Asia Expat Guides fake testimonials

SCAM FILE:
Asia Expat Guides Fake Testimonials
Version 1.0 | Louise McGregor | changememe.com | @changememe | © creative commons

SCAM FILE: Asia Expat Guides Fake Testimonials
I blogged about the fake testimonials on the Asia Expat Guides website last week.
Here’s their reaction – a tweet they’ve since deleted.
Except I wasn’t pointing out likenesses, I was providing evidence of photos stolen from
legitimate bio pages of universities, schools, conferences and companies.
Since then I’ve played a cat and mouse game, posting evidence of their fake profiles on
twitter and adding the person affected if possible. It’s been somewhat effective, they’ve
removed some – but added some new ones.
What follows is evidence of just how much Asia Expat Guides lies. Enjoy!

http://www.unmc.edu/biochemistry/graduate_students.htm
Removed 8 August 2013
Vikesh Naidu, an IT Analyst in China who
struggled to buy groceries (supermarket?)
Or a Ph.D candidate in Biochemistry
called Bhopal at the University of
Nebraska Medical Center?

Jeff Goldman, Operations Manager in
Vietnam looks a lot like….
John Franklin of John Franklin Ministries
http://www.johnfranklinministries.org/

Removed 10 August 2013 Reappeared 13 August 2013
http://www.onlinehsa.com/RosannePaul.aspx
Who is this mystery woman, last week she was Jessica
Langseth, this week she’s Jenet William…
But she’s really Roseanne Paul,
a territory manager for
HSA, and still based in the US

http://scienceblog.cancerresearchuk.org/2013/06/14/sticky-cells-blood-
vessels-and-cancer-the-paradox-of-claudin-14/
Jenet William, lab technician, who
moved to China…
But wait, she’s really Dr. Marianne Baker, who is
a researcher cancer research in the UK. Wonder
how she feels about AEG demoting her to lab
technician.

Jon Albarto, Marketing Manager in
Thailand…
… or Stephen A. Odom, one of the
Ontogeny partners
http://www.theontogenypartners.com/who-we-are/meet-us/

Philipp Blank… (who looks nothing like
the real Philipp Blank…)
Probably because he’s really Denys Anctil.
http://www.normand.ca/Machinerie/e-contacts.html

Is Kris Allen and accountant in Malaysia
(who oddly doesn’t capitalise ‘I’)?
Or a PR guy called Oliver Chesher, based
in Manchester?
Removed 13 August 2013 http://www.prweek.com/uk/news/1067542/Admiral-PR-opens-office-
Manchester-appoints-head-office-Oliver-Chesher/?DCMP=ILC-SEARCH

On Sunday he was Aron
Smith
By Tuesday he was Stevie
Wright
Tuesday evening he’s back
to Aron Smith

Janet Wilson, a Lab Tech in
Malaysia.
Who swims at the University of Vermont under the
name Tori Wood.

Asia Expat Guides couldn’t decide whether to call him
Donald or Brent. I think he looks more like a Donald.
But he’s known as Peter to his
friends, to everyone in fact,
including his colleagues in the UK
http://www.debtmanagementtoday.co.uk/peter_welch

Hiromi loves her job as a
translator in China.
It leaves her plenty of time to moonlight
as a hairstyle model…
http://hairstylesweekly.com/japanese-
hairstyles-gallery/short-japanese-for-spring/

It’s great that Ibrahim has
mastered Chinese, many expats
don’t…
But I’m surprised he needs it in his day job as
Samir Ahmed…
http://bluechipmag.com/qa-with-samir-ahmed/

Hassan Azar, an accountant (another one
who can’t capitalise correctly, how odd)
Turns out to be Antonios Lalechos, sounds
Greek to me.
http://www.xfel.eu/organization/staff/lalechos_
antonios_vassilios/

Brent Keith, so happy in
Singapore…
Or Grant Hallstrom managing partner of a law
firm in California?
http://www.emotionalblackholes.com/

Nice to see Nasser hasn’t gone into
hipster fashion like most graphic
designers….
Possibly because his real name is Ahmed
Alajaji and he’s a student
http://apyls.hci.edu.sg/2012/participants.php

Rick or Ricky? Evans or Braddy?
Another testimonial which had a name change today
Or maybe Ben, a philosophy
alumnus, in the US.
http://www.philosophy.northwestern.edu/alumni/#ben

Robert Smith, a Head Engineer in
Malaysia, he’s happy with AEG’s services
Which is odd for a Training Co-ordinator
in France
http://www.pgmodel.com/qui-sommes-nous/joignez-vous-a-notre-equipe/

Betty loves the social
gatherings, and meeting interesting
people…
They got the meeting people part right –
but her name is Laurie and she’s in
Massachusetts
http://salonvicaro.com/laurie-thomas/

Daniel Walsh got Perfect Service
when he moved…
But his real name is Jeremiah Erikson
https://vimeo.com/jeremiaherikson

Stuart Standish, a Marketing guy in
Thailand
Turns out to be John Morgan of Akrtos
http://www.amerika.org/books/interview-with-john-morgan-of-arktos/

