what had taken place and why Zeek Rewards had to block specific countries and deactivate certain Zeek affiliates. Some which may have been members for close to a year.

The U.S. treasury Department administrated the Executive Orders issued by the President against all U.S.A. sanctioned countries. Oz, stated “Political Differences” although some may call it this, a more accurate description might be, “Crimes against their people, or crimes against the U.S.A.” these are the types of countries which are sanctioned. And in the case of Zeek Rewards, have been blocked from the business.

Although the exact Executive Order was not mentioned by Paul Burks, nor were the specific countries, I am providing an example of one such Executive Order, which may be very relevant, based on the Countries listed by Oz, in his article.

Executive Order Sanctioning The Balkans

Here is a copy of Paul Burks public statement published today at Zeek Rewards News

Paul Burks CEO of Zeek Rewards Responds To Bloggers Questions On Blocked Countries

All Zeek Rewards affiliates based on the U.S.A. or Canada need to fully understand, that if they are acting as “mules” people who are acting as U.S.A. based representatives for entities or individuals in any sanctioned country, then those U.S. or Canadian citizens can be charged by their respective countries for crimes which can range up to 30-years in prison, and may be seen as acts of treason depending on the situation. Although in most situations the charges would by civil in nature, if it is found that all parties were acting in a criminal conspiracy of some form, or that the North American citizens were acting as representatives for individuals on the SDN/BPL list (Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) and Blocked Persons List) then criminal charges could apply.

Here is the FAQ covering this sanctioned countries.

Who must comply with the Executive Order?

Online Compliance Guidelines

Troy Dooly

Troy Dooly is recognized internationally as an influencer in the areas of personal branding, leadership development, marketing campaigns, organizational expansion, and corporate launch strategies. Dooly is a speaker, results coach, and radio host. He is a founding member, show host (Beachside CEO) and News Director of the Home Business Radio Network. He is a founding member, and currently serves on the Board of the Association of Network Marketing Professionals

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45 Comments »

  • natasha

    sorry, but i still can`t find neither slovenia neither egipt and belorusia in all this links….in fact like i see it is talking just about western yugoslavia….or i am missing something? ….

    • Troy Dooly

      Natasha,

      What you say is true, and Oz has already mentioned that. However, since none of us have seen actual information from the company stating the six countries Oz listed, I am not sure they are correct. Oz and I both will be working to see if we can find actual documentation from Zeek on which countries.

      I will also continue tomorrow looking through the Treasury Department, and the Department of Justice to see if I can find any of the countries.

      • natasha

        :) wow, thanks, Troy, you are really kind :) ….in fact if these documents would really exist, i would be sad, but at least i would know what was really happened….

        but like it is now the situation, i can say just that we 500 people were banned out of a company for a document which doesn`t exists and this hurt us really a lot…..it is not so nice to work for a company for so much time and one day wake up and see that your account is not anymore active, without any explanation, without any advise, without nothing….and then to try find out answers and see that the answers neither exist!…..and then find out also that no one other still active member care of this, that they are thinking that we are annoying with all this story, that they want we are banned from the forum…..it is really not nice all this situation, Troy, believe me….also for this reason we still more want real answers, not excuses….just real facts! ….

        thanks to will try to help us :)

        • Troy Dooly

          Natasha,

          I can fully understand where you are coming from. When communication is not clear, and we on the outside are doing our best to figure it out, and are in a fog, I am sure it is worst for you on the inside.

          However, I do want to say, just because I used one Executive Order, which listed some countries, doesn't mean an Executive Order doesn't exist for your country, or that a United Nations Sanction doesn't exist.

          Right now it is taking hours to read through all the sanctioned countries and individuals.

          If you send me an email sharing some details on how long you have be in, how you came on board, and which country you are located, I will gladly look into your situation specifically.

          Living An Epic Adventure,
          Troy

          • natasha

            sorry, Troy, but you are really reading these so old laws?!….in fact also if they existed sometimes, these laws surely didn`t come out 28th march 2012….or yes? and if yes, why than the big chief has sent at us these old laws? …..and if the governement would really issued new laws on this day, it would really issued them just for zeekrewards and not also for all other businesses? ….

          • Troy Dooly

            Natasha,

            It is not that fact these laws came out March 28th. However, it could be the company was made aware of the laws on the 28th and that they might be in violation. Many of the laws I reference came out under the Patriot Act, and other financial laws after the attack on the USA on 9/11, and since then.

