LivingEnergy and trader-manipulators

{"translated_text": "I request assistance (advice, reposts, and social media likes) in identifying means to counter manipulative vendors who deceived and intimidated an elderly woman.\n\nI have an elderly relative, aged 85, who lives alone. She is a Candidate of Sciences (maxillofacial surgeon, radiologist), a war veteran entitled to benefits as a combat participant, among other distinctions. Despite multiple health issues, she retains full cognitive clarity (a conclusion unshaken even by the story I am about to tell), takes an active interest in current affairs, follows medical news, and strives to maintain an acceptable quality of life.\n\nShe called me yesterday (August 10) on the verge of tears, asking for help. She had seen an advertisement for the LivingEnergy device on Channel 5. This device acts on tissues via a combination of vibration and infrared radiation. Advertisers claimed that using the device significantly improves quality of life. The ad provided a phone number, which she called. From the number listed in the ad (now disconnected), she was transferred to 067-54-94-163, where a woman identifying herself as Natalia Aleksandrovna Ryazantseva proceeded to convince my relative that the LivingEnergy device was exactly what she needed. The device was expensive; accounting for her various merits, my relative was offered a 30% discount, bringing the price to just over 4,500 hryvnias (!). She agreed.\n\nHow the salespeople managed to foist an unverified device at an exorbitant price on an experienced medical professional, while convincing her not to consult anyone, is a complex question. My relative describes this as follows: \"I must have been out of my mind.\"\n\nKey arguments presented by the woman identifying herself as Natalia Aleksandrovna Ryazantseva included a promise to oversee my relative’s treatment via phone, and assurances that the device could be returned within 14 days in accordance with the law.\n\nThe device was delivered to her home on August 9. My relative parted with a sum that represented a significant financial burden for her, and began to investigate... Both the number from the ad and Natalia Aleksandrovna’s number went unanswered. The device instructions state that individuals with cardiovascular issues should consult a physician before use. A doctor (citing severe cardiac arrhythmias, osteochondrosis, and risk of thrombosis) categorically advised against using the device. The 4,500 hryvnias were gone.\n\nI visited my relative and began calling the numbers... and got lucky (my number was likely not yet on their blacklist). A woman identifying herself as Natalia Aleksandrovna’s assistant answered. She refused to speak with me, demanding to speak to the \"patient\" directly. I raised the issue of a return, but she steered the conversation to discussing diagnoses and insisting on the device’s efficacy. She reiterated three key points:\n— The device is a personal hygiene item and cannot be returned;\n— If the device does not produce results within 14 days, it can be returned, but only if the \"patient\" initiates \"treatment\" and follows all recommendations, and only in direct discussion with her;\n— We have no right to return the device without providing a reason.\n\nThe conversation ended with her expressing displeasure and promising that a representative of the control service would call us within 10 days to resolve everything. This was a hollow promise: since we spoke the day after the purchase, the 10-day wait would push us past the 14-day return window, after which they could claim the return period had expired.\n\nWe attempted to identify who to file a complaint with, only to find no trace of the sellers. Their websites are designed to collect user data with promises to follow up (see example here). Any phone numbers listed are not for the sales company itself, but for \"consultation\" lines. There is a comment form, where I submitted a comment including a link to this page, but it was never published. The site only features generic expressions of gratitude and testimonials of miraculous healings.\n\nDuring our conversation, the woman stated that their organization is located at 21 Saksahanskoho Street, Kyiv, but provided no further details.\n\nDocuments? I am posting photos below: the receipt and certificate of conformity. The receipt only bears an addressless stamp, and the certificate lists no applicant details.\n[IMG_1]\n[IMG_2]\nI doubt that sales can be legally conducted while withholding seller information from the buyer.\n\nThere is another concerning aspect. The salespeople pressured a pensioner into purchasing a device that represented a significant financial burden. In phone conversations, these so-called benefactors swore to the technology’s safety. However, one phrase from the advertising page stands out: \"The LivingEnergy device is widely used in European clinics and major Russian cities, and has proven effective in weight loss. The method involves non-invasive exposure of adipocytes, which are broken down and eliminated from the body via the lymphatic system and bloodstream.\" If the device actually destroys cells in the body, this is a serious medical intervention that requires consultation, not a casual purchase. I hope this claim is mere marketing deception targeting gullible consumers, rather than a reflection of the device’s actual properties. During the phone sales pitch, Natalia Aleksandrovna asked how many kilograms my relative wanted to lose, then \"entered\" corresponding settings into the device’s \"program.