You really want believe this... biggest ppc scammer ever!

[Skitals]

I almost cant believe my eyes... I cant believe handango never shut him down before! This makes me sick. Look at some of his 'software'

I found out about this guy because someone posted about his Upgrade 2003 software which supposedly upgrades ANY ppc 2002 device to 2003. I feel bad because a LOT of people have bought the following software... none of which obviously does anything.


ZVC scam list
(http://www.handango.com/PlatformTopSoftware.jsp?siteId=1&jid=7EBX6F99FFD2A286D8DEA9875D9E727B&platformId=2&title=ZVC&authorId=87726)

battery booster:
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev012.gif

speed 2003 (note that there is also a version for 2002):
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev4.jpg

here's a really funny one.. i cant believe 35 people actually bought it:
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev048.jpg

Dont forget the virus scanner/firewall!
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev36.jpg


This one magically creates more memory! "This program adds 16MB of virtual memory to your device when no space left."
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev05.gif

And the wonderful hour loggin app, which is just an excel file! (85 buyers)
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev020.jpg

And we cant forget the infamous upgrade 2003 app, which upgrades ANY ppc to 2003.
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev02.jpg

[`helios]

For the 'Hours Report' program, did you ever consider that the excel file might be an output from the actual program??

[rhmorrison]

Caveat Emptor

- the full wording of the legal maxim that we know as "let the buyer beware" in Latin is Caveat Emptor, quia ignorare non debuit quod ius alienum emit. Which, in case your Latin is a bit rusty, means, "Let the purchaser beware, for he ought not to be ignorant of the nature of the property, which he is buying from another party."

This guy makes me sick...

I gues you have to balance this against the many very fine freeware programs that are made available to the community. Since he doesn't have the skill to produce a 'real' application he just uses it as a skam to rip people off. Very SAD indeed!

[Enderet]

Thanks for warning us... :D

[Dave Beauvais]

For all the good it will do, I just sent feedback to Handango customer support asking that they remove this a-hole's fraudulent software from their listings, and possibly ban everything from their site. In the case of "Upgrade 2003," I explained why this software was completely bogus, and that even if it could upgrade any Pocket PC 2002 device, why it would most certainly be illegal to distribute in this manner.

I urge others to contact them, as well. (See the customer support link at the bottom of most of their pages and click the feedback link.) Thanks for bringing this issue up, Skitals.

--Dave

[Kirk Stephens]

Lets rally the geeks and form a vigilante posse
:evil:

[Skitals]

The sad thing is with the hidden file cleaner, virus scanner, speed booster, etc... you have no way of knowing it doesnt do crap.

If you look at his other software he has two calculator apps that seem to be real. Given that he cant even make a fake program LOOK real (I would be a much better scam artist them him), I wouldnt be suprised if the calcs he made were just demo's that came with his sdk. Same reason I doubt he actually wrote software that outputs an excel file. And even if it was for real, would you want to buy software written by a known scam artist? (ppc 2003 upgrade is the only one that I can PROVE is fake without owning any).

Scarey part is if I had just seen the speed booster, I wouldnt have thought it was fake (just had a REALLY bad gui). The reason I listed all of them is so if anyone was planning on purchasing any of it, DONT!

[Janak Parekh]

Lets rally the geeks and form a vigilante posse
:evil:
Just contact Handango politely, and explain the situation to them. I'm sure they don't want vaporware and fake software sitting on their shelves...

--janak

[SlimDady]

Well ive the guy credit.. he has people falling for it..



If they are that dumb they should learn from a mistake like buying that.


Really, he just making money off stupid people.. who cares about them

:)

[tialoc]

Well ive the guy credit.. he has people falling for it..

If they are that dumb they should learn from a mistake like buying that.

Really, he just making money off stupid people.. who cares about them

:)

ok, I'll bite.. (eventhough this seems like a feeble attempt to start a flame war)

C'Mon Slimdady, do you really think that's a reasonable attitude. There are a lot of people out there that only buy their PPC's for work and scheduling (Can you believe that?) that can't be considered 'geeks'. they don't know what's possible and what's not. Handango for the most part seems like a site that can be trusted...

