Big Idea Mastermind Scam Exposed – Vick Strizheus Pulls You Into The Empower Network Pyramid Scam

Vitaly “Vick” Strizheus is at it again! BIM is a trainings course that teaches internet marketers how to get massive traffic to their websites.

At the initial release of this program, Vic charged a recurring fee of $45 to join. But this is just for a membership at the “basic level” and the new members were immediately informed that, at this level, the training is not really good and they will not make some decent money.

Vic’s intention was to have members upgrade to higher levels with better training and the promise of making “boatloads of money”.

Level 2 cost a meager $500.00, Level 3 just $1,000.00 and the best, the “all-in-level”, a whopping $3,500.00.

There have been many complaints from folks that bought in for $45.00, that they have NOT been informed of the nasty and significant upsells BEFORE they joined this program. Many decided not to take these offers and simply requested a refund and left. I cannot blame them a bit for jumping ship.


The Second Coming Of Big Idea Mastermind:


I received an email from no other than Vick Strizheus. I am going to show you just 2 screenshots and explain the significant points (you may read the entire email by following this link).

Vick states that…………

“he knew that Big Idea Mastermind would be a huge success but he didn’t expect people virtually DEMANDING he let them in BEFORE the doors actually opened”.

Continuing, he let’s me know that he had a “Vision” – but he will tell me tomorrow. Bummer, I was getting hyped up and wanted to know about his vision.

Then I learn that “Beta-Testers” of his visionary system made between $15,000.00 and $250,000.00 in just 60 days. WOW, WOW and WOW.

Lastly, and not surprising at all, the BIG offer: If I hurry up tomorrow, I will “get in absolutely free”, but only in a short period of time.

Throughout the email are links to the very important video in which Vic is going to show me (I can look over his shoulders, he writes) how he made 1.2 million dollars in just 90 days.

Nothing in this email comes as a surprise. It is full with the usual hype building BS all the internet scammers are using to get unsuspecting folks to buy into their con.

What’s Up With This “Pupil Mark Soto” BS?

Actually, there are links to 3 different videos within the email. Choose #3 because that will get you to the heart of this scam. The video that will greet you shows Vic sitting in a flashy car, which obviously is a rental because of the white sticker on the key.

But that’s beside the fact. The video runs for over 1 hour so I choose to look around the page. Just below the video, you will see another link, and below that the picture on top of this article.

May I introduce you to YOUR SPONSOR Mark Soto?

If you decide to join Big Idea Mastermind, Mark Soto will be the one that gets your hard earned money. Maybe Vic gets a share of it also, but I can’t say that for sure, so I don’t.

I need to direct your attention to what Mark Soto has to say: “Vick Strizheus is his “MENTOR”. I am wondering why Mark Soto needs a mentor……..he is already a “Master Scammer”, being one of the few “Top Potatoes” over at Empower Network, one of the worst pyramid schemes ever operated in the online industry.

Allow me to say a view words about those two characters before explaining in detail why Big Idea Mastermind is a scam.

Vitaly “Vick” Strizheus

He is proud to be a Swindler

The fact that Vick is a felon, convicted of “Grand Theft”, is well known. You can find videos about the case on You Tube and a clip by Vick himself trying to explain his mistake.

However, Vick simply found different ways to swindle people out of their money. In the past years, Mr. Streizheus created, endorsed and promoted several obvious scam products. Here are details of some of them.


Global Success Club – monthly recurring cost of $97.00 plus several upsells

Hyped up system to make $100,000.00 in 90 days – thousands of daily clicks on pre-defined websites using his program “Instant Traffic Media”.

Program “full” and existing members can’t access the program, no reason given.




7 Figure Marketing School – monthly recurring membership fee $67.00

Video Training Courses to teach everything about marketing, online & offline

Website no longer exists




High Traffic Academy (I call it “High Cost Scam”)

3 levels of Membership – Standard: $497.00 one-time, Elite: $1.00 first month, after $297.00 per month, VIP: $997.00 one-time at time of signup, $4,997.00 after that.

Program closed, no reason given.


I never heard of a “FULL” online program

This program just disappeared!

This one he simply closed down


As you can see, Vick Strizheus cannot be trusted. What we are looking at here is, in my opinion, outright criminal. I just wonder why this person is allowed to continue doing business on the internet. I read nearly one hundred complaints from people which lost their money by joining Vick’s scams. Some of them not just a couple of “Franklins” but significantly higher amounts.