\" How convenient!\n\nI consulted a reputable biologist who also works in medicine. Their verdict was unequivocal: vibration is a complex factor with variable effects. Remotely recommending vibration therapy for an elderly person with tissues that have lost elasticity is, at minimum, grossly irresponsible (and potentially criminal).\n\nAfter convincing the victim to part with her money, all promises of a hassle-free return are called into question. There is no trace of the sellers (no legal address, no organization details to contact or file complaints against). Calls only reach irresponsible staff who claim the \"control department\" will resolve everything, a clear tactic to stall for time.\n\nIt remains a mystery to me how a rational woman, a Candidate of Medical Sciences, fell for this scam. Was it the fraudulent use of manipulative rhetoric? Elderly people, accustomed to trusting television and print media, have become targets for exploitation by sellers of medical products ranging from magic talismans to miracle devices. Promoters of such products have likely learned to exploit psychological vulnerabilities in their victims. My relative did not buy a device; she bought the promise of improved health, vitality, and joy that Natalia Aleksandrovna dangled before her. This is hardly a new phenomenon, but deceiving an elderly person and foisting a vibration massager on her for thousands of hryvnias is a particularly cynical moneymaking scheme. I have faithfully recounted this story. I welcome any advice on next steps.\n\nTo the sellers of \"LivingEnergy — a unique 5-in-1 device for overall health\": consider this page a formal statement from E. A. Markova, resident of Volodarskoho Street, Kharkiv, demanding the immediate retrieval of the device, full refund of the purchase price, and a formal apology.\n\nUpdate as of August 21, 2012:\nToday, the situation finally shifted, but unfortunately not in our favor. A representative of the \"control department\" called my relative back. She managed to convince him to speak with me. He provided a phone number (067-23-84-762) and I spoke with a man identifying himself as Hennadii Volodymyrovych.\n\nThe conversation was lengthy and largely heated. His position was as follows: my relative purchased the device at a discount subsidized by the Ekaterina Yushchenko Foundation \"Healthy Nation of Ukraine.\" Since she is not using the device, she obtained the discount fraudulently and must pay the remaining balance to cover the full price. They have no intention of retrieving the device or terminating the sale; instead, since she is not using the device as intended, the foundation will send collectors who, together with the police, will demand the discounted amount (over 2,000 hryvnias) from the elderly veteran.\n\nThis \"Hennadii Volodymyrovych\" readily resorted to threats, alternately describing how my relative would be morally destroyed when the police arrive to accuse her of fraud (the irony of who the actual fraudster is here is palpable), and promising to contact my university administration to have me disciplined for obstructing state agency operations. Yes, state agencies: he shouted that he represents the state, and categorically refused to provide any details about his organization. The conversation ended with him stating that I had greatly angered him, and that he was dispatching collectors to my relative’s home.\n\nUnfortunately, this was not the end. My relative received successive calls from \"Hennadii Oleksandrovych\" (who alternated between polite conversation and aggressive pressure), a man with an unclear first name and patronymic \"Afanasiiovych\" claiming to represent the foundation (Ekaterina Yushchenko’s? He was not explicit; he shouted at the elderly woman like a Gestapo interrogator questioning a partisan), and either Natalia Aleksandrovna or one of her staff (who gently urged her to use the device and drop the return request). This sustained pressure triggered a heart attack in my relative (who, I remind you, is a cardiac patient in her mid-80s!). I hope she heeded my advice and disconnected her phone.\n\nWhat now? The hornet’s nest has been stirred. These \"benefactors\" are systematically pressuring and intimidating an elderly person (all in the name of public service and national health, of course!). I am awaiting the publication of my column in Computerra, where I briefly outlined this case, as well as a planned television segment. I have filed a report with the local police department regarding telephone threats (accepted, registered, and under investigation), and sent registered letters to the prosecutor’s office, tax authorities, and police (all in Kyiv, where these \"good Samaritans\" appear to be based).\n\nMy relative is threatened with collectors, while I am threatened with prosecution for \"slander.\" I suspect these individuals will take no legal action: both dispatching collectors and filing a lawsuit against me would require them to disclose their official details (organization name, legal address, etc.). I welcome this, as their anonymity is currently their primary shield.\n\nI would be grateful for any assistance, whether advice or practical support.\n+ More on this topic in my new column, available on the Computerra website and here on Batrachos."}