            There are many companies, especially small companies and their owners who have no idea they are breaking laws, until a regulating body or their compliance team informs them.

            Again, without all the facts, we are speculating on which countries, which individuals, or anything else. I am sure we will get to the bottom of this before it is through.

            I am glad to see the company is willing to pay refunds, to those effected.

            Please keep us posted.

            Living An Epic Adventure,

            Troy

    • gen3benz

      You're not missing anything. Zeek is lying and spewing garbage trying to cover it up. It seems this site is in bed with them as well with their weak analysis.

      Behindmlm is the only site I can find not playing paddy cake and trying to cover up this ponzi.

      Very glad I did not join, now I can just watch it fail without losing a penny.

      • Troy Dooly

        @Gen3Benz,

        I truly find your comment interesting. If you reviewed all that I have written, then you should have no trouble seeing how many red flags I have raised. However, I am also willing to give companies pleny of room to correct issues, when they come to the surface.

        I am also slow to listen to 3rd party sources without being provided valid documentation to prove what the 3rd party source is stating.

        But, since i love the U.S. Constitution, I will gladly give you the limelight to state your opinion.

  • JC

    That sample sanctions was from 2001. The link on ZeekRewardsNews to treasury.org does not mention anything about Slovenia or Egypt to pick two examples of countries where you can find ample evidence of online business to/from the US.

    Slovenia joined the Eurozone in 2007. It has been a member of the EU and NATO since 2004. Nothing on the State Department website mentions any sanctions against Slovenia, Crotia or Macedonia.

    Don't you agree that any MLM company should always lead with transparency? The fact that you and Oz and every other affiliate message board and mailing list is speculating could have been predicted by any MLM executive. You just don't ban large numbers of affiliates all at once with zero notification and zero explanation, especially when one of the key success attributes of the Zeek business model is trust & credibility (i.e. Zeek's business model depends on distributors having faith in the daily profit share, as Zeek does not guarantee a specific ROI).

    The answer that Paul Burks did provide was very flimsy and even ardent supporters have said that the explanation does not past the "smell test". What is my smell test on this issue?

    Let's discuss Slovenia as it has been a topic of discussion at BehindMLM and MMG.

    Consider these facts:

    - Google Adsense, Amazon Associates, and eBay accept affiliates from Slovenia

    - That you can buy from Amazon in Slovenia and pay with a credit card with a Slovenia address.

    - That you can setup an affiliate account at Linkshare, ShareASale, and Commission Junction from Slovenia.

    - That you can open a PayPal account from Slovenia. And we all have seen PayPal to be the very aggressive at staying away from any slightly at risk industry or country, including MLM, investment, lotto, and gambling industries.

    Surely then, whatever US government sanctions Zeek is referring to cannot be the same ones that affects these other internet captains of industry.

    For a company that prides itself in having so many lawyers on staff or retained, along with these top consultants in the MLM industry, why make a move that no other MLM has ever done (banning countries that other MLM's do not)? And why do so in such an opaque manner (affiliate accounts deactivated with zero notice for 10 days until a groundswell of protest arose).

    • Troy Dooly

      JC,

      Help me out… can you provide valid documentation showing that Zeek has specifically notified affiliated form the countries you mentioned that they were suspended due to a US sanction?

      To date neither Oz nor myself have anything from the company specifically only the words of affiliates or competitors.

      Now, let's look at your other questions.

      1. All companies should lead with transparency. However, based on legal counsel, and on common business sense, that does not mean you provide the world with ALL internal issues. Especially if the company may be working with law enforcement to uncover any type of crimes against the U.S. based on government sanction or financial laws on the books. Which is when we have seen happen in the past.

      2. I do agree with you that we are speculating. However, I am not sure any company executive would have guessed that this topic would have gone this viral. I have seen far larger issues with companies never catch the eyes of people, and then this one which is important, but smaller has caught fire. But I am glad to see Paul Burks did come out and explain in a little more detail why there did what they did, and are willing to make legit refunds.

      3. You mention "large numbers" of affiliates. Do you have any official numbers (someone who is in the field who can supply how many in their organization have been suspended?) I do realize the issue has caught fire, but I have not seen very many different people coming forward complaining.

      4. You raise a valid point, with the short notice, and little communication. However, this is not exclusive to Zeek or network marketing. We see this happen in every industry, and more so in politics. I would rather, have Zeek or anyone wait on making a public statement, until they are fully aware of a situation. I do hope we will hear more as this situation unfolds, and I will be asking about it next week.

