Check Go / Go Checks & How Telemarketing Really Works - Sellers, Brokers, Callers, & Lead Generators
- Peter Schneider
- 3 days ago
- 6 min read
This is another article in our long running series on how telemarketing really works. In researching a telemarketing organization using websites gochecks.org / checkgo.org / lendlii.org (plus many others) I found an interesting 2022 lawsuit CHAMPION et al v. DOES out of the District of Columbia with case # 1:22-cv-02697-CKK. Written by LawHQ, it was very educational and I posted it below.
But first, many, many consumers are being harassed by a telemarketer using a collection of website that use gochecks.org / checkgo.org and variations of these names, and lendlii.org and borrowly.io and bravaro.org along with others. Some of these websites list the address 414 S Service Road # 311 Patchogue NY 11772, and this address is also found on sweepstakes websites and free samples websites.
I found a Wyoming LLC Checkgonow LLC incorporated by a Lovette Dobson, a name heavily connected to scamming organizations (her name signs off on a lot of corporate formation filings. Some scammers, some not. She herself is not personally involved with the scamming).
Who Is Lovette Dobson and Why Does Her Name Appear on More Than 70,000 Business Filings? https://www.inc.com/sam-blum/who-is-lovette-dobson-and-why-does-her-name-appear-on-more-than-70000-business-filings/91144465 [you have to register to read the entire article but look for the audio player just below the image, you can listen to the entire article without being registered.
In digging into these websites I found the LawHQ lawsuit filings and I am quoting some of the information from them.
TELEPHONE SPAM WITH MULTIPLE PARTIES
Telephone spam can involve one or more parties.
The majority of telephone spam that Plaintiffs and class members have received from the Doe Defendants involves multiple parties.
How many parties are involved in the telephone spam—and which parties are liable for TCPA violations—depends on how the telephone campaign is arranged.
To understand what parties can be involved, it is necessary to understand the following components of any telephone campaign:
Always present in a telephone campaign i. Lead Generator – The party who generates leads or phone numbers to call ii. Caller – The party initiating and sending the SMS or calls iii. Seller – The party whose goods or services are being promoted Sometimes present in a telephone campaign iv. Marketing Broker/Affiliate Network – A party connecting Sellers with Callers
If a company generates their own phone numbers to be called, places the calls themselves, and promotes its own services, there is only one party involved. The company acts as Lead Generator, Caller, and Seller.
If a company hires a call center to promote the company’s services and provides the call center with the phone numbers to be called, there are two parties involved. The company acts as Lead Generator and Seller, and the call center acts as Caller.
If a company wants to promote its services without having to worry about the lead generation or the calling campaign, the company could hire a Lead Generator and a Caller. The Lead Generator will generate phone numbers to be called. The Caller will call the generated phone numbers and promote the company’s services. In this arrangement there are three separate parties, each respectively acting as Lead Generator, Caller, and Seller.
A Seller who wants to promote its services at scale can also hire a Marketing Broker (“Broker”). Brokers go by various names, the most common being “Affiliate Network.” When a Seller works with a Broker, the Broker will have one or more Callers who promote the Seller’s services in exchange for performance-based commission. For example, for each sale that a Caller generates through the Caller’s own marketing efforts, a Seller might pay $80 to the Caller and $20 to the Broker.
When there is a Broker, there are at a minimum three parties involved: Seller, Broker, and Caller. However, it is very common for there to be multiple Brokers. This happens when a Broker outsources to a second Broker, who outsources to a third Broker, etc., like this: Seller → Broker 1 → Broker 2 → Broker 3 → Caller → Lead Generator
Over 95% of all the SMS spam sent by the Doe Defendants to Plaintiffs and class members involves two or more Brokers, which means there are a minimum of four parties involved: a Seller, a Caller, and two or more Brokers.
When Callers send text messages, they usually include URL hyperlinks in the text messages. Callers and Brokers track their efforts by using data in these URLs. For example, in the URL example.com?S1=2337&S2=5215 there are two parameters: S1=2337 and S2=5215. These two parameters may identify the first and second Broker, respectively. While there is no uniform method or naming convention that Callers and Brokers use to track their efforts, they all keep very meticulous records of the values in the URLs because each value means something. The values in the URLs are how the parties track their marketing efforts and how Callers and Brokers are properly compensated for their efforts and results.
