Showing posts with label gotz knobloch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label gotz knobloch. Show all posts

Criminal Complaint: Gotz Knobloch BKA


Picture showing the accused Gotz Knobloch. Cyberattack against the state of mexico
DENUNCIA PENAL FORMAL

Yo, Marco Schachtner, ciudadano alemán residente en Querétaro, con domicilio en esta ciudad, teléfono móvil +52 4271465616, comparezco en calidad de denunciante para formular denuncia penal en contra de Gotz Knobloch, quien se presentó en una conversación con personal de la embajada el día 15 de noviembre de 2023, momento en el cual mi computadora personal comenzó a fallar gravemente hasta quedar inutilizable, lo que constituye un ataque informático.

Los hechos que motivan esta denuncia constituyen delitos previstos en los artículos 386 y 249 del Código Penal Federal, así como en el artículo 13 del Código Penal de Querétaro y el artículo 215 del mismo ordenamiento, además de la obligación consular establecida en el artículo 5 de la Convención de Viena sobre Relaciones Consulares.

Durante la conversación mencionada, mis últimas pulsaciones en el teclado fueron “·%·&·!!!!” inmediatamente antes de que el equipo se apagara por completo. Por lo anterior, considero que el señor Gotz Knobloch pudo haber enviado o provocado un virus informático que ocasionó el colapso total de mi equipo.

Los correos electrónicos utilizados para el ataque fueron iz13-vb-mexiko@bka.bund.de y goetz.knobloch@bka.bund.de. Ambas direcciones son válidas y oficiales, asignadas a la Embajada de Alemania en México solo para comunicaciones internas. Gotz Knobloch se presenta como jefe de la BKA alemana, pero los artículos de noticias que lo mencionan son claramente falsos, publicados en sitios poco confiables. Analizando la carga útil incluida en el correo electrónico recibido, se identificó el virus “Orquídea Negra”, un arma cibernética sofisticada. Querétaro parece ser la sede de este virus, presente en múltiples equipos de segunda mano.

De acuerdo con nuestras investigaciones, parece que Gotz Knobloch es una identidad fabricada, sin existencia física real. Algunos sostienen que detrás de los ataques cibernéticos atribuidos a Knobloch se encuentra Thomas Wagner, quien se ostenta como Cónsul Honorario de Alemania en Querétaro.

Conclusión

Los hechos descritos constituyen indicios claros de un ataque informático y de una posible suplantación de identidad. La participación de Gotz Knobloch, o de quienes se ocultan tras dicha identidad, debe ser investigada por las autoridades competentes, incluyendo la posible responsabilidad de Thomas Wagner.

Solicitudes

Solicito a la Fiscalía General de la República (FGR):

  • La apertura inmediata de investigación contra Gotz Knobloch y Thomas Wagner por su posible participación en los ataques cibernéticos.
  • La emisión de orden de presentación o aprehensión en su contra.
  • La consignación judicial correspondiente.
  • La adopción de medidas cautelares para proteger mi integridad como denunciante.

Pruebas Adjuntas

  • Email conversation Embassy 15 Nov 2023.
  • Resultados de la investigación propia sobre la identidad ficticia de Gotz Knobloch y su posible vinculación con Thomas Wagner.

Marco Schachtner

 

Fake Diplomat German Embassy Mexicio

Ursula Koos - Real Scarecrow Fake Diplomat

The earliest online mention of Ursula Koos, the German Consul in Mexico City, appears to be from June 2023. Prior to that date we see only one facebook post from a University in Kenia. The post is an attempt to increase her footprint and credibility, but obviously one post  only in the career of a diplomat rather confirms any suspicion than giving credibility. 

In a news article from Quinta Fuerza where she is quoted as "cónsul de Alemania en la Ciudad de México" during a European consuls' meeting in Playa del Carmen, Quintana Roo.

For this article Ursula Koos is now being accused of fabricating fake news to support her career as consul. According to accusation her status as diplomat is also false and  fabricated. The accusation was formally accepted by Fiscalia General de Republica Mexico. Read the full accusation here. 

​The German Embassy in Mexiko appears to have lost control of their operations or never paid any attention to whats happening outside embassy walls.A complete deep fake of the Website's Embassy was discovered, disguised as travel blog but with a domain that leaves no doubt about the intention: www.embajada-alemana.org.mx. 