      5. Again, none of us have any official list and/or documentation from Zeek on which countries are band. Plus, if you read my latest article, I also gave a list of individuals which are sanctioned in the U.S.A. there is a possibility, that some of the people in the additional countries (if those are banned) were suspended because of individual situations.

      You bring up some valid points of thought. But we all need to realize some of what has been published is NOT from affiliates banned, nor is it from outside observers trying to report. Until more facts come out, we are all guessing on what is taking place.

      One thing is for sure, when you are leading the pack as Zeek is right now in the penny auction niche, there are plenty of people who will take aim to get some of the space.

      We will stay on this issue. and thank you for sharing your thoughts.

      • JC

        Troy,

        > can you provide valid documentation showing that Zeek

        > has specifically notified affiliated form the countries

        > you mentioned that they were suspended due to a US

        > sanction?

        > To date neither Oz nor myself have anything from the

        > company specifically only the words of affiliates or

        > competitors.

        Oz and affiliates in the field have already confirmed that they accounts from the following 6 countries were deactivated with no notice:

        Serbia, Slovenia, Belarus, Egypt, Croatia and Macedonia

        I know 4 affiliates from Slovenia and 2 from Croatia that I can put in touch with you directly. They have screenshots from Zeek Rewards live chart and email correspondence from Customer Support that specifically says their accounts were deactivated due to "sanctions" (actual word used).

        If Zeek decided not to do business in a country because they did not want to setup a legal presence there, that is one thing, but then they should be open about it rather than hide behind lack of communication and referring to "sanctions".

        Nowhere in Paul Burks' explanation or any of the explanations given to deactivated affiliates by Live Chat or email to Customer Support does the issue of legal business representation come up. The only issue mentioned on ZeekRewardsNews and the other communication is the list of US government sanctions, of which none of these 6 countries are on.

        So I don't understand what it is your are defending? You say that there does exist some government sanctions (i.e. countries like Cuba, Iran, N. Korea, etc.), but the list that Paul Burks referenced in the ZeekRewardsNews post has nothing to do the 6 countries affected (Serbia, Slovenia, Belarus, Egypt, Croatia and Macedonia).

        And as mentioned here and elsewhere, Slovenia is a member of the EU and NATO since 2004, and a member of the Eurozone since 2007. You can conduct business with Google, Amazon, eBay, PayPal, and many other internet businesses in Slovenia and these other countries. If the issue was SANCTIONS, these other internet businesses could not conduct online financial transactions with these countries. If the issue is simply the cost/complexity of establishing a legal business presence, that's fine, but that is NOT what has been communicated to date anywhere, including in Paul Burk's own blog post.

        I understand your comments about the legal issues around setting up a business in another country. But this has nothing to do with what Paul Burks said.

        JC

        • Troy Dooly

          JC,

          You need to scroll down and read Oz's response to me on this blog. He confirms he has not seen anything officially from the company itself. Everything he has seen has come from what affiliates have stated and other forums and blogs.

          To date, no affiliates has provided me valid documentation from the company on which countries were shut down specifically, or if any of the affiliates shut down in those respective countries to see if they ate listed on the individual list of people sanctioned by the USA.

          Again, if anyone can provide the documentation or the names I will go to work to verify. So please have the affiliates send me a private message through the contact form so I can start tracking their specific situation. Or have them send me an email with the screen shots to TroyDooly@MLMHelpDesk.com

          JC, I am not defending anything. What I am doing is making it very clear, we do not have all the facts. Until all the facts come out, all of us can speculate, like most media outlets seem to do when information breaks and all the facts are not in.

          I am willing to follow the story and get the facts, but I will not just dog a company or distributors without documented facts we can follow.

          Paul did not specifically list any of the countries. I did provide an Executive Order form the site Paul linked to that did list some of the 6 countries Oz listed originally. Somehow you seemed to have missed the very first sanction. I did not list all of the Executive Orders or sanctions. Not did I list each individual, although I did link to the source. I have also made it very clear, if a larger investigation is going on, that the company may not at the advice of the legal counsel or investigating regulating agency disclose everything as of yet. Again this is not defending anything, this is stating facts as to how investigations work, from years of doing it.

          Again, you, me, Oz and other sites have mentioned the six countries. However, I still have not documentation or have I seen any public screen shots from Zeek mentioning any specific countries.