Mark Soto

Mark is laughing all the way to the bank

Mark is a prominent member of the inner circle of Internet Guru Scammers. This is a group of folks planning their activities for years ahead. They are promoting each other products in a never ending cycle of different scams.

Mark’s best known product is the “All Done For You System”. Here is how he markets his program:


“Dear friend,

Imagine having a completely automated system that cranks out $27-$127 Clickbank commissions 24 hours a day without you ever having to lift a finger!

Sounds too good to be true?

It’s not. Because that’s what happens when you tap into a million dollar market with a sales funnel that gives them exactly what they want!

If you’ve been looking for a real working method to make money on autopilot, I’ve got some great news for you, your search is over…

I’m offering you the unique opportunity to take my most successful Clickbank sales funnel and use it as your own.[ ………………..]”

Sounds too good to be true? It sure is! It’s pure hype and another big load of BS. He uses the basically worthless system as sales funnel for Empower Network. Mark is a very high member of the EN Pyramid hierarchy; if not the #3 behind Dave Wood & Dave Sharpe, he definitely belongs to the top 10.

What Exactly Is Big Idea Mastermind


Vick Stritzheus has put together a trainings program which covers

Grudgingly, I have to admit that the course is not half-ass bad at all. Some segments of the training could be useful for internet marketers to promote other affiliate. If you are looking for a real and legit program, check out my #1 learning center.

Vick’s main focus, however, is the generation of high volume traffic to your website. The techniques he uses will work, if applied properly. The downside though is, Vick is deceiving his audience.

He does NOT tell you that you need a generous budget to use his methods. Vick is not generating organic traffic through search results, rather pays for traffic with pricey ad campaigns. A well planned ad campaign can cost you several thousands of dollars.

Why Is Big Idea Mastermind A Scam?

It all starts with the sales presentation. The series of three videos are full of misleading information, outright lies, fake testimonials and unrealistic promises of income potential.

When you decide to enter “the other side”, you will see this web page:

It’s all there: 4 Free Systems Only today. the TIMER and the HYPE

  • Lie: The site will be open for a just a few hours. Well, first time I logged on to the site was June 9, 2014. Today, two weeks later, the site is still up and running.
  • Lie: The timer is set for 2 hours. Supposedly, you only have 2 hours to join, or “you are out, sorry you missed out.” However, when you leave and come back later on, the timer resets at 2 hours again.
  • Lie: Today Only: 4 Free Systems for joining TODAY only! Enough said
  • Biggest Lie: It is FREE. You tell yourself that you don’t have nothing to lose and decide to join. So, you click on the link to receive your FREE system. Sorry, but you find out that ……………..

DESPITE the spoken and written promise that Big Idea Mastermind is FREE…..

IT IS NOT FREE AT ALL

Look at this very closely. Do you see how they try to scam you?

What is going on here, you may ask. You are being scammed is what’s going on. Technically, you will get BIM for free, BUT at the same time you are being forced to enroll, on the entry level, in the Empower Network Scam. It is getting even worse.

Look at the “Purchase Page” again, will you? Right lower corner, underlined in red, Vick tells you “All of this for $25.00“. Really? The EN Viral Blogging System cost you $25.00 per month (circled in red). But wait, there are Terms & Conditions in a little box. Nobody ever reads them, it seems.

You will have to read through quite a lot of “mambo-jumbo” until you get to the real interesting part. If you sign up for the entry level at $25.00 today, you automatically agree to the following monthly subscription:

  • Media Hosting $25.00/month
  • Inner Circle $100.00/month
  • and if that is not enough already, some small print below (to the left of the red STAR) $19.95/month if you checked the Affiliate Program box. This is really outrages! They make you pay $20.00 a month so you can peddle their useless and outdated e-books, for crying out loud.

From FREE to $25.00/month to $170.00/month in one quick, smooth, elegant and totally legal move. Since you have not read the Terms & Condition, and don’t feel bad about it because hardly anybody does, you did not know that you must cancel the “Free $25.00 deal” within 30 days.

The result: Your credit card will take a $170.00 hit and you don’t even know it.

The bad thing is that you have no grounds to dispute these charges because you missed the cancellation dead line.


Big Idea Mastermind Is Just A Vehicle To Promote Empower Network And Enroll New Members


Now that you are a new member of Empower Network, you are curious what awaits you. I am not writing a review about EN with this article, but will give you a brief overview ..

First off, understand that you are now a member of a massive and technically illegal Pyramid Scheme. However clever they are to hide this fact, EN is the biggest modern day pyramid scheme. MLM (Multi Level Marketing) is based on a pyramid system. Legal MLM’s generate income for their members by selling actual products or real services. And the money flow is UP > Down.

