Welcome to our Digital Altitude Review!
Quick Update:
As of 29 Jan 2018, Digital Altitude has officially been shut down by the FTC because it has been confirmed to be an illegal pyramid scheme.
Digital Altitude is just using digital marketing products as a disguise to lure innocent people into the system and recruit more and more people. Not only that, members were required to pay for a series of tiered memberships that had increasing fees.
If you want more information, read the official press release by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).
Check out our Top Recommended Program to make Honest Money Online!
Is Digital Altitude a Pyramid Scheme? It’s a common question being asked about Digital Altitude, so we wrote this review to get your the answers you need…
Digital Altitude Review Summary
Product Name:
Founder: Michael Force
Product Type: Affiliate Marketing Pyramid Scheme
Price: $1 to join basic membership, 14-day trial and $37/month afterwards. Plus many upsells. And numerous membership upsells with the cheapest being $597 and the highest $27,997
Best For: The Founder
Summary: Digital Altitude is a company that offers online training courses to help beginners to make money online. However, it’s an extremely expensive course with numerous upsells. The way it works is by helping people promote their own membership and recruit even more people into the memberships too.
That makes Digital Altitude a Pyramid Scheme!
Rating: 45/100 1/100
Recommended? No (The FTC Has Closed This Scheme Down)
Table of Contents
What is Digital Altitude?
Digital Altitude marketed itself as an online marketing ‘training’ program. But this one came with a claim that you could be earning 6 figures online in as little as 90 days – even if you have no experience, whatsoever!!
It had been put together by a guy called Michael Force who claims to be an ex-marine. His story continued to say he spent 4 years in the service, before moving into a cushy corporate job. Things were going well, until he decided to quit and pursue an online income instead.
He was clever in the fact that he did not claim to become a millionaire overnight, like most ‘gurus’ do, and he said he struggled for several years before he finally ‘cracked the code’. He also came out with the claim that he went from 0 to a 6-figure earning in just 90 days.
The Digital Altitude platform became his way for you to learn from his secret and do just that.
It sounded like a great deal to many, and on the surface, it looked a great deal. But on the inside, the signs it was a pyramid scheme became very apparent.
It claimed to be a ‘Done for You’ system but resembles another platform that the FTC has also closed – MOBE.
Let’s look into how Digital Altitude conned people out of their money.
How Does Digital Altitude Work?
It started by people being sold that the price was $49 a month. But once you had handed over your money, you found that this price gave you practically nothing. Just some basic videos and a sense of needing to spend more money to get anywhere with this program.
Members also gained a 1-on-1 coaching call, but really it was a salesperson pushing you to upgrade to the higher packages. You also find out that the only way you make money from this system is by promoting it to other people.
This is similar to how Six Figure Mentors and Super Affiliate Network work, you only get information about how to promote their products and not anything else. Whilst Digital Altitude and MOBE have been closed by the FTC, as they were Pyramid Schemes. SFM & SAN are clever in the way it is classed as a MLM scheme and not a pyramid.
But in essence they are the same thing, because you can only earn a commission for a referral if you own the relevant level.
So, if you stayed on the basic membership at Digital Altitude, and someone you referred joined the RISE package (which is $2,000), you would not receive any recognition for the introduction.
That is how Pyramid Schemes work, you need to climb the ladder to earn commissions.But when you look at the cost of the membership levels,
Aspire Walker – $49/month
Aspire Hiker – $67/month
Aspire Climber – $127/month
RISE Package – $2,000
APEX Package – $50,000.
It just shows that you needed to progress through the membership levels to get close to earning the money he was talking about. Imagine, getting someone to buy the APEX package and find you are not eligible, because you hadn’t spent $50k on it yourself?
His claims were what got him caught out with the FTC.
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Digital Altitude Aspire Scam Shutdown by the FTC
The FTC has taken action to shut down the business coaching scam Digital Altitude. As of February 8th, 2018, they put in a federal court order to halt the operation that took more than $14 million from consumers seeking to start their own online business.
It all hinged on the claim that consumers could earn 6-figure earnings within 90 days. Which is entirely unrealistic, I am surprised it was allowed to continue for so long.
But it is a good sign that the FTC are actively looking into these scams – MOBE and Digital Altitude were two of the biggest scams out there, so hopefully it is sending a huge message out there.
See the full FTC report here
Haven't Made Your First $1 Yet?