Maybe I need to look at the world through Slimdady's shades and realize that everyone is as smart as he is.

[WyattEarp]

Well ive the guy credit.. he has people falling for it..



If they are that dumb they should learn from a mistake like buying that.


Really, he just making money off stupid people.. who cares about them

:)

Be warned :!: :!: :!: Don't be so judgemental. Any one of us could be caught by a scam like this. It's just that this one seems very obvious especially to those of us who are in "The Know". Remember none of us we born knowing what a palmtop was. Never forget your humble beginnings.

People like that who sell these fraudulent types of software make it more difficult and more expensive to get quality software at a decent price. This behavior affects all of us in the long run.

[jd4science]

Anyone else notice that on the "battery booster" thing, between when the battery is low and higher, there is a 15 minute time frame. Ha! :D


Justin.

[Thefo]

FYI...I started a similar thread at Brighthand regarding the same subject...this guy needs to be stopped.

http://discussion.brighthand.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=82148

[Thinkingman]

When you sent Handango that warning, did you have to leave your email? The reason I ask, is because I am wondering if they will be getting back to you, and if so I would like to know their response to your message. IN the mean time people are still buying that software. :evil:
Maybe it would be good for those who dont know, how you were able to tell by looking at it why it was bogus. For those who arent that in depth in the knowledge of the ppc as you are:) Maybe some newbies around.

[Pony99CA]

here's a really funny one.. i cant believe 35 people actually bought it:
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev048.jpg

Actually, this is one that might be believable. There are programs that clean your Temp directory and other temporary files, some automatically after a soft reset.

I'm not saying it is legit, but why can't you believe people would buy it?

Steve

[Pony99CA]

As others seem to be contacting Handango, I thought I'd give this guy some User Feedback and save users from getting scammed while Handango is investigating this.

I posted this in the page advertising his "upgrade" to Pocket PC 2003 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?catalog=1&jid=61331447CA2XX8AABA9AABAADD1CE545&productId=79319&authorId=87726&sectionId=0&productType=2&siteId=1&platformId=2):

Do people actually believe a program for $10 can upgrade their Pocket PCs? Even if this were possible, do you think it would be legal? How many people think Microsoft would allow someone to distribute their code?

Also, upgrades to Windows Mobile 2003 are dependent on the company that made your Pocket PC. They have to customize the OS that Microsoft gives them to ensure it works with their hardware, and to add any additional customizations.

Please don't waste your money buying this (or many of the other programs by this company).

I wonder if Handango will keep it.

Steve

[Skitals]

here's a really funny one.. i cant believe 35 people actually bought it:
http://www.handango.com/pictures/87726/zeev048.jpg

Actually, this is one that might be believable. There are programs that clean your Temp directory and other temporary files, some automatically after a soft reset.

I'm not saying it is legit, but why can't you believe people would buy it?

Steve

I do think people would buy this software... that's the problem. Now that we know he is releases blatently fake software (2003 upgrade) chances are his other stuff is fake... and if not would you want to buy from a scam artist? I posted it to make the public aware of him and his other software.

[Dave Beauvais]

When you sent Handango that warning, did you have to leave your email? ...
I left a throw-away Hotmail address just in case they want to share that with the (ahem) "developer." I didn't want a "real" address to fall into this person's hands. If I do hear anything back from them, I'll post here.

--Dave

[Pony99CA]

I do think people would buy this software... that's the problem. Now that we know he is releases blatently fake software (2003 upgrade) chances are his other stuff is fake... and if not would you want to buy from a scam artist? I posted it to make the public aware of him and his other software.
I understand why you posted about this guy, and I'm glad you did (not that I'd have bought any of that). I was just wondering why you were surprised that people would buy software claiming to eliminate hidden files. That didn't seem very odd to me.

If you just meant that the software looked crappy, and you couldn't believe people would pay for that, I agree. However, that critique would apply to most of ZVC's work. Why was the hidden file program any more surprising than those equally crappy, yet more far-fetched, programs?

Steve

[Skitals]

I guess after seeing the whole picture it was suprising that anyone would buy any of it, but you are right if you just saw that one (or one of the others) anyone could have fallen for it.

