BEWARE of Scam Studio Groups on AW!

[admin]

This thread has some info about how scam groups may operate http://adultworkforum.com/forum/thread-2298.html

[HornyHeidiBush]

Looks like another bug just crawled out from under a rock to feed off newbie girls money - (group)

**Edit: Taken link out in case it actually encourages anyone unscrupulous to visit them!

It is right to be wary of potential scams.

I was in a group for well over a year, that certainly wasn't as bad of some of the groups around, but still operated in an exploitative manner.

It all started with me applying for a casting call on a modelling website that I use. The 'photographer' got back to me, and said that he had webcam work available. I didn't really know much about webcamming, and at the time was nervous about many things... I was reassured that it was 'my room, my rules', and that I wouldn't have to do anything I didn't want on cam. It sounded like a great way of making extra cash, without compromising my comfort zones in any way.

This group chose my prices for me and paid me my wages weekly. It started off 1.3 in grp and 2.3 in pvt, then went up to 1.5 and 2.5. They took 20%, which for a while I stupidly felt was normal and reasonable.

The group is operated by a couple who live in Portugal. After a brief meeting with them in the UK, I was invited on an all expenses paid trip over there. After the initial trip, where they shot some (extremely unflattering) pics and vids of me, set up my profile etc, I was informed that I would have to pay to visit them again. But I naively assumed that even if I was paying to visit them and giving them 20%, their benefits of being in their group would override these issues. How wrong I was!

*The group is never featured or group of the day
*the videos/pics they take are poor quality
*They took 20% from everything! Including any tips I got, or anything I sold that had nothing to do with them! The only thing they actually did was was make me aware of the existence of adultwork and webcamming, and make shit videos of me.

I often made less than minimum wage for a week's work. Fortunately, most of the girls who were in that group have now escaped. In fact, most of their highest earning girls have, thank god! It is in my nature of think the best of people, and I actually considered these people to be my friends. Still, I've learnt my lesson, and as a result I've built a close network of cam girl friends, who have helped each other out.

Heidi x

[sarahxxx]

These type of groups bring the whole site down and are ruining it for the genuine girls and group managers out there.

It sounds more about the lack of business there is on AW for web cam work...

If the girls are not the girls in the photo then I am sure that the guys will soon report that to AW - There seemed to be a lot of good and genuine feedback for the girls so I find it strange to accuse the girls in the group of not being the girls in the photo.

Anything else is between the girl and who she works for and we do not have details of the way the person operates, any situation where you work for somebody else involves them making money out of you. Some people are happy to work for others rather than for themselves, escorts work in flats or massage parlours and give over 50% of what they earn but are happy doing it.

This thread has some info about how scam groups may operate http://adultworkforum.com/forum/thread-2298.html

On the other thread discussed there was a person or persons involved in the group mentioned that were being badly treated and it was for us to try and help the people involved.

On UKPunting they often accuse escort profiles of being fake, just because they thought it looked fake, and on some occasions have got it completely wrong. lets try not to go down that route. If somebody knows something then it should be reported.

Sarah x x x

[xKatieBabyx]

Yep and those profiles are often reported along with the group itself, which is shut down for a period of time then up it comes again, with recycled profile pictures/ feedback. As discussed on the other threads, AW don't actually seem to be doing much to stop this from happening.

Girls cannot be "happy" about working for someone else, or making whatever they're making, when they are not in full possession of the facts.

Do you think it's fair that a girl is exposing herself on cam, putting herself at risk of being found by her friends and family, of being stalked and harassed, of being asked to do things she is not comfortable with (and possibly being too naive/ afraid to say no), of potentially putting her future chosen career options at risk, all of the potential feelings that are often associated with such work... and yet a PIMP (who commits nothing to the process except spamming gumtree and making 1 sentence profiles) is the one receiving the money??

Because I don't!

Re the implication for cam traffic - Camgirls have to deal with being in competition with each other all the time, especially if they are more vanilla, girl next door types. There is enough money in this industry for us all to benefit, providing we put the effort in. That is not my issue. My issue is that all the guys that these girls piss off, may eventually go back to free porn, feeling that all camgirls are "fakes", or not really worth it.

There is no reason for any girl to be in a studio group unless that group is able to offer them something genuinely valuable. And each girl should be able to come to that decision in full awareness of the facts. If you were really in possession of all the facts, would you realistically give up over 80% of your earnings??

[xKatieBabyx]

And I don't just speak from guess work here.. i have spent my own money going into some of those girls chat rooms to see for myself they are not the ones in the pictures, and see just how little they know about the site they are on and what their real earning potential is!

[sarahxxx]

Girls cannot be "happy" about working for someone else, or making whatever they're making, when they are not in full possession of the facts.

It would seem that they are happy to work for the money they are offered or they would not be doing it, at the time they were offered the job they did not have a clue how to go about making money from web camming or they would have been doing it

Do you think it's fair that a girl is exposing herself on cam, putting herself at risk of being found by her friends and family, of being stalked and harassed, of being asked to do things she is not comfortable with (and possibly being too naive/ afraid to say no), of potentially putting her future chosen career options at risk, all of the potential feelings that are often associated with such work...

I think that any girl that is going to expose herself on cam has to have some understanding of the above, this also is the same for any girl working as an escort in her home town.

There is no reason for any girl to be in a studio group unless that group is able to offer them something genuinely valuable.

As above, if the girl had any idea of how to make money by using a web cam she would have already been doing it. If she had not, then if the group is not offering her what she thinks is fair then she could soon find a site to join. Many of these girls are probably very grateful to be earning money, especially if the person running the group is offering a weekly pay out or other sources of income streams via other sites / direct web cam bookings.

Knowledge is king... We recently took out a £150,000 refinance on a property, the broker took a 1% £1,500 introduction fee, just for knowing who to go to. If we had found the finance company web site, we would have saved that, but we did not and we had looked at many refinance companies, who charged more.

So where we robbed / scammed? NO, we wanted the money quickly, a service was offered to us and we were happy with the deal done. It's not the brokers fault we could not source the funds ourself. But now we know, we can go direct if we want more funds for our next project.

Sarah x x x

[xKatieBabyx]

a service was offered to us and we were happy with the deal done.

Brokers are regulated, and you read the t&c's before you entered the deal. None of the above applies to these groups.

then if the group is not offering her what she thinks is fair then she could soon find a site to join

No she can't that's the point. Unless someone like PJ or KDB get involved (and i don't believe they are able to help everyone), then it is very difficult for the girls to get away from the studio. If they do, AW don't allow them to make another (independent) account.

Many of these girls are probably very grateful to be earning money

Yes and that is exactly how they get scammed into doing it. These studio sharks deliberately prey on naeive girls with no knowledge of the industry, who want to make a quick and easy buck. That doesn't make what they do right, it makes it downright criminal.

Those of us who know better should be supporting girls into becoming more independent, not encouraging them to be less so. Thank goodness we have this forum, SW and AC's where we can share information and prevent other girls from being exploited.

I feel like a broken record now so I'll leave you to make up your own mind. There's only so many ways I can try to explain how making more money & being in control of your own account is better than being beholden to an unscrupulous pimp.

[admin]

Hi, didnt get a chance to read all the stuff here but wanted to mention, at the basics of it these web performers dont know what site they are shown on or how much they have earnt per day, they are feed lies from the start.

There is no two ways about it, there are alot of scam groups on AW. If you spot the lucy babes one its also a scam, found that out once a member of the group messaged the forum and they have been trying for quite some time to get away from the group.

This isnt UKP but you cant deny that scam groups exist on AW.

What would be a scam group in your eyes wife4rent?

[sarahxxx]

This isnt UKP but you cant deny that scam groups exist on AW.

I would not deny that scam groups exist, but to just go pointing the finger without knowing the facts seems wrong. If somebody comes here and asks for help then we are all willing to help them.

As far as I could see on the group they had plenty of "happy" customers

We do not know anything about the group or how they operate / treat members, so lets not turn it into a witch hunt

What would be a scam group in your eyes wife4rent?

If they are promoting something that is not right then it is a scam, if the girls are not the girls in the photo it is a scam. If this happens then I am sure that AW will soon shut them down, if not then it is a problem with AW.

How the girls are treated by the group manager is not a scam, they join of their own free will and can leave on their own free will. To say they can not is completely wrong, they simply set up a new profile or sign up to another web cam site or advertise themselves, it has been said that there is plenty of info on the web for them to find about setting up on their own.

If they do not get paid then it would be considered a scam, but how much they get paid is what they have agreed on and we would need to know all the details of the service provided by the group manager and how much they were being paid to have a view and even then it is still between the persons involved if they are happy with the situation. If not, they can leave...

Nobody seems to mind that AW take 30% of the takings, but if anybody else earns on top of that it is considered scam. Groups like DP take a percentage but also provide a service for that. All groups should do the same, provide an enhanced service above what you get from having an single profile on AW

Bottom line is, if you are not happy with a service then leave

Sarah x x x

PS We all have our own point of view

[admin]

(Just scanned the post quickly sorry, limited time this morning, will get a full read later today).

for "Bottom line is, if you are not happy with a service then leave"

How can you leave when you dont know its a service your using instead of the original site? and how can you be unhappy when you dont know the truth?

eg i scratch your scratch card and say, youve won £10 when you really won £20, or if your brother collects your paperboy earnings and gives you £10 when you were actually paid £12.




Edit add: My belief is most groups on AW are scams, this doesnt mean I assume any group is a scam though, as seen here http://adultworkforum.com/forum/thread-2792.html

I still help them in the view or innocent until proven guilty.

ps. I should point out in this thread also that when we say groups we are talking about the virtual online studios most of the time.