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Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

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Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#401

Post by danso »

joekrie wrote: post #372
pyre wrote: post #47

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Just look at the blog too. I'm not sure who thought that a blog post entitled "10 WAYS TO SURVIVE AT WORK WITHOUT SLEEP" would be a hit with job seekers. (Not to mention that 100% of their blog content -- 7 posts -- was posted 3 days ago)

I'm blocked by a sign in page. Did they take down the blog in the last day?

It's too bad no one archived that blog post about how to get by without sleeping. It was very personal, and very stupid. If anything, it was evidence that this company didn't have a clue and was letting its social media person fill the blog with crap (which was unread by the executives) just so that it looked like the company was doing stuff.

Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#402

Post by amusedreading »

lol, WrkRiot just posted this response https://www.facebook.com/WrkRiot/?hc_ref=SEARCH&fref=nf

WrkRiot is considering legal action against a disgruntled former employee who has launched a slanderous campaign against WrkRiot and some of its employees via social media. While it is not our policy to discuss personnel matters, we want to make it clear that this former employee was fired for cause. Signed affidavits from current employees attest to this former employee’s failure to perform her required duties in the workplace. In addition, they attest to her participation in an attempt to undermine or oust certain members of management. This former employee demanded a sum of $50,000 upon her departure. Under no verbal agreement, contract or any other type of covenant was this person entitled to such a sum. After learning that WrkRiot would not pay what it considered extortion money, this former employee began her campaign of slanderous of activity over the Internet. WrkRiot believes this former employee’s writings have led to dangerous situations for many of our employees through the leaking of personal information and through threats being made over social media from others who have taken the former employee’s misinformation as truth. We regret having to spend time and effort on this when there is so much to do in the development of our unique application. However, we want to make it abundantly clear that the slanderous writings of a disgruntled former employee do not represent the truth about WrkRiot, its management or workforce. The racist, sexist and abusive comments our employees have received are inexcusable. Further, we want to make it clear that we will seek any and all legal remedies to end this campaign of slander.

Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#404

Post by dragonwriter »

jimmywanger wrote: post #330
jtfairbank wrote: post #144

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Even doing this with unrelated parties inside the company is dangerous. The best thing to do is just CC your own lawyer. It's sad, but you potentially open yourself up to liability by warning your co-workers. If you do want to warn them, the best way would be through a quiet, short conversation in a private place away from the company. Possibly your lawyer's office.

I don't see how you open yourself up to liability. This is before anything is really bad, but you are getting suspicious. If you hire a lawyer, you're instantly at DEFCON 1. CCing all your teammates has plausible deniability, especially if they're in the same boat you are. You're not trying to warn anybody here. You're raising a gigantic red flag saying "Hey this is happening to me. If this is happening to you too, l…

> If you hire a lawyer, you're instantly at DEFCON 1.

No, when you hire a lawyer and provide them documentation on what has transpired and is transpiring, you are just building an arsenal to be prepared in case of further escalation.

When you have your lawyer contact the company, even then, you aren't at DEFCON 1, though that is a significant escalation (or a response to one.)

When you file legal action against the company, then you are at DEFCON 1.

Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#405

Post by dragonwriter »

leaningtower wrote: post #332

Under the assumption that the story is true, thing that I cannot assume from a blog post, this should be notified to the authorities more than be posted on HN. Also notice that before any actual confirmation or official investigation, pointing fingers trying to find companies that match the description could be a criminal offense as well as you could damage the reputation of totally fine companies.

> Also notice that before any actual confirmation or official investigation, pointing fingers trying to find companies that match the description could be a criminal offense as well as you could damage the reputation of totally fine companies.

Well, I mean, that's already been done, but I don't see any criminal law that could remotely be applicable. What crime do you imagine this is?

Heck, I don't even see how posting "it appears from details in the article that it is talking about WrkRiot" could even be civil defamation, even if taking other things into account (Such as the source article) the net effect is damaging. Even if the source article would, if deanonymized, be defamatory.

Damaging reputation alone isn't generally actionable, at least in US law. Knowingly (or recklessly) making false statements that damage a company may be.

Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#406

Post by dragonwriter »

MichaelBurge wrote: post #10

Isn't the photoshopped wire transfer literally outright criminal fraud? The government should move fast and break him.

> Isn't the photoshopped wire transfer literally outright criminal fraud?

Its not clear to me that it is criminal fraud; its clearly deceptive, and its clearly intended to defuse expected responses to the already-criminal failure to pay regular payroll, but I'm not sure its an independent crime.

But, you know, there are people who taxpayers pay to investigate the kind of thing described in this article (like the local DA and the California Department of Industrial Relations) and I'd defer to them on exactly which bits of this affair are which crimes.

Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#407

Post by wrkriot »

amusedreading wrote: post #402

lol, WrkRiot just posted this response https://www.facebook.com/WrkRiot/?hc_ref=SEARCH&fref=nf WrkRiot is considering legal action against a disgruntled former employee who has launched a slanderous campaign against WrkRiot and some of its employees via social media. While it is not our policy to discuss personnel matters, we want to make it clear that this former employee was fired for cause. Signed affidavits from…

The few employees left at WrkRiot are constituted primarily by Chinese developers being exploited, as well as the almost-exclusively Korean clique surrounding Isaac Choi.

The CTO, Al Brown, posted a thread here mostly corroborating Penny Kim's story. Al Brown noted that attempts to investigate CEO Isaac Choi's background story were utterly fruitless. Al Brown also cutely noted that Isaac Choi has a "real" lawyer somewhere as an indirect reference to the fake lawyer and law firm posted on the photoshopped Wells Fargo wire transfer receipts.

There were many Wells Fargo wire transfer receipts, each individually faked for the respective employee. The then-intern initially expressed skepticism over details of the wire transfer receipt, and upon checking Wells Fargo's current site, red flags were discovered. That spurred some Googling which discovered the original source image for the Wells Fargo forged documents. This culminated in an explosive moment at the office where a young intern was furiously and very visibly (it's a small office) yelling at CEO Isaac Choi for what looked like incompetently forged Wells Fargo receipts.

Al Brown may or may not have made mistakes with regards to mismanagement of product features and hiring and management for the front-end team, but his skill and professionalism was broadly recognized by other developers in the office, and Al Brown staying on board as long as he did brought a lot of faith to the product.

And now WrkRiot is engaged in legal intimidation.

Re: Scammed By A Silicon Valley Startup

#410

Post by mugenjin9 »

Animats wrote: post #105

The fake wire transfer receipt is fraud. That's a criminal offense. Have a talk with the local DA. California has a large prison system, with cell space available. I've never heard of a startup going that far.

Apparently, the company posted on their facebook that they are taking legal action against OP as: "a disgruntled former employee who has launched a slanderous campaign against WrkRiot and some of its employees via social media". https://www.facebook.com/WrkRiot/
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