[Kirk Stephens]

Just contact Handango politely, and explain the situation to them. I'm sure they don't want vaporware and fake software sitting on their shelves...

--janak

Where is the fun in that? We could round up a bunch of pick-up trucks, put our coon huntin' rifles in the gun racks :armed: ...wear our best sunday over-alls...get pitch-forks, 2x4s, torches, and some pick-axes and show this guy not to mess with the wonderful people who use the pocket pc platform :twak:


jk of course :wink:

[JvanEkris]

Spread the word to our board as well. Some people were wondering if the PPC2003 update was for real........

Looks like Handango has to get a bit more agressive in filtering the rubbish from the good stuf, IMHO.

Jaap

[Janak Parekh]

I posted this in the page advertising his "upgrade" to Pocket PC 2003 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?catalog=1&jid=61331447CA2XX8AABA9AABAADD1CE545&productId=79319&authorId=87726&sectionId=0&productType=2&siteId=1&platformId=2)
Hmm, it's no longer there. Was it listed as a User Review? Something very weird is going on.

--janak

[Jerry Raia]

Where is the fun in that? We could round up a bunch of pick-up trucks, put our coon huntin' rifles in the gun racks ...wear our best sunday over-alls...get pitch-forks, 2x4s, torches, and some pick-axes and show this guy not to mess with the wonderful people who use the pocket pc platform

I like this approach much better :twisted:

[Dave Beauvais]

I posted this in the page advertising his "upgrade" to Pocket PC 2003 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?catalog=1&jid=61331447CA2XX8AABA9AABAADD1CE545&productId=79319&authorId=87726§ionId=0&productType=2&siteId=1&platformId=2)
Hmm, it's no longer there. Was it listed as a User Review? Something very weird is going on.
When you leave feedback for or a review of a piece of software, there's a note on the screen that states Handango must approve the message before it's posted. I guess it cuts down on spam and off-topic posts.

--Dave

[David Prahl]

Let's track 'em down and hack 'em down!

Somebody get me an IP address 'cause I'm gonna start a DDoS attack!

:robot: Mister, you just ticked off the wrong group of geeks... :robot:

:2gunfire:
:2gunfire:
:2gunfire:
:snipersmile:

[Dave Beauvais]

... Somebody get me an IP address 'cause I'm gonna start a DDoS attack! ...
Yeah, because that would make everything better... :roll:

--Dave

[David Prahl]

At least that's how our government thinks these days... :wink:

[jd4science]

:robot: Mister, you just ticked off the wrong group of geeks... :robot:

:D:D:D :twisted: 8) :devilboy:

[Pony99CA]

We could round up a bunch of pick-up trucks, put our coon huntin' rifles in the gun racks :armed: ...wear our best sunday over-alls...get pitch-forks, 2x4s, torches, and some pick-axes and show this guy not to mess with the wonderful people who use the pocket pc platform :twak:
Good luck driving those pickups over to Israel (where his E-mail address is located). :-)

Steve

[Pony99CA]

I posted this in the page advertising his "upgrade" to Pocket PC 2003 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?catalog=1&jid=61331447CA2XX8AABA9AABAADD1CE545&productId=79319&authorId=87726§ionId=0&productType=2&siteId=1&platformId=2)
Hmm, it's no longer there. Was it listed as a User Review? Something very weird is going on.
When you leave feedback for or a review of a piece of software, there's a note on the screen that states Handango must approve the message before it's posted. I guess it cuts down on spam and off-topic posts.

Apparently my "review" wasn't accepted. Imagine that. :-D

Steve

[David Prahl]

Darn! They took it off! :D

If anyone remembers the GTLD ("@domain.com"), please let me know. I want to run NeoTrace and find out EXACTLY where he is...(or his mail server is).

By the way, you can get NeoTrace from download.com. It's AWESOME! Honestly, this is THE NERDIEST utility EVER!

[ombu]

8O Hey, stop this, once for all!!! Don't you belive in the FREE MARKET economy? Everybody is free to produce and sell goods and services which are not clearly banned by law.