          JC, you bring up some valid points. But until we have all the facts, we are all speculating to some degree. The goal is to get all the facts, and not to just throw just point fingers at the company. I would do the same if it were a distributor on the chopping block. To many times I have seen distributors and companies nailed by myself and others without all the facts. After making this mistake myself in the past I have come to the conclusion, that we must make sure we know everything we can as we move through a story.

          Living An EPic Adventure,

          Troy

    • natasha

      thanks for this great post, JC :) ….

  • JC

    Troy,

    Are you aware that Herbalife does business in Slovenia, Croatia, Egypt, Belarus, and Macedonia? (The country I could not find an active Herbalife presence or corporate website information on was Serbia.)

    Did you know that "Herballife is the proud nutrition sponsor for Macedonia's slalom canoeing athlete, Atanas Nikolovski" and uses Nikolovski as a testimonial and shows the Macedonian flag on its corporate website?

    Would an appropriate question to ask is what is Zeek Rewards doing that is different from Herbalife such that Zeek would ban countries but Herbalife has not after many years of business?

    JC

    • Troy Dooly

      JC,

      You are correct HerbaLife does do business in these countries. However, are you aware of which HerbaLife company is doing business in those countries?

      When a health and nutrition company goes into a foreign country, in most cases (at least in network marketing) they form local corporations to make sure they abide by the laws in those countries.

      You can learn more on this issue at http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/faqs/Sanc…

      Now to answer your question on what Herbalife is doing different.

      1. They are a multi-billion dollar business with a legal team who set them up in each country.
      2. They sell nutritional products which have been approved in each country
      3. They have legal representation in each country they do business.
      4. They are not run a virtual, internet based service, they sell specific products.

      Now, did you know the Primerica is NOT allowed to transact business in the above countries?

      I fully understand where you are coming from. However, we have to compare companies within the same niche to get come to a logical conclusion. A better example might be another penny auction company based in the USA who has been given approval, and finding out what they did to get it.

      And for anyone who might use Dubli Network, just remember, they are NOT a U.S. based company, they are based out of Dubi with their operations based in Germany.

      • natasha

        i must admit that i haven`t read all this your long comments, Troy, however, like i have seen, you are still mentioning the non-sense link where we should find out this law….and i must admit that i am really sorry to see this:( ….in fact with this action i can see that you still believe that this new law really exists?!….Troy, i don`t know so much about the laws and things like this, at least not in your country….however, i know that if this law has started at 28th march 2012, they should give us the link at this new and fresh law and not send us at some laws which are almost older than me!….i am from Slovenia, but when i am talking with American people, not just that they don`t know where it is my country, but they also think that Slovenia is Slovakia!!…so it is logical that also our big chief doesn`t know that Slovenia is in Europe Unite and so not surely aynmore part of Yugoslavia, which doesn`t exist anymore already some years! ….and if i look at Croatia, the same thing!!!….but if you look at Egipt and Belorus…..what have we 6 countries in common?!….sorry, but i really don`t know if to laugh or to cry in this moment……i will just repeat….this law doesn`t exist for no one of these our countries, believe me….and i am sure that they have just done a mistake and that now they are too much proud to admit it….and so are trying to find out any possible excuse, also a nonexistent law….surely hoping that we stupid people will be glad to have see at least one explanation:( ….but we are not asking for an explanation, Troy….we are asking for the right one, not just one!….and this link is surely not the right one….so we will be asking again and again and again….since they will not take their responsability and starting to treat us like all the other human being….not just like useless garbage :( ….

        • Troy Dooly

          Natasha,

          I write the comments to give additional info and thoughts, so we can all realize there is more than we no. As for the links, they go to the very sites Paul mentioned in his post yesterday.

          At no time did I mention any "NEW" law. I have made it clear, that, based on what Paul wrote, there is a federal sanction in place, and it came from an executive order, and/or current federal regulations.

          As I wrote above to you, most of these laws were passed after the USA was attacked on 9/11 2001, and have been going into effect annually ever since. There are so many that small businesses may not even realize they are breaking a lw, until they are informed.

          And you are 100% correct there could be a mistake. However, until we see an official list of the countries sanctioned by Zeek or the individual people, who may be on the sanctioned list, then all we have is 3rd party info from sites like mine, Oz and some of the forums.

          Since Paul was clear they are paying refunds, have you made your request?

          Miss Natasha, I do want to say thank you for sharing with this community.