Aina Ekstrom, got to meet local
friends in Vietnam.
But her real name is Annika, and she’s
from Sweden. She works on a site for
expats in Italy (I know, the irony)
http://www.expatsinitaly.com/node/134

Odd way to spell Johnathon, but
happy he could learn Thai.
But his real name is Michael Lawrence Young,
and he writes a fascinating blog “Dando Papaya”
http://www.dandopapaya.com/?page_id=7

A Chinese man who moved to Kuala
Lumpur to work as a vet (seems an
unlikely scenario, but OK)
Turns out to be a dentist providing
services for expats in Thailand. This is
kinda dumb, if AEG were a real agency
this man should be on their supply list not
their fake testimonial list!
http://pattaya-times.com/a8002-dental-loft-clinic-for-foreign-expatriates

Helena Elg apparently owns a
Pastry shop in Thailand. (Really?)
No, not really, she’s Maggie Myklebust, author
of Fly Away Home, a book about being pulled
between two countries
http://flyawayhomebook.com/about/

Dave Wells a finance
director who got a map of
Shanghai…
Or Atour Samsonov, Vice President at Citi, I know
banks are unpopular but that’s no reason to steal
his photo.
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/artour-samsonov/27/502/641

Michael Webber, bought a
car in Singapore with AEG’s
help.
Wonder how Matthias Buttner will get it to Brazil.
http://talk2brazil.blogspot.nl/2013/04/matthias-buttner-ambassador-of.html

Kerrington Roberta – very
unusual name – works as an
English teacher
Or James Counsell, President (or former President)
of the Cambridge Union Society.
http://internationalstudentsenate.blogspot.nl/2011/03/james-counsell.html

http://bizblogs.nus.edu/the-nus-
mba/2012/09/25/the-nus-mba%EC%97%90-
%EB%B6%80%EB%8A%94-
%ED%95%9C%EB%A5%98%EB%B0%94%EB%9
E%8C/
Richard Wong, who is throwing out
A+ for a service …
That Jason Lee Won Jun probably didn’t use

http://expatexplorer.blogspot.nl/2010/10/expert-excellence-featuring-
george-eves.html
Peteria Laugrh, learnt Malay
for his job in Malaysia
But his real name is George Eves, and he works for
an Expat organisation. His profile was removed from
AEG following their tweet.

Although same text was reused for
“Michael Ownings”
“Eugene” has a lot of spare time now that
the cleaning of his apartment is sorted
out in Vietnam,
so much so that he’s apparently started
moonlighting as John Price, the Director
of the International School Monaco. Hell
of a Commute.
http://www.ismonaco.org/home/en/our/director%27s-welcome---
.aspx

http://www.smeadvisor.com/2013/05/hospital
ity-market-in-the-uae/mat-green/
Michael Ownings has a lot
of spare time now that the
cleaning of his apartment is
sorted out in Vietnam,
… this might sound familiar… so much so that he’s
apparently started moonlighting as Matthew
Green, Head of Research
http://www.smeadvisor.com/2013/05/hospitality-market-in-the-uae/mat-green/

Rebecca Swansea, an expat in
Vietnam?
Or Emily Grieves an Expat in Mexico?
http://www.womensradio.com/2012/04/emily-grieves-expat-artist-
embraces-mexico/

Marrisa E., an expat’s wife
who likes baking and
cooking. (AEG organises
classes for that)
Except she’s Tiffany Waddell, academic counselor
at the Wake Forest University. She prefer poetry
writing to baking.
http://diversity.provost.wfu.edu/gatekeepers/trainers/

Gary Patel is a Singapore
banker by day…
And an Assistant Professor called Jonathan Simon
by night?
http://newfaculty.uchicago.edu/page/jonathan-simon

Jessica is fluent in
Vietnamese after a year of
study…
Except she’s called Kaitlin Gault, and at the time
the photo was taken was working for the small
business development staff somewhere in
Colorado
http://beling.net/articles/about/Kaitlin_Hawayek#prettyPhoto[slide]/35/

New today! Rick Braddy, a software
engineer from India
He’s really Jonathan Cristaldo, an
economist from Mexico. I think AEG
changed his nationality and his religion.
RUDE!

Quentin Boyer moved to
China as an internet
marketer….
Except he’s called Charles-Henri Thoquenne, he is
an expat. In Senegal.
http://www.expat-blog.com/newsletter/top/142_aout-2011.html

Amelia Fran, who has no
identity beyond her
husband.
Or Aileen Aniciete, an opera choir member.
http://groundcontrol-opera.com/aileen-aniciete/

AEG helped her but
couldn’t remember her
name?
I can help them with that, she’s Laura Phenix, but
unsurprisingly, she’s not in China.
http://www.ynpnsfba.org/powerfulher

Astrid Laut, who despite
being a journalist need help
to visit a local market.
Or Rachel Pollack, expert on Internet Governance?
http://www.academia.edu/People/Internet_Governance_ICT_policy_and_Regulat
esearch

That’s forty lies on the website.
There are more.
Why would anyone use this company?

Asia Expat Guides fake testimonials

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Asia Expat Guides fake testimonials