The Doe Defendants have used many tactics to hide their identities, including purposefully not telling who they are, using fake names, creating anonymous web pages, registering their U.S. companies overseas, providing invalid call back numbers so they cannot be reached, not answering when someone returns missed calls, immediately hanging up if you ask what business they are with, and more.
Sellers and Brokers often outsource to call centers, typically overseas. When these Sellers and Brokers are asked about who sent the text messages or calls that directed to the Sellers or Brokers, they respond: “We didn’t send the spam. And we won’t tell you who did.” These Sellers and Brokers often maintain control over their Callers by telling the Callers what lists to call, when trademarks can and cannot be used, whether to scrub against the Do Not Call Registry, what scripts to use, and more. These Sellers and Brokers may thus be vicariously liable for the conduct of their Callers. Yet, without the aid of discovery to learn who the Callers are, and what control the Sellers and Brokers exercised over their Callers, it is impossible to hold the appropriate parties liable.
It is also very common for Sellers, Brokers, and Callers to cover for each other’s illegal conduct. When consumers complain to Sellers or Brokers about telephone spam, the Sellers and Brokers rarely will sever ties with the Caller. Instead, the Sellers and Brokers will only tell the Caller not to call that specific consumer anymore. Sellers and Brokers frequently settle demand letters they receive that involve the illegal calls of text messages of their Callers. They do this to hide the Caller’s identity. The Sellers and Brokers know—or have reason to know—that a Caller is violating the TCPA, but they do nothing about it and keep working with the Caller. Thus, Sellers and Brokers ratify, and may be vicariously liable for, the illegal conduct of their Callers. Without the aid of discovery to see whether Sellers and Brokers have continued to work with Callers after receiving complaints about their spam, it is impossible to hold Sellers and Brokers vicariously liable as permitted by law.
Often the Sellers, Brokers, and Callers involved in the telephone spam are operated through shell companies, or entities with limited to resources, effectively making them judgment proof. Yet, the founders, principals, and executives of these companies are sending, approving, directing, and overseeing the spam. These individuals may thus be individually liable. Without the aid of discovery, it is impossible to learn who the individuals are that are actually sending, approving, directing, and overseeing the spam.
In addition to randomly or sequentially generating phone numbers to call, Callers buy lists of phone numbers from Lead Generators. When selling leads, Lead Generators rarely, if ever, scrub against Florida’s “no sales solicitation calls” list and thus they illegally sell consumers’ information. Without the aid of discovery, it is impossible to learn who the Lead Generators are that are illegally selling these phone numbers.
Plaintiffs have so far been unable to ascertain the identities of the Callers who sent the spam texts and calls to Plaintiffs and class members, or the identities of the Lead Generators who have the sold the phone numbers of Plaintiff Sharf and the Florida Leads Class.
LawHQ followed up with a motion for expedited discovery
18. When Callers send text messages, they usually include URL hyperlinks in the text messages. Sellers, Callers, and Brokers track their marketing efforts by using data in these URLs. For example, in the URL example.com?S1=2337&S2=5215&S3=632 there are three parameters: S1=2337, S2=5215, and S3=632. These parameters may identify the Seller, the Brokers, the Caller, the product being sold, or some other relevant data. While there is no uniform naming convention, parties keep very meticulous records of the values in the URLs. Subpoenas about the URLs involved in the text messages to Plaintiffs and class members will reveal what the parameters represent and who the responsible parties are behind the telephone spam.
Got a Case Like This?
If you’ve encountered similar issues with telemarketers, debt collectors, or bankruptcy-related harassment, we might feature your story in a future blog post. Email your situation or legal filing to peter@nwdebtresolution.com or nathen@nwdebtresolution.com.
📞 Call: 206-800-6000 / 971-800-6000
📧 Email: peter@nwdebtresolution.com
Note: The opinions in this blog are mine (Peter Schneider) and do not constitute legal advice. If you're considering suing over illegal robocalls or Do Not Call list violations, contact me for a legal consultation.
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