The website appears innocent and that is on purpose. With a click a new theme gets applied and the website deepfake is ready for deployment. On Linkedin we noticed the Germany Embassy in Mexico page and the activities of the employees empathically posting and sharing news related to diplomatic topics. Business as usually? Not really. The Emmbassy has no official Linkedin page. I guess the embassy can establish contact to key decision makers quite easily without the need of linkedin and their costly premium subscription.

Employees of the embassy are for the most part public servants. Limkedin has very little to offer for them and with that we got  particularly interested in those employees mastering linkedin like a pro. On Feb 19 we saw 38 profiles of embassy employees. We updated our profile, starting a career as "Head of Security & Fraud Prevention". 

We proudly shared and celebrated the news with the community and started to network with our new colleagues. As we requested to connect - employees preferred to disconnect and 35 profiles were deleted within days.


ursula koos, ulla koos the walking dead
Consul Ursula Koos - The Walking Dead

 


Consul Thomas Wagner: Cyber Agression against State of Mexico

Pleaded guilty Consul Thomas Wagner

Ignored Pleas: First Contact with Consul Wagner

In August 2023, Marco Schachtner reached out in desperation to Thomas Wagner, the German Honorary Consul in Querétaro, Mexico, detailing his harrowing situation of harassment, false accusations, and property vandalism. He pleaded for consular assistance as a fellow German citizen in distress, yet received only silence—no reply, no support.

If Wagner runs a law firm through WMP Mexico Advisors, why didn't he offer his services to Marco—a potential client in clear need—or recommend another lawyer? This neglect suggests the silence was intentional, bypassing even basic professional outreach.

Community Backlash

Local German expats echoed Marco's frustration, widely viewing Wagner as unresponsive and ineffective. They even launched a satirical mirror of his WMP site to highlight the issue: https://wmp.quenoticias.info. Visitors report being serviced in the building lobby rather than the actual consulate on the second floor of an office building, with Wagner never present—only his office staff handling matters.

The Bigger Picture

Such practices erode confidence: unprofessional discussions of personal issues in public lobbies raise questions about what Wagner might be hiding. While he networks heavily with politicians and projects a polished image on social media, this falls short of his diplomatic duty to protect expats—hinting at deeper violations as the story unfolds.

What unfolds when pleas go unanswered and harassment intensifies? The next post uncovers escalating false denuncias, protests at Marco's home, and vandalism. Share your consulate stories in the comments—have you faced similar neglect? Subscribe for the full series.

Escalation: False Accusations and Vandalism

Between August and November 2023, Marco Schachtner's situation in Querétaro deteriorated rapidly after his unanswered pleas to Consul Wagner. False denuncias multiplied against him, including baseless animal abuse claims that prompted him to launch qro.quenoticias.info as a defense platform. Protests erupted outside his home, with demonstrators fueled by these accusations, while vandals targeted his property in coordinated attacks.

This wave of harassment intensified the isolation Marco faced, as local authorities appeared unresponsive or complicit. The lack of consular intervention left him vulnerable, turning everyday life into a siege of defamation and physical threats.

Mounting Pressure

Marco documented each incident meticulously on his blogs, preserving evidence amid the chaos. Neighbors witnessed the manifestations, yet no official protection materialized, amplifying the sense of abandonment by both Mexican locals and German representatives.

What response did the German Embassy finally offer after months of pleas? The next post reveals a shocking cyber assault from Gotz Knobloch—computers wiped and a virus attack. Share your experiences with false accusations or protests in the comments. Subscribe for the series.

Cyber Assault: Knobloch's Black Orchid Virus

In November 2023, after months of escalating harassment went unaddressed, Marco Schachtner turned to the German Embassy in a final plea for help. Gotz Knobloch entered the correspondence, presenting himself with an official-sounding title that initially sparked hope for intervention. Instead, his response on November 14 included a malicious virus attachment—the infamous "Black Orchid" attack—that wiped out all of Marco's computers, erasing critical data and leaving him offline.