          Living An Epic Adventure,
          Troy

          • natasha

            thanks for your reply, Troy, also if, like i see, we are speaking also here a different language, not just in reality:) ….however, i hope that at the end of this story (if it will have any end!), we will finally speak the same language, not just you and me, but all people involved in all this stupid story….well, we will see:)

            like i can also see is that you are still waiting for an ufficial list of the countries sanctioned by zeek or any individual people, who may be on the sanctioned list, like you have written…..hm….what i can say on these words? …..in first place, if this list really exist, why the big chief didn`t advise no one of us about it already the day before he has blocked us or at least the day after have done this?! if this list really exist, why that he would tell us now about is – he had the opportunity to tell us all not only at the start, but if not in the start, at least in his last news where he has posted the link of these so important laws? and again, why we people must be glad to have a refund? because if refund means that we must be glad to have our invested money back, i will never ask for a refund, believe me!….in fact i was working for zeek for 11 months and i am asking to be paid for all this time, not just to have back my 30-70$ which i have invested here in the start…..i don`t believe that in your conuntry it is permitted to promise at people to be paid for posting ads and than to not pay neither a cent for the work which it was done, but in the same time earn a lot of money because of all us who have promoted the site for free for so long time…..no way, Troy!….we are asking or to be reactivated or to be paid like we deserve AND to know the real reason why he had blocked all us…..when we will have all this, maybe we will finally be quiet….maybe!

            about the mentioned law…..like i understand our big chief was the first of all possible companyes (amazon and others!) to find out that he shouldn`t make business with these our 6 countries? so all the others poor companyes will be sanctioned with 30 years of prison?…wow, he probably now sleep well:) ….non.-sense, i repeat

            another thing which i have noticed when i have read another time this so kind letter from our chief…..if you look at his first sentence, he has written this letter not because he would felt the need to explain at all us what is happening and to apologize with us or something like this ….NO! he has decided to write this letter because of some posts in the forums!!:((( …so sad, uh:((( ….if we would not talk all arround the forums about all this, we would never see any explanation from him, any!!!….we don`t deserve neither it after have promote for free his company almost one entire year?!!!! …..and after have never seen neither one cent from this so great business opportunity?!!!…..you surely can`t imagine how this is humiliating, but believe me, that it is also more than you can imagine…..also more….:((

            anyway, when you will maybe find the possbility to talk with this person, tell him that we want an real explanation and not just any list and if he will write this list, we want to have specificated for all the contries, one to one, why they were blocked…..not that he again send us on an link old some years…..we want the link (which doesn`t exist, of course!) where we can see for example "egipt blablabla, slovenia blablabla, croatia blablabla…and so long)…..in fact we are too much stupid to understand nothing else than direct words…..so…just direct explanation, nothing else!

  • Greg

    Awesome work Troy! You are a true service to the MLM/Network Marketing world. Whether people are for or against Zeek, they need to seek out the truth and not some internet garbage. Thanks for staying neutral and just reporting the facts! Seems like people sometimes take things out of context with just a shred of truth to try and put something down that they don't understand. Zeekler and ZeekRewards looks solid to me and I would happily invite my friends and family members to look into it. Thanks again and keep up the great work!

    • Troy Dooly

      Greg,

      Thanks for the support. Lord knows when we report on hot topics, the emotions run high on all sides. :)

  • Morten

    @Troy

    I believe you can get the facts from Paul or Dawn at ZR, which countries and how many affiliates they have banned.

    The number of affiliates in these countries published on BehindMLM was only an estimated number, from some of the affiliates themselves – estimated to 500 affiliates total. I don't believe the number was exaggerated, but people will usually prefer facts rather than estimates.

    By the way, the few people who have checked the Executive Order and related documents more closely doesn't seem to believe in Paul Burks' story. It would be too weird if all 500 affiliates in 6 countries were on that specific list of persons/companies previously engaged in war crimes or terrorism – where some of these crimes dates back to 1992/1993.

    If all affiliates in those 6 countries are on that list, then Zeek Rewards will probably have a similar problem in most other countries, too.

    By the way, the Executive Order is from June 2001, a few months before 9/11. And the order is mostly about property in the U.S., belonging to persons and companies in foreign countries (individually listed on a list). OFAC = Office of Foreign Assets Control.

    @Greg

    I agree with you. Most of us will happily invite your family and friends to look into all kinds of opportunities.

