Eight Charged in US Court with $10m Survey Fraud

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of New Hampshire has unsealed an indictment charging eight defendants from MR firms with conspiracy to defraud clients. The eight, from panel and research firms Op4G, Slice and SNWare, allegedly billed around $10m for bogus survey responses over the course of a decade.

The eight include five US residents - Frank Hayden, Daniel Harriman, Frank Nappo, Ryan Stoudt and Archie Ignacio - as well as Serbian Katarina Grubljesic, Brazilian Strahinja Grubljesic and Delhi, India resident Arvind Iyer, a.k.a. S. Aravindan. The indictment says that Op4G's Hayden, Harriman and Nappo decided in 2014 to begin fabricating panel responses in order to boost profits, leading to the recruitment of 'ants', who pretended to be legitimate survey takers but instead were paid a nominal fee for falsifying data - some of the defendants also served as 'ants' themselves.

In 2018 the fraudulent operations were moved to a new company, Slice, according to the indictment, and the two companies began shortly afterwards to conspire with Iyer, a senior leader at SNWare. Grublijesic also allegedly conspired with the defendants via her own international company, Bright Analytic Consulting, after leaving Op4G. The documents say ants were instructed in how to answer screener questions, how long to take over surveys, and in the use of VPNs to help conceal the fraud.

Hayden, Harriman, Nappo, Stoudt, and Ignacio will appear at a later date in federal court, where if found guilty they face a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, up to three (3) years of supervised release, and a maximum fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. The investigation was led by the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander S. Chen is prosecuting the case. Companies that purchased survey data from Op4G or Slice between 2014 and 2024 are encouraged to contact the U.S. Attorney's office at usanh.webmail@usdoj.gov with the subject line 'Slice.'

The court stresses that the details contained in the indictment are allegations and those indicted are presumed innocent until proven guilty. US research professional body the Insights Association (IA) has today issued a statement on the case, also underlining that the individuals concerned are innocent until proven guilty, but says pending case results it has suspended the memberships of SliceMR and SNWare Research, and the individuals concerned - Op4G was not an IA member.

The IA says the alleged criminal activity 'fundamentally violates the trust that goes to the core of our profession' and calls the behavior described 'abhorrent, deceptive, shocking, and completely inconsistent with our industry's longstanding ethical standards.' CEO Melanie Coutright adds: 'We must be diligent in exposing suspected fraudulent or illegal behavior at any place, at any time, from any person or organization connected to our profession.' However she states: 'While this case is a disturbing example of misconduct, it is crucial to emphasize this is an isolated incident. It should not cast doubt upon the integrity of thousands of honest, professional organizations and individuals who comprise our industry.'

The IA suggests firms can protect themselves from the risk of such activities in a number of 'concrete ways', which we'll quote in full:

• Know your partners. Ask tough questions and vet vendors thoroughly.
• Request transparency. Ask about sourcing, sampling, and verification practices.
• Educate your team. Ensure staff are familiar with best practices and red flags in online sampling and surveys.
• Stay engaged. Participate in industry webinars and conferences where best practices are actively discussed.
• Build your network. Strong peer connections can help identify reputable research service providers.
• Report unethical or illegal behavior to the Insights Association immediately* - even if the party involved is not an IA member.

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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