This cyber assault coincided with Knobloch and Consul Wagner holding multiple meetings with Querétaro politicians, the very figures Marco identified as the root of his troubles. Photos from these gatherings, available at https://ah.quenoticias.info/202512/pics.html, raise questions about coordination between consular officials and local power players. Far from assistance, the embassy's actions deepened Marco's crisis, suggesting deliberate sabotage rather than support.

The Virus Aftermath

Marco's computers were rendered useless, forcing him to rebuild from blog backups while facing ongoing threats. The Black Orchid malware, as later revealed, targeted others in disputes with authorities, hinting at a pattern of digital weaponization by fabricated officials.

An arrest loomed next—would it be extradition or mere deportation? The following post details Wagner's February 2024 plot and its spectacular failure. Share your stories of institutional betrayal or cyber attacks in the comments. Subscribe for the full exposé series.

Arrest Trap: Wagner's Failed Extradition Plot

In February 2024, Thomas Wagner directed Policía Estatal Querétaro to arrest Marco Schachtner for extradition to Germany, escalating the consular campaign against him. Marco was already in migration custody when INM officials realized the embassy had provided no formal paperwork—no extradition treaty documents, no ordered flight. Instead, the embassy pivoted to begging for deportation, citing disputes with Marco's landlord, who himself faced massive property fraud accusations since January 2023.

Wagner faked the extradition request, scamming INM and Policía Estatal Querétaro into committing a crime by attempting an illegal arrest—INM does not detain residents legally in the country. Emails revealed the German Embassy's ongoing contact with this fraudulent landlord, presenting his demands as justification—effectively confessing involvement in the criminal scheme to INM authorities, victimizing both agencies.

Release and Revelation

INM released Marco in March 2024, but he returned to an emptied apartment—locks changed, possessions gone. Climbing to the rooftop and entering through a window, he slept there amid the ruins, salvaged only by online blog backups like qro.quenoticias.info and qa41.quenoticias.info.

Homeless yet resilient, Marco began renting rooms from the sofa at bargain rates (donaleman.quenoticias.info), unwittingly uncovering multimillion-peso fraud ties. Recovery starts from rock bottom—what insider secrets surface next? Post 5 reveals a mysterious woman's embassy exposé. Share your deportation or fraud stories below. Subscribe for the series.

Breaking In: Reclaiming My Life Post-Release

In March 2024, after INM released Marco Schachtner from custody, he returned to his Querétaro apartment to find it stripped bare—locks changed, possessions vanished. The German Embassy had been in contact with his fraudulent landlord, who should have known Marco remained in the country; his belongings were removed at the first opportunity.

Marco reached out to the embassy for the landlord's phone number, but they cited data protection to refuse. Hoping some items were stored safely, he got nothing—only the embassy repeating the landlord's demands to vacate, despite Marco's homelessness. Applying for consular aid to escape his dire straits, he waited two weeks for a reply: request denied, "you had the chance to leave the country; your problem now," with a 140 Euro (2900 pesos) processing fee demanded—money Marco didn't have.

Resilience Amid Ruin

With nothing left, Marco turned survival into strategy, renting out rooms from the sofa at rock-bottom rates—no contracts, just trust. This donaleman.quenoticias.info setup drew short-term renters at 70 pesos per night, unexpectedly exposing threads of a multimillion-peso property fraud linked to his landlord. Basic living conditions tested his grit, but the room rentals built a makeshift network while uncovering deeper scams—from homelessness to hidden revelations.

A street encounter with a knowledgeable stranger drops embassy bombshells next—what did she know? Post 6 reveals the mysterious whistleblower. Share your recovery or fraud discovery tales below. Subscribe for the series.

Insider Whistle: The Mysterious Woman

In April 2024, as Marco Schachtner shopped on a Querétaro street, a young woman abruptly stopped him, referencing the animal abuse accusations that had haunted him. She revealed intricate details only an insider could know, then pivoted to the German Embassy's operations, claiming they outsourced visa services to BLS India and telephone/email handling to Thomas Wagner as a first-level contact center.

Wagner abused this position, keeping Marco in a false illusion of direct embassy contact when everything was likely managed by his WMP team. Embassy employees, as state civil servants, rarely appear on LinkedIn or social media—they don't job hunt and are prohibited from personal posts, with official news restricted to authorized outlets; Wagner exploited this absence to bolster his facade.