    • Troy Dooly

      Morton,

      Thank you for coming by and adding additional information. Please remember I used the Executive Order, not Paul. And I used it as an example, not to specify that it was the exact Order.

      I do plan on talking with Paul and Dawn to get more of the facts.

      Now in digging a little deeper into what laws might come into play in a situation like this, even though Paul did not mention them at all, I have come across three which might apply if any of the affiliates in these countries fall into these categories.

      USA PATRIOT Act, Title III

      RICO Act

      Bank Secrecy Act

      The reason I bring these up is because of one small paragraph in Paul's statement:

      Because many of them appear to have been enrolled by US affiliates who made payments for them, we have not been able to identify all of these for refunding. If you have been affected by this and have not yet been refunded all that you purchased please use this special dedicated email address to contact us:

      Plus, if a W-8 was not completed by the affiliates in this issue, then U.S. Tax Code violations could come into play for the U.S. based affiliates also.

      This is truly an interesting situation, but we will figure it out. If not this week, then when I am there next week.

      • Morten

        Most of us are not professional lawyers, and that certainly includes Paul Burks too. I will usually avoid studying laws too deeply, and instead use a professional lawyer or the correct authority if a case is important to me. This case is first of all important for the parties involved, but less important for most others.

        When dealing with laws, people should first of all identify the "principles" used in legislation, like being able to identify whether they're studying the correct law, or if other laws are involved and are more correct to use. In this case, it seems like Paul Burks has identified a law (Executive Order) that doesn't apply to the situation. I don't think he has used a professional lawyer here.

        Since I'm not a qualified lawyer, it would be meaningless for me if I try to interpret other laws, like the Patriot Act, RICO Act or Banking laws. It will only make the situation become more vague and diffuse if we start looking for "appropriate laws" that can be used when the first one seems to fail. I don't see any reasons for why we should involve other laws here?

        Besides, ZR have already identified the laws they have used and how they have interpreted them – as an embargo against ALL citizens in specific countries. It would be very unprofessional if they later starts to mix in "other possible laws" without being specific.

        My impression here is that they haven't used a professional lawyer in this case, and they have probably misinterpreted some existing laws. OFAC and related embargos seems to be about property in the U.S., not about citizens in other countries in general. The persons and companies they relates to are specified on a list, and most of them have been involved in war crimes or terrorism.

        Termination of membership based on an incorrect law will probably be "illegal" (invalid) in itself. It will certainly not be possible to defend it in court, using an incorrect law as the only defense.

      • Morten

        One reader on BehindMLM have received an answer from OFAC:

        ***********************************

        Dear xxxx

        The U.S. does not currently maintain any sanctions against Slovenia. For a complete list of sanctions programs and OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals List, please see the following links.

        http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/sanctions… http://www.treasury.gov/sdn

        Best regards,

        OFAC Compliance

        ***********************************

        Source:
        http://behindmlm.com/companies/zeek-rewards/zeek-…

        It seems like he has only asked about Slovenia, but he got an answer rather quickly – in 1 or 2 days. Most of the reactions have also been related to Slovenia, since the country is member of EU and NATO (from 2007 and 2004)..

        • Troy Dooly

          Morten,

          Thank you for sharing this information.

          Again, we all need to remember, that so official list of banned countries have been provided by Zeek. So, until we see an official list, we have no idea if the folks suspended were on an individual sanctioned list or what.

          I have publicly asked for folks to send me validation that they personally had received notice from Zeek that their specific country was banned, and no one has sent anything to date.

          As for the letter above, we pretty much already knew that information.

          • natasha

            Troy….we were about 50 people from slovenia in zeek and about 80 in croatia and all of us know at least one of them, so the information was out really quickly….the big chief has blocked all of us, believe me….and also if you are still waiting for the ufficial list…..our voices don`t mean nothing also for you? :( ….if the big chief would tell you that it is not true that he has blocked all the members, this means that you would believe at him and not at us? :( ….just look at the usernames krompir, mala22, eleonora, zeekslo…..all my referrals (2 of them my children!!!)….these accounts are active?!!! ….

          • Troy Dooly

            Miss Natasha,

            First let me say, I can fully understand the emotions, well anger you must be having. However, when I see situations take place, my job is not to fall on one sinde or another, until all the facts are in.