My Digital Altitude Review - Final Conclusion
Yes, wholeheartedly and even the FTC have confirmed this operation had one intention – to rob people blind. Only the people at the top of the pyramid would have been making any money from this type of system.
But if you also think about the people who were earning money from promoting Digital Altitude, they have lost their income because they didn’t teach them any other way of earning money online.
How We Make Money Online
Of course, there is, people are earning money legitimately through Affiliate Marketing every day. Without any need for pyramid schemes or MLM schemes where you only get to promote one product.
There are also opportunities to earn money from a passion or interest you have and get taught in a safe environment with training aimed at all aspects of affiliate marketing. Not just the elements that make the owners rich.
If you are looking into learning online or affiliate marketing, a training platform such as Wealthy Affiliate can actually teach you the right way to get started online and it is free to get started.
Luckily, the FTC have saved a lot of people from Digital Altitude, but there are plenty of other scams out there that people need to watch out for.
Doing your research into any product is a great way of only finding genuine ways to earn money online.
Thanks for reading my post, if you have any questions or experiences with Digital Altitude I would love to hear from you. Write them in the comments below and I wil definitely come back to you as soon as. thanks, John
Affiliate Marketing Vs MLM – Which One Is Best Option For You?
Financial Education Services Review – Legit MLM or Pyramid Scheme?
What Exactly is Digital Altitude?
How Does Digital Altitude Work?
Digital Altitude Aspire Scam Shutdown by the FTC
My Honest Opinion of Digital Altitude – Is Digital Altitude a Scam
Is There Another Way?
Hi John, thank you for sharing the Digital Altitude scam. It’s appalling how people take advantage, specially when you try to make your life better – it’s unforgivable! Good thing the FTC shut it down. I never trust pyramid system, they put so much pressure on people and really, doing online business should be enjoyable. And specially, when you only starting as affordable as possible.
Hey Katya,
that is where they get clever, you do not always realise it is a pyramid or MLM scheme until you are in and being constantly sold to. But for some, it is too late as they have invested money in and want to try and get it back.
thanks
John
Thanks very much for such an informative article, a very interesting read however it is alarming that these devious people really can fool the crowds of people, if we think about it like this; if Digital Altitude is still getting searches even now after it has been closed, just imagine the number of people who may even have quit their jobs to make a proper start on a course like that, thinking they are doing good when they’re just getting robbed.
Hey Jack,
some great points there. It shows they were conning people out of thousands of dollars in the hope they could do it in 90 days.
Genuine affiliate marketing takes months really to get some traction, and there will always be those looking for shortcuts. This is a prime example of what happens when people go for the shortcuts.
Glad you found it useful, thanks
John
Thanks for this great eye opener. Many people have fallen prey to some of the scam pyramid programs out there. To be honest, some people can be very gullible to things like this, it will surprise one that same person have become victims of such programs more than once.
A lot of people have testified to the authenticity of the Wealthy Affiliate program. That’s a good one that people who are looking for online source of income should key into.
Hey Richard,
some great points out there. These schemes play on the emotions of people who are struggling with money and want to find a quick way of earning money. In my experience, there is no such thing as a quick way to earn money, but you are right. People are gullible and fall for them.
They use fake testimonials and that is something I hate. You find the person doing the video available to hire on freelancer sites.
True systems are upfront, allow you to see it for yourselves and are totally honest about the fact you will need to work hard to make it work. Wealthy Affiliate is just such a platform. They provide the tools and training, you need to invest the time and effort. Otherwise it will never work.
thanks again Richard
John
To launch an online business, it’s a good idea to study the market to find the platform that best suits our needs.It is very good that we have diversity in the field and it is better that there are reviews that help us to inspire.Reading your post, I reminded myself why I am so pleased with my platform.
When it comes to online courses to affiliate marketing, a very important factor is the cost or initial investment. There are many people who simply can not afford to pay the price, even if it is small.
That’s why I’m grateful for your insight about DEA.
Thanks Raluca,
we try to help as many people as we can.
thanks
John
This a very expensive scam to Join and he’ll alot of money to loose imagine loosing 50k that will drive any one nuts no matter what you might be earning.thanks for heads up we need to be very careful with this kind of people who are interested in your money and nothing else only to make sure they steal from you.
Hey Charles,
I know right, luckily the FTC closed this one down. But there are still plenty of scams out there to catch unsuspecting people out.
We will try and expose as many as we can
John
Interesting article displaying the amount of money a scam can bring in, I had not heard of Digital Altitude before but I have come across MOBE, they really know how to make something very believable.