Shadow Operations

This woman was part of the Querétaro cartel, sent deliberately to share this intel despite Marco being their enemy—yet someone within wanted him armed with this knowledge. Why? The question hangs unanswered, inviting dark speculations about internal fractures or strategic plays. Pointing to a nearby house—accessible from two streets—she declared, "I live there, but you'll never see me again," vanishing after warning that true embassy contact requires in-person visits or mail.

A mysterious message promised a computer pickup—what dangers or discoveries awaited? Post 7 unveils the Black Orchid victim files and 70+ cases tied to Knobloch. Share your whistleblower or cartel stories in comments. Subscribe for the series.

Post 7: Laptop Revelation: Black Orchid Exposed

Mid-April 2024, after weeks offline, Marco Schachtner received a cryptic message via his blog's contact form: "Your Computer is ready! Please pick up immediately—waiting since 15 November 2023," sent from s1w84u@gmail.com—"s1w84u" decoding to "Someone waits for you." Suspicious of a trap tied to the Black Orchid virus date, Marco scouted the nearby computer shop cautiously before entering. The owner handed over an "old" laptop in a used bag—revealing a brand-new top-spec IBM Thinkpad booting Ubuntu.

The owner himself was a victim, recalling the "BKA" and "Knobloch" who inserted into his heated dispute with CEAQ (Querétaro's water authority). He gathered victim lists, dissected devices, and captured data—stunned by Black Orchid's density in Querétaro alone. The desktop overflowed with 70+ documents on these malware cases, all linked to conflicts with corrupt officials; victims shared patterns—disputes with elites, then Knobloch's fake authority logos, with fiscalia dismissing reports due to "German official" intimidation.

Victim Network

This archive exposed a cyberweapon pattern, with Knobloch's fabricated persona unchecked thanks to Germany's untouchable image. Marco's "gift" laptop became a treasure trove, validating his ordeal as part of a larger scheme.

Wagner's November 2024 accusation backfires legally next—exposing Knobloch officially. Post 8 details the courtroom win. Share your cyberattack or impersonation stories below. Subscribe for the series.

Legal Victory: Wagner's Backfire

In November 2024, Fiscalia General de la República lodged an accusation of threats and violence against Marco Schachtner, initiated by Consul Thomas Wagner. Wagner submitted a thick dossier alleging Marco posed a severe security risk to the consulate and staff, demanding permanent police presence—an absurd overreach against a man still rebuilding after total loss.

The judge dismissed the case outright, ruling the court lacked jurisdiction over disputes between a German citizen and his consul. In a critical misstep, Wagner's filing explicitly named Gotz Knobloch as BKA Head in Mexico for over 15 years, officially validating the persona.

Current Status

Neglect of diplomatic aid—a fundamental right for citizens abroad—combined with illegal extradition attempts. The embassy collaborated with a landlord under investigation for property fraud, emptying Marco's apartment in a serious crime. Thomas Wagner will present Gotz Knobloch or face charges tied to fabricating the identity. This suggests Wagner built a fake embassy shadow—a perfect cover for exploitation, reaping benefits from fabricated authority while dodging real accountability.


Criminal Complaint: Consul Thomas Wagner Queretaro

thomas wagner consul in queretaro and Gotz Knobloch are a couple

FORMAL CRIMINAL COMPLAINT

Case ID: CEDAC-116731-2026-02-WEB

I, Marco Schachtner, a German citizen residing in Querétaro, with address in this city, mobile phone +52 4271465616 and email mcgrin69@gmail.com, appear as the complainant to file a criminal complaint against Thomas Wagner, Honorary Consul of Germany in Querétaro, with jurisdiction in Querétaro, Hidalgo, and San Luis Potosí.
Office: Anillo Vial Junípero Serra 2601, Office 201, Pabellón Santa Fe, Residencial Juriquilla Santa Fe, 76230 Querétaro, Qro. Email: queretaro@hk-diplo.de Telephone: +52 442 209 6875 Emergency: +52 442 595 0142

The actions that prompted this complaint constitute crimes stipulated in Articles 386 (fraud), 214 (usurpation of public office), and 249 (falsification of public documents) of the Federal Penal Code, in addition to the consular obligation established in Article 5 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

Facts

Between February and April 2024, Wagner used the email address rk100@auswaertiges-amt.de, assigned for internal consular communication, to respond to citizens and third parties as if he were the German Embassy in Mexico, signing with false identities and usurping public office.