What makes you think a PPC 2003 upgrade could not be reduced to a a little file? Let the man sell his merchandise and stop this no-sense/fascist/geek campaign. Period. :agrue:

BTW, if somebody is interested, I've got an AS ver without bugs, syncs flawless, no dups, works with two or more desktops, quick 56 K download, works with OL, Lotus Notes and Palm Desktop, and it's only $9.99. Not at Handango due to high costs and a bunch of geeks out there blasting small/smart s/w developers. :mrgreen:

[droppedd]

yeah, and i've got a nice piece of beachfront real estate for you to invest in. :twisted:

[Raynne]

Unfortunately, the people buying his software are either young or new to the Pocket PC scene. I knew it was bogus when I saw it a few days ago and also emailed Handango with no result.
I read on another board that handango doesn't allow bad reviews, they just send them to the developer.

[Jerry Raia]

I read in a newsgroup that Handango has pulled the bogus software and refunded people who bought the stuff.

[Pony99CA]

Darn! They took it off! :D

If anyone remembers the GTLD ("@domain.com"), please let me know.
I just went to the page that I linked to. His E-mail address is [email protected]. Post any findings back here.

Steve

[David Prahl]

I'm no private investigator or anything, :) but here's what I found...

He/she HAS done other illegal software dealings in the past. Apparently this person re-sold someone else's product without asking.

from http://www.grahamkendall.net/HP48-49/A126

"This creep [email protected] is selling Emu48CE with Murray's kml
script! Doesn't this break about a dozen laws? I've gotten no response
to my complaints to handango. Is anyone else as disgusted as I am
about this?
For those who may not be aware, Emu48CE is freely available here:
http://www.hpcalc.org/hp48/pc/emulators/emu48ce.exe
The kml shown at handango is available here:
http://www.hpcalc.org/hp49/pc/emulators/emu-ppc48-49.zip"

Using NeoTrace Pro, I found this...
http://home.new.rr.com/prahl/e.bmp

more data later...

[Janak Parekh]

I'm no private investigator or anything, :) but here's what I found...

He/she HAS done other illegal software dealings in the past. Apparently this person re-sold someone else's product without asking.

from http://www.grahamkendall.net/HP48-49/A126

"This creep [email protected] is selling Emu48CE with Murray's kml
script! Doesn't this break about a dozen laws? I've gotten no response
to my complaints to handango. Is anyone else as disgusted as I am
about this?
Ah, that explains why one of his programs looks legit. Geez, this guy seems like he's a total crook. :?

--janak

[Pony99CA]

Using NeoTrace Pro, I found this...

That NeoTrace image isn't very useful, is it? It shows he's somewhere in the Middle East, and I already said he was in Israel (or his E-mail address is, at least). I got that much from the domain name.

Maybe NeoTrace could show you the city he's in (more accurately, the city that domain is registered in) with a more detailed map, but doing WHOIS would also tell you that.

The cool factor is high, though.

Steve

[David Prahl]

I ran out of time!

I'll post any other helpful images (in JPEG this time) later today. I'm working at a remote location now... :cry:

[Skitals]

Yeah, and you know how good us americans are at finding people in the middle east :lol:

[Thinkingmandavid]

Please put whatever else you find out throught the trace on here for us all to see. It appears that punk is a scam arist taking everyone's money that doesnt know any better.
You would think that Handango would be kind enough to acknowledge taht it was found, fraud, and to thank you for bringing it to their attention. 8O
:?:
Some of it is common sense, 9.99 out of no where, should have told a lot. I think a lot of people just buy if it SOUNDS good but dont take good judgment into count.

[Thinkingmandavid]

Lasher, were you able to confirm that Handango refunded these people their money back? It would be the right thing to do. YOu know what I am wondering? Doesn't Handango check the legitimacy of the softwrae before they allow it to be sold? It seems to me they were duped as were those who bought it.

[Hyperluminal]

Well, I just went to his site on Handango, and it looks like he was pulled...

[David Prahl]

Everything You'd Ever want to know about [email protected]

Here are two screenshots from NeoTrace Pro (BMP, sorry!), followed by information about the last node. Don't make any threats to the registrant, because they're just the ISP admin. Perhaps they could tell us who [email protected] is, though.