            When I say I want to see an official list, it is because right now, all I have seen is what has been written by 3rd party people in forums, blogs and communities like this one. Yet, not one single person can show where any Zeek representative officially told them a specific country was shut down. Yes, Paul did make it clear he was using Dept. of Treasury sanctions as the basic of the move he directed his team to carry out. However, at know time has he said, this is the only directive he was using. Since Paul and Zeek have decided to stay silent at this time, I have to continue to gather info, and wait until we hear more.

            I know you are staying numbers and others have also. Although, you're are a far smaller than some I have been given by 3rd party sources.

            As for your voices meaning nothing, then you much know have been following me or the organization I represent, otherwise you would know ALL members of The Association of Network Marketing Professionals listen and care about the voices of distributors in ALL companies.

            However, listening to voices, is far different than taking sides in an issue before all the facts are in. Here is what will happen before this issue is done.

            1. We will find Zeek protected the whole organization for the dishonest activity of a few. Or,

            2. We will find Zeek was directed by their compliance team to shut down these countries because they are not authorized to oporate in those countries.

            3. Zeek just decided to shut down a few countries for no reason.

            Now, as for your comment stating "….if the big chief would tell you that it is not true that he has blocked all the members, this means that you would believe at him and not at us?" I can understand why you state that, but what you may not realize is most of us are tracking the traffic to the site. We can see which countries are slowing down and which ones are not slowing down. Before to long we will be able to take a calculated guess on which countries are banned.

            As for your last statement, I just don't understand it. Otherwise I would have answered it.

            Living An Epic Adventure,
            Troy

  • http://behindmlm.com OzSoapbox

    Zeekler Scam? FTC says All Penny Auctions Spell Trouble

    http://kingofhowto.com/Shopping/zeekler-scam-penn…

    Your comment is awaiting moderation.

    • Troy Dooly

      Oz,

      Thanks for sharing. I finally tracked down the FTC report, and will report it in a post so it doesn't get lost.

    • Ryan

      Oz,

      The FTC report does not specifically name Zeekler. It is talking about all penny auctions. Why do you need to put "Zeekler Scam?" when the FTC Report does not mention any specific penny auction. You seem to be so biased against Zeek that you are not capable of reporting fairly on this or any other topic regarding Zeek.

      • Troy Dooly

        Ryan,
        Watch for my next report out in about 30 min, I cover this fact.

        • http://behindmlm.com OzSoapbox

          Just a note, I did not leave the above comment. Some clown is trying to add more weight to their comments by publishing under my name.

          • Troy Dooly

            Oz, You are correct, I just checked the IPs. I will correct the comments and update the post. However, it is still a good FTC Alert and is relevant for distributors and Auction bidders to understand :) Seems the IP is located in Israel

  • natasha

    Troy, i am not angry, believe me….i take the situation like it is and this is all….anyway, i must admit that when people have before their eyes the facts and they just don`t want to see them….well, then i become angry, yes…especially because i don`t know so much good english to can say better what i am meaning….in fact it is really frustrating to know that real facts don`t exist, but that you are still trying to find them out….if the big chief really would wanted to write all about our countries, he would already done this the day before or after he has blocked us, not just when he has seen that we have made so much noise on forums!!….and also in those moment he have written just something to make us quiet….and like i can see, for you these were facts and now you are waiting for other similar facts? ….for me facts from a real company are real documents, not just words of the big chief…..words are words….your, mine, his, their….just words….we can all say what we want….but facts are not the same thing, not in the real company….or yes? ….

    • Troy Dooly

      natasha,

      There are always facts. And where the internet is concerned, there is always a trail to follow.

      • http://www.myleftclick.com Dragica Mitrovic

        But I still have not got my refund. I wrote three times, sent them all dates they asked and nothing happened.

        • Troy Dooly

          @Dragica,

          Send me a private email at TroyDooly@MLMHelpDesk.com and give me all the specifics. Copies of the emails you sent, and let me see if I can find out more. Since you did not state when you sent them, for all I know it may just not have come up yet. With the growth of Zeek it does take a bit to get through all the support tickets etc.

          • Me Personally

            Same with me, six days ago I have also sent an email with request to get back funds I have invested for one of my deactivated affiliates and have not received nothing until today. I sent an email with all information they required in their note to the address they have opened for such refunds (zeekOFACrefunds@gmail.com) and they are not dealing with any other issues but such refunds there.

            Can you get an information how long they need to make refunds?

          • Troy Dooly

            @Me Personally,

            Because so many people who were not entitled to refunds have sent in emails, it has slowed down the process.

            Since folks from other companies and folks who have never been part of Zeek sent in emails, you can expect a delay.

  • Me Personally

    Thank you!

  • Stefan

    @Troy,

    I asked for refund 15 days ago-without response so far. Is that normal?

    • Troy Dooly

      @stefan,

      Based on the amount of fraudulent refund emails sent in, it is taking long for the team to process each email. They have hired more folks to help in just about every area in the company.

      • Me Personally

        Hi Troy, today I got a reply from ZEEK support when I asked why some of my silver affiliates dissapeared from my downline in the time of "removing" certain countries.

        This is my ticket:

        Issue Description:Can you please check why my silver downline affiliates are missing? Their usernames are:

        xxx, xxx and xxx.

        Also, there are some other affiliates that are no longer on my sponsorship report (e.g. xxx, xxx, xxx).

        Can you please check it out?

        Thank you!

        This is the answer I've got:

        Notes:**Note by S, Adrian, 10-May-2012:

        Thank you for contacting Zeek support.

        At one time we were having system issues which did create problems for many members accounts.

        The IT dept has since corrected these problems and you should be able to perform functions in your account as normal.

        We do apologize for the delays.

        If you have any further questions or concerns please feel free to contact support.

        Thank you

        Support.

        ZeekRewards

        Still refusing to say straight?

        BTW, in a few days it will be one month since my refund request and it's still not here.

        Your comment please?

        • Troy Dooly

          @Me Personally,

          Well first of all, I am glad to see you got a response, which does show they are getting ahead of the tickets and getting caught up.

          Now to the issue at hand. Since I am not a part of Zeek, I may ask a few questions that just seem elementary so please give me a little room for ignorance if I ask what seems like a question I should know the answer too.

          1. If some of the silver affiliates were in the countries banned or were individuals they banned, could that be a reason some of the Silver's are not missing?

          2. Could some of the missing affiliates (not the silvers) also be from these countries or individuals banned?

          Now as for the answer you purport (I am not questioning your integrity, I just have not seen the original response), I have to admit, it is ambiguous, and does not answer your original questions at all. It is better to not answer, or to let the person asking the question know, research into the specific issue is being done, and someone will get back quickly, than to give an answer, that does not have anything to do with your specific issue.

          And, since we are on this subject, one of my pet peeves, is when I receive and email or ticket response from any company and it is signed "Support, accounting," etc." If I am giving someone my name, than the least they can do is give me theirs so I can hold someone accountable for their answer.

          In this case if "S. Adrian" amde the note, then S. Adrian should sign the note :)

          Send me a private email at troydooly@mlmhelpdesk.com and provide me your Zeek login name, so I can send a direct email asking about this and a couple of others. Maybe we can get direct answers to how it is being addressed.

          Living An Epic Adventure,
          Troy

  • Davorin

    from username: zeekslo

    Hello Troy!

    I come from Slovenia and was a member of zeek rewards-and yes I too was banned or deactivated-so everything thast natasha said is completly true…and yes I am fully convinced that zeek rewards is a scam.

    You ask why:

    First of all they had no restrictuions on theaking my money in the begining, when I was investing and working…but all on the sudden-when its pay day you get some stupid explanation.

    - I say stupid first becouse you just have to read the whole document and see that all the sanctions have been suspended in 2003…

    -and yes Slovenia is a member of Europen union-so zeek rewards has a problem doing buissness with european union

    -so far I have send 6 e-mail to different addreses for a refund( on all the e-mails that have been provided for sending documentation for a refund…and yes i have stated all the information asked from me)-so far not even a schread of a reply

    -and may i ask if zeek rewards wants all the data of my payments to zeek rewards-dosent it have information on my payments…like any even the smallest company-not worldwide affiliate company-tell me how do they pay tax-es if they dont have information on my payments-or is this simply a diversion to ask something from me so that they are buying on time

    - and finaly-all the sudden live chat dosent work…and since I cant go in the back office to send a ticket-how can i contact with my complains…calling on the phone-from Slovenia-so that I will not only be scamed on the invested money( max silver) but also make a huge telephone bill-is that the solution!

    Troy-if you take in consideration all the data that I have give you-the conclusion is ovious-zeek rewards is a scam. And I can say with total assurance that I will never see money from zeek rewards-not the invested, and surtenly not earned. But that leaves me with only one purpose-to talk on as much sites about the scam that zeek rewards is!

    If you have any explanation I would be greatful!

    Thank you in advance!

    username: zeekslo

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