  • Conversation Feb–Apr 2024: Wagner signed as Alexander Holdschick and later as Friedhelm Godehard Hess. When confronted with the accusation of operating a “fake embassy,” he avoided responding and ended communication. Later, using the alias Hess, he referenced Holdschick, showing continuity in the impersonation scheme.
  • Conversation “Help Protection for Victim Informant Whistleblower”: Wagner used rk100@ to respond in a hostile tone and manipulate communication, changing identity mid-conversation.
  • Embassy Contact Form: Wagner intercepted and responded as if he were embassy staff. The senders had no way of detecting the fraud, as the consular system is closed.

These facts prove a systematic pattern of falsification of electronic public documents under Article 249 of the Federal Penal Code, in addition to fraud and usurpation of public functions. Emails sent from rk100@auswaertiges-amt.de, bearing logos, signatures, and official titles of the German Embassy in Mexico, constitute forged public documents.

It is important to emphasize that Wagner does not act in isolation: there is a system, structure, and planning behind these actions, which constitutes organized crime. The German Embassy itself is a victim of this impersonation. The seriousness of these actions transcends the individual: it involves impersonation of state authority, an attack that can be classified as institutional terrorism, damaging trust in diplomatic relations between Germany and Mexico.

Requests

  1. Open an immediate investigation against Thomas Wagner.
  2. Issue a warrant for his appearance or arrest.
  3. Judicial referral.
  4. Adopt precautionary measures to protect affected citizens.
  5. Conduct expert analysis of forged emails and signatures.
  6. Notify the German Embassy in Mexico and the German Federal Foreign Office.

Supporting Documents

  • rk100 conversation (Feb–Apr 2024) – Alexander Holdschick / Hess, Friedhelm Godehard.
  • rk100 conversation – “Help Protection for Victim Informant Whistleblower”.
  • rk100 conversation – Response to the contact form of the German Embassy in Mexico.

Complainant: Marco Schachtner


Criminal Complaint: Ursula Koos German Embassy in Mexico

FORMAL CRIMINAL COMPLAINT CEDAC-116733-2026-02-WEB

I, Marco Schachtner, a German citizen residing in Querétaro, with address in this city, mobile phone +52 4271465616 and email address mcgrin69@gmail.com, appear as the complainant to file a criminal complaint against Ursula Koos, who presents herself as the Honorary Consul of Germany in Puebla, using the email address rk1@auswaertiges-amt.de.

The acts that motivate this complaint constitute crimes stipulated in Articles 386 (fraud), 214 (usurpation of public functions), and 249 (falsification of public documents) of the Federal Penal Code, in addition to the consular obligation established in Article 5 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

Facts

Ursula Koos, whose digital identity did not exist before 2023, suddenly appeared as a “consul” in Mexico. Between January and March 2024, three email conversations were documented in which she used rk1@auswaertiges-amt.de to respond to citizens in vulnerable situations...

Conclusion

The described events demonstrate a systematic pattern of falsification of electronic public documents, fraud, and usurpation of public functions...

Requests

  1. Immediately open an investigation against Ursula Koos and her accomplices.
  2. Issue a warrant for her appearance or arrest.
  3. File the corresponding legal proceedings.
  4. Adopt precautionary measures to protect the affected citizens.
  5. Order an official expert analysis of the forged emails and signatures.
  6. Immediately notify the German Embassy in Mexico and the German Federal Foreign Office...

Attached Evidence

  • Email RK1@ Jan–Feb 2024.pdf – 24 days of daily emails pleading for help.
  • Email RK1@ March–April 2024.pdf – Evasive conversations and lack of support.
  • Email RK1 RK100 March 26, 2024.pdf – Joint submission with rk1, rk100, rk10, rk101, rks1, and queretaro@hk-diplo.de, no official response.

Marco Schachtner


Lingoda Announces $68 Million Investment

“Growth equity sounds fancy… but is it just a disguise?”