This is your information, guys, and I am not responsible for what you do with it... :wink:
http://home.new.rr.com/prahl/1.bmp

http://home.new.rr.com/prahl/2.bmp

FROM NEO TRACE...
Summary
Name: mail.barak-online.net
IP Address: 212.150.48.118
Location: Petah Tiqwa (32.100N, 34.950E)
Network: BARAK-3

[email protected] is possibly a valid email address.
The SMTP server (mail.barak-online.net) responded: 502 Command is locally disabled

Registrant:
Barak ITC (BARAK-ONLINE2-DOM)
15, haMelaha St
Rosh Ha'ayin (Park Sibel), ISRAEL 48091
IL

Registrant
Barak ITC (BARAK-ONLINE2-DOM)
15, haMelaha St..
Rosh Ha'ayin (Park Sibel), ISRAEL 48091
IL

Domain Name: BARAK-ONLINE.NET

Administrative Contact:
Meir, Cohen (CMJ552) [email protected]
Barak ITC
15 Ha-Melaha St Park Sibel
48091 ROSH HA-AYIN
ISRAEL
Rosh Ha-Ayin 48091
ISR
972-3-900-1340 fax: 972-3-900-1796
Technical Contact:
Barak ITC (HO1606-ORG) [email protected]
15, ha-Melaha St.
Rosh Ha'ayin (Park Sibel), Rosh Ha'ayin (Park Sibel)
IL
+972-3-900-1647 fax: +972-3-900-1505

Record expires on 03-Mar-2005.
Record created on 30-Sep-2002.
Database last updated on 1-Jul-2003 16:56:46 EDT.

Domain servers in listed order:

NS.BARAK.NET.IL 212.150.48.169
CUSTDNS.BARAKITC.CO.IL 206.49.94.234

Network
This is the RIPE Whois server.
The objects are in RPSL format.

Rights restricted by copyright.
See http://www.ripe.net/ripencc/pub-services/db/copyright.html

inetnum: 212.150.46.0 - 212.150.49.255
netname: BARAK-3
descr: Barak WAN Connection
country: IL
admin-c: AD1327-RIPE
tech-c: IM460-RIPE
status: ASSIGNED PA
mnt-by: RIPE-NCC-NONE-MNT
changed: [email protected] 20000706
source: RIPE

person: Assaf Dahary
address: Barak I.T.C
address: 15 Hmelacha St Rosh Ha'ayin
address: Israel 48091
phone: + 972 3 9001900
fax-no: + 972 3 9001796
e-mail: [email protected]
nic-hdl: AD1327-RIPE
notify: [email protected]
changed: [email protected] 20010726
source: RIPE

person: Ilan Mishali
address: Barak I.T.C
address: Hamelacha 15
address: Rosh Ha'ayin, 48091
address: Israel
phone: +972 3 9001113
fax-no: +972 3 9001515
e-mail: [email protected]
nic-hdl: IM460-RIPE
notify: [email protected]
changed: [email protected] 19980901
source: RIPE

[Keem]

Post removed by Moderator 7/1/03 21:37 EDT.

[Pony99CA]

Keem, putting lol after that comment does not make it funny. In fact it makes it even more offensive.
I don't know that it makes it more offensive. It's in bad taste either way, but I'd rather think that someone just had a bad sense of humor than think they were truly bigoted.

Let's see how long it takes Steve C. to punt this to the Hall of Flame & Shame. :wink:

Steve

[GoldKey]

I reported it to the moderator. I bet that will be the final action.

[Steven Cedrone]

The offensive post has been removed, as were most of the comments pertaining to it. For something like this, it does not even rate the HOF&S - just the trash bin (plus, who wants a Google search to find that on this site)...

Steven Cedrone
Community Moderator

[Keem]

Sorry about that I knew I should have gone to sleep at 5am instead of coming here... again i apologize

Post modified by moderator 7/2/03 12:14 EDT.

[Gremmie]

8O Hey, stop this, once for all!!! Don't you belive in the FREE MARKET economy? Everybody is free to produce and sell goods and services which are not clearly banned by law.

