You Think You Know How HYIP’s and Surfs Really Work?

I am pissed. Severely pissed….if you invest in HYIP’s or surfs, you should be pissed too. I am going to tell you why…

For those of you who don’t know who I am, my name is Leo Dimilo but to the HYIP and surf world, I have made a name as Drunkonlife. I spent the better part of a half decade reporting on HYIP’s and surf sites, making AND losing money along the way. I am one of the few people who didn’t have my own program that actually made money consistently. In fact, I made a decent living doing this.

However, about a year ago, I started to take a good, hard look at the HYIP and surf crowd and my faith these sites started to serious erode. Programs and sites started to fold quicker than anyone could make any kind of money in them and even the sites (like feederfund) that I actually thought could have been legit started to have problems.

To make things worse, the more known I became, the more information I was given about the HYIP world. For instance, I began to find out what sites were “feeder” sites to other sites. I started to see that this world was nothing more than a series of smoke and mirrors. I started realizing that some of the forum owners were not only promoting sites from owners that scammed in the past BUT they actually harbored them and shielded them from discovery.

“How far would you go to make a buck?“

That was the question that I had to ask myself. What most people who are simply investors don’t know or realize is that there are deals being brokered behind the scenes. In the last year that I was doing this stuff, I was actually getting emails from site owners that were guaranteeing me profit if I promoted their program. The proposition would look something like this…

“if you promote {insert site name}, I will guarantee your money for one cycle”

At that time, I was what some would call a heavy hitter, meaning that when I went into a site, I would go in big ($1000+). So, a cycle, which would typically last a week or two weeks, could net me 20%+ ROI. The fact that it was guaranteed was tempting but I knew that on the flip side, most of the people that I promoted it to would lose. The dealings were shady and I passed on them (call it an astute belief in Karma).

However, I started asking myself this…if I was being offered this (and I was just a blogger), what kind of deals were going on with the forum owners? What kind of deals were going on with the sites that were supposedly monitoring these programs? I investigated and realized that indeed, the deals I was offered were also offered to others.

Ever wonder why you continuously see the same owners name even after they have scammed attached to other sites? Well, now you know….They don’t necessarily hide. Well, I guess they do..they hide behind a select few “advertisers” who will promote them and in essence, feast on your referral dollars. It happens. Trust me on that. It happens more than you think…

So, if you think that you really know how things work, think again. You have to be embedded into the community to really understand. You have to sleep with the devil to get a taste of how it works. And the temptation of quick money on the backs of your referrals is always there, with the site owners dangling a virtual money tree.

The final straw for me came when FeederFund called it quits. This was one of the very few programs that I thought could be legitimate. I had friends that had thousands of dollars invested in its programs. After all, the programs had a relatively lower ROI than most of the opportunities. Well, Feeder Fund fell like the rest (after a few years) and thus so did my confidence in these programs.

If you are thinking about investing in online programs, you can take two routes.

The first one is that if you intend to invest in anything that offers a high percentage rate compounded daily, then you need to play it like a game. Treat it like going to the casino. Treat it like betting “red” or “black” on the roulette wheel. That is what it is. Never fool yourself into believing that “maybe it might be legit”. It isn’t. It won’t be and never has been.

It is a ponzi if…..

1. It offers a referral program- This is ALWAYS the case. Why would an hyip offer a referral program? To bring in a constant stream of new blood. Think about it…first of all if a program is doing the returns it promises, why would they offer anything to its investors?
2. It compounds daily- If you are smart and do the math, you will realize that a program that allows you to compound daily will quickly rival the GNP of some smaller countries.
3. If it sounds too good to be true, it is…
4. It offers a fixed ROI- Once again, there is no such thing as a guarantee on anything. Why would a legitimate company risk a fixed ROI? The simple answer…they wouldn’t.
5. It is being advertised throughout the forums- There..I said it. And it is true. If you are searching for an “investment” opp, the forums are actually the worst places you could search. Investment opps don’t work that way. Most investments that have a higher than usual ROI won’t be advertising in TalkGold or MoneyMakerGroup. Sorry…it doesn’t work like that.

Folks, don’t be fooled. If you plan on playing the game and don’t mind the karma slap that you will get by doing it (after all, you are essentially getting paid from someone else’s losses), then understand how the game is played.

That said, there are programs out there that are legit….but you won’t ever find one. The reason why is because these programs are shielded from the public by its investors. Think about it…if it doesn’t offer a referral program and you are consistently making money from it, why on earth would you risk destabilization of the program?? The short answer is you wouldn’t.

So, in short, if you think you know the biz…you don’t. It is making a few people rich as it leeches on the earnings of the masses. If you don’t believe that to be true, think again. Scams aren’t just prevalent throughout the forums. They ARE the forums.

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