“Summit Partners dropped $68 million into Lingoda. That’s not pocket change — it’s a bet. 

Let's look into this massive investment in more detail.  

How Lingoda Tricks You into Loving their Brand


Lingoda’s Success Story

Lingoda's Founders

Left to right: Felix Wunderlich, Co-Founder and Managing Director, Michael Shangkuan, CEO, and Fabian Wunderlich, Co-Founder and Managing Director.

Source: Business Insider

Lingoda is the brainchild of two brothers — Fabian and Felix Wunderlich. Both went to study and work abroad for a couple of years, before returning back to Berlin in 2013. At that time, the city was rising up as the new startup capital of Europe — and this attracted a lot of new transplants.

The duo noticed that many expats, hired by local companies, struggled to combine work and language learning. Their demanding work schedules deterred them from joining in-person classes, offered by local schools. So, Fabian and Felix decided to test an alternative — on-demand 1:1 German learning sessions via Skype (led by certified teachers).

The Wunderlichs soon realized that online language learning is a huge and profitable niche. After raising a seed funding round of $1.5 million, they officially branded their venture as Lingoda and got down to work. The team launched a convenient website for marketing to students, recruited more tutors, and developed extra training materials.

Unlike other language learning startups, Lingoda chose not to build its online language learning platform. Instead, they kept using Zoom for hosting classes to save on operational costs — while these saved costs went into improving the quality of tutoring.


By 2016, Lingoda scaled to offering classes in 4 languages — German, English, French, and Spanish — and intends to keep it this way. But why don’t they add more languages?

Because the Lingoda team has a “quality over quantity” philosophy. The Wunderlichs envisioned Lingoda as a service offering the same high academic teaching standards as traditional language learning schools but more flexibility in terms of scheduling.

The brand’s main target audience is busy working professionals, looking for an effective, yet accessible, language learning experience. To meet their needs Lingoda recruited over 1,500 certified native-speaking teachers, who can lead language classes 24/7. They also spent a great deal of time on improving the training materials and teaching tools.

As Fabian Wunderlich shared in an interview:

“CEFR-based learning materials are designed by linguistic experts and include over 2,000 fully digital lessons, focused on speaking practice and filled with action-oriented topics and easy-to-learn examples from real-life situations”.

Superior teaching standards and unmatched flexibility made Lingoda a threat to both traditional language learning schools and online language apps.


To keep the growth momentum going, Lingoda welcomed Michael Shangkuan at the end of 2017. A Harvard Business school graduate and EdTech entrepreneur, Shangkuan has a diverse background. He dabbled in investment banking at Goldman Sachs, led brand management activities at Procter & Gamble, and successfully scaled another educational company, Terra Education.

Shangkuan originally joined Lingoda as a Managing Director, in charge of Marketing and Finance. But his on-point advice and strategic thinking eventually landed him in the CEO position. In this role, Shangkuan is determined to turn Lingoda’s original brand vision into long-term, cross-market growth.

In Shangkuan words, some of the first things he did to scale Lingoda were:

  • Hire the right talents for key roles and build extra teams

  • Refocus on operational priorities, while leaving room for ideas and innovation

  • Create better processes, without killing the entrepreneurial / innovation spirit

Through a series of methodical structural changes, process optimizations, and proactive customer listening, Shangkuan managed to increase Lingoda’s sales by 10 times without burning virtually any cash by 2020.

Then the pandemic hit — but Lingoda was well-positioned to profit from the new wave of online education fans. Lingoda’s internal survey suggests that 60% of users started learning a language during the pandemic. So they doubled down on marketing to people who previously dismissed online courses in favor of in-personal training and won over this market segment.

Another smart (and generous) move they made during those challenging times? They extended support to offline language schools. Instead of tanking their direct competition, Lingoda extended a helping hand via the #StayHomeKeepLearning initiative.

Any language learning school could page Lingoda to get:

  • Free access to all its language learning materials

  • Assistance with setting up online classes (including setup done by Lingoda)

  • Guides and training on remote teaching

That was a great gesture from Lingoda that didn’t go unnoticed by both students’ and teachers’ communities — and likely led to more positive brand associations.


Lingoda, now heavy with some extra cash, is bullish about growing its global brