[Animats]

Oh, that guy.

If this guy had dialed back the scam level by about half, he'd probably still be in business. There are lots of people trying to be him. Visit Black Hat World to meet some.

His values aren't that far from those of many startup companies. Grow at any cost. Use "dark patterns" to trick users. Hide things in the EULA. Don't ask too many questions about "affiliates". Make it hard to cancel. Google was fined $500 million when they were caught in the FBI's "sportsdrugs.com" sting. (The FBI had a fake drug lord who was supposedly trying to take over the athletic steroid business. Google actively helped him advertise.)

[smitherfield]

>If this guy had dialed back the scam level by about half, he'd probably still be in business.

He is.