Sadly there are many scams out there and I fell prey to one luckily for me it was a small amount however you hear stories of people losing thousands to these sort of scams, finding the right fit takes time and careful consideration, if you are new to affiliate marketing and do not have the skill set it is important that you get the right training and tools, I have been with Wealthy Affiliate for a number of years and in my opinion they are the best out there, it is just packed with resources and support and what you see is what you get there are no hidden extra’s or people trying to sell to you, there are lots of affiliate marketing opportunities around is there any particular platform that you would recommend when looking for an affiliate program to join ?
Hey Katie,
thanks for sharing your experience. I fell for a scam early on, and that is why I wanted to make sure I exposed as many as I could to help others avoid the trap.
Wealthy Affiliate is a great resource for those looking to make money from affiliate marketing. Affiliate Marketing is a genuine way of earning money online. It takes time and effort, but is a great and fun way to make money from a passion.
No Scam, No False Testimonials – Just honest and great support with training to help you make an online business successful.
thanks again Katie
John
Digital altitude is pure scam if I may say. How can all these sites starts offering people programs that are not genuine and at the end they lose their hard earned money to things that will yield no result. Anybody that falls a victim to all quick six figure income simply learn a big lesson of his life.
The problem is, there are that many programs out there stating you can earn money quick, that people believe it is possible. So when they fall onto a scam that promises it, they don’t understand it.
Thats why we try to educate as many people as we can as to how to avoid online scams.
thanks
John
Thanks for this eyeopening post. I find the rate at which so many scam sites operate on the internet very disappointing. Digital altitude is obviously a scam site for not practicing what it preaches, another thing that turns me off this program is the fact that it is a done for you system, these kind of sites can’t really help in making earnings online. Affiliate marketing does work better for me now than these get rich quick schemes.
Hey Seun,
thanks for checking out my post. Done for you packages are typically a scam, but there are a few that might be worth it. this one is not.
thanks
John
Hi John Crossley,
Thank you for writing a great review about Digital Altitude. Since this is proved for scamming and shutdown by FTC, many people will save their hard earning money from this scam product. I am going to share it with others. I love your # one recommendation of joining in the Wealthy Affiliate program. I believe it will be helpful for beginners.
Hey Mzakapon,
thanks for checking my review. Hopefully it will send out a message to other scams out there, that the FTC are on the look out.
thanks
John
Thank you for this review.
First of all, I’m glad FTC has closed down the Digital Altitude for the benefits of those who don’t really much about being scammed on internet. that’s a welcome development.
Another easiest way to know all these scamming sites is they’ll promise mouthwatering, unrealistic payment in few days after you’ve joined. Imagine Digital Altitude promising 6 figures in 90 days? funny!!
Just look at the price for their levels? outrageous!! 50K for what!!!!?
I am glad it has been shut down though.
Thank you for this review
Hey Kehinde,
it is a ridiculous price, but people were paying it. That is a scary fact.
The FTC is definitely getting better at identifying these Pyramid schemes, but there are new scams coming online everyday. So, we need to remain vigilant.
thanks
John
This is a great post! Digital Altitude is not the first nor will it be the last scam. I am glad you have told me that they are a scam because even though the FTC shut them down the old links would probably be used to promote a new scam (scammers are crafty like that).
I have been with an MLM scheme before and it is possible to make money just not for us normal people. It is very possible to make money as long as you are a top dog in the hierarchy because the people under you basically do a lot of work so you can benefit as well. Normal hard working folk are the engines turning profits for the higher-ups by recruiting more engines ( aka normal people trying to make money who are about to learn a very hard lesson).
It is pretty sad that you cough up all this money and the only way for you to make money is to get some other unsuspecting person to do the same. In the end, it sucks even more because just like you said when the roof comes crashing down you haven’t really picked up any skills that can help you start again.
I think that is why affiliate marketing is the best way forward. You are in control and accountable for what happens in your online business and you will have gained many new skills that can help you start successful online businesses from scratch. The best part is it is honest and forces you to be honest because people will eventually catch you out if you are not honest but if you are honest you can build relationships and earn honest money.
You said people are still searching for Digital Altitude but do they still have any active links lurking around on the web? I would like to know to avoid any possible associated scams as well.
Thanks for sharing this great information!
Hey Renton,
hopefully all the links have been deactivated as the FTC was involved. But it is a good point to raise to be on the look out for.
thanks
John