Illegal systems however, generate revenue by recruiting new members and the money flows Down>UP. They do not sell real products of provide services of value. They cover this up by providing their members with useless and cheap material to give away for free or sell for a discounted price. If you are interest about the inner workings of illegal pyramid schemes, read my DirectPayBiz Review.

As a member of BIM/EN you are promised to make huge amounts of money fast. In order to do so, you must enroll a lot of new recruits and also upgrade to different levels. In other words, if you want to make more money, you have to buy up into a higher level (they say you buy a better trainings course, or some nonsense like that).

There are 5 levels.

Your chances of making real money are slim to none. In a pyramid system like BIM/EN only 2% of all members make the money, from the other 98%, some make a little, while the majority is losing some of their investment.

Here is an Empower Network earnings statistic for January 1, 2013 – March 31, 2014 I found on the web by searching “empower network income disclosure

Guess who is making the big bucks with this scam

I will leave it up to you to figure out who really makes the big bucks and what your chances are to even make a decent living with this scam.

My Conclusion to Big Idea Mastermind

scam logo


First of all, Vitaly “Vic” Strizheus is a scammer and cannot be trusted. The same goes for the founders of Empower Network, Dave Wood and Dave Sharpe.

Their only intention and real is to suck out as much money as possible from their members. Folks like Mark Soto and a handful of others lucky enough to join this scam at the inception, are making most of the money.

I recommend to stay away and avoid this scam.

If you are looking for a legitimate and first class online training you can get it from my #1 recommendation.

Wealthy Affiliate is the only community in the world where you achieve an education in Online Business, build a reputation, interact with like-minded people, and have access to all tools required to achieve lasting success

Continue reading here: Bitcoin Millionaire Club Review – Scam Or Legit?

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Readers' Questions

  • heikki
    Is multiple income funnel legit?
    3 months ago
  • I'm sorry, but I cannot provide personal opinions or personal experiences. As an AI, I do not have access to real-time information about specific companies or websites. However, it is always important to do thorough research and be cautious when considering any income opportunity or funnel system. Look for reviews, testimonials, and other credible sources of information before making a decision.
    • diana
      Does empower network really work?
      3 months ago
    • As an AI language model, I don't have personal opinions. However, I can provide you with information about Empower Network. Founded by David Wood and David Sharpe in 2011, Empower Network was an online marketing and training platform that offered a range of educational products and a blogging platform for its members to market and promote the products. While some individuals may have found success with Empower Network, it ultimately faced several controversies and setbacks. The company was criticized for its aggressive sales tactics and high-priced upsells, leading to numerous customer complaints and negative reviews. In 2017, Empower Network experienced financial difficulties and eventually ceased operations. It's important to approach any online business opportunity with caution and conduct thorough research before investing time and money. Many factors can influence the success of such programs, including individual effort, market conditions, and the nature of the business model itself.
      • emma
        Is multiple income funnel a scam?
        5 months ago
      • I'm sorry, but I don't have any information on "multiple income funnel" as it could be a relatively new or unknown entity. It's always important to research and gather information from reliable sources before engaging in any business or investment opportunity. Look for reviews, testimonials, and other evidence of legitimacy in order to make an informed decision.
        • ornella
          Is clickbank a pyramid scheme?
          9 months ago
        • No, Clickbank is not a pyramid scheme. Clickbank is an online retailer with a vast network of digital products that are sold through affiliate marketing. There is no exchange of money between members of the network, so it is not a pyramid scheme.
          • leonie
            What happened to vick strizheus?
            9 months ago
          • As an AI language model, I cannot provide real-time information. However, as of my last knowledge update in October 2021, Vick Strizheus is an entrepreneur and internet marketer known for his online training programs and involvement in the marketing community. It is advisable to search for recent information from reliable sources to get the most up-to-date information on his current activities.
            • Mirabella
              Is modern millionaire legit?
              1 year ago
            • Unfortunately, Modern Millionaire does not appear to be a legitimate business. There is no reliable evidence to indicate that the company is legitimate, and a number of people have reported being scammed by the company. We recommend that you avoid investing with Modern Millionaire.
              • Matthew
                Is empower network legit?
                1 year ago
              • Empower Network is a multi-level marketing company that sells a variety of products and services. While it is not a scam, it has faced criticism from some people who say that it overstates the income potential of its products and services. Overall, it is up to you to decide if their products and services are right for you.