What makes you think a PPC 2003 upgrade could not be reduced to a a little file? Let the man sell his merchandise and stop this no-sense/fascist/geek campaign. Period. :agrue:


No, this isn't a matter of Free Market Economics, a free market gets rid of inferior products, the OS upgrade is a scam; most free market economies ban scams, the one's who don't are plagued with problems. Some of this debated, held by Pony, is whether or not the file optimizaer is a scam or not.

As far as upgrading the OS? No, too many technical problems, drivers, and it's a illegal distribution. Learn what free market economics really means before you call a campaign facist.

[Janak Parekh]

Gremmie, I think ombu was being sarcastic. ;)

--janak

[PocketPCGirl]

Thank you to the members of this discussion board for notifying Handango of ZVC's fraudulant post of a Pocket PC 2003 Update. As soon as we became aware of the problem, the product was pulled from our catalog.

Handango has deactivated ZVC's account and is in the process of refunding all customers who purchased this product.

This developer does not understand nor follow copyright laws. For this reason, he is no longer allowed to hold a Handango developer account. Please feel free to contact me personally with any other concerns or questions.

Heather Arrington
Handango
[email protected]

[GoldKey]

Way to go Handango

[Gremmie]

Gremmie, I think ombu was being sarcastic. ;)

--janak

Whew, you never know these days, apologies to ombu if so.

Pst...remember these guys :D :) :lol: :roll: :wink:

[Sunnyone]

Nice to see Handango take action and get this guy's stuff off their site. Makes me wonder about their review process, though. Seems like this stuff should never had been accepted.

[Jacob]

Nice to see Handango take action and get this guy's stuff off their site. Makes me wonder about their review process, though. Seems like this stuff should never had been accepted.

There's a tradeoff there though. You would have to test out all software that comes in to Handango.

So if PocketInformant submitted a new version, Handango would have to make sure to verify that it is new and is a real product, not too hard, but still a wait if there are a number of products in a verification queue.

The problem is there would be a delay and likely a longer and longer line up of software being verified as being original and valid.

Otherwise, they let it all get posted and if people complain they investigate.

[Sunnyone]

Point taken, Jacob. But in the case of PI, an established, quality, software product, I would think that different rules would apply. I would expect that there would be a higher level of review for newer vendors. But as you say, the review time could be prohibitive.

[Pony99CA]

Some of this debated, held by Pony, is whether or not the file optimizaer is a scam or not.
Whoa, wait a second. I didn't debate that the "hidden file deleter" was a scam. I was just asking why Skitals thought it was funny that 35 people would have bought the file remover. My point was that such a program could be real and doesn't need a fancy UI.

Taken as a single program, I could see people thinking this was real (as I could with the calculators). However, looking at ZVC's full set of programs would lead me to believe it probably was a scam.

Steve

[ombu]

Gremmie, I think ombu was being sarcastic. ;)

--janak

Whew, you never know these days, apologies to ombu if so.

Pst...remember these guys :D :) :lol: :roll: :wink:

[/sarcasm mode:OFF/]

Ooops, yes, I've been sarcastic, it's O.K. Gremmie, no hard feelings. :D I'll remember those guys for sure.

[/sarcasm mode:ON/]

Since this thread started, I've got no single order for my perfect/bug-free/small AS version, :evil: I think I'll start a union. :mrgreen:

Regards.

[ctmagnus]

"upgrade" to Pocket PC 2003 (http://www.handango.com/PlatformProductDetail.jsp?catalog=1&jid=61331447CA2XX8AABA9AABAADD1CE545&productId=79319&authorId=87726§ionId=0&productType=2&siteId=1&platformId=2):

I wonder if Handango will keep it.

Steve

Apparently so, as it's still there as of 9/20/2003.


btw, I'm not trolling for dead posts. I was looking to see if anyone had anything to say about the new Sarah McLachlan single. ;)


Edit: The linked page reports a zero second download time so it may have been pulled after all.

[JustinGTP]

And <a target="_blank" href="http://www.handango.com/PlatformTopSoftware.jsp?siteId=1&jid=EAC8A8CCX99ABB55E3XF637CD5515X79&platformId=2&title=ZVC&authorId=87726">
here</a>you will find that there an NO products by ZVC on Handango anymore anyways. So rest in peace you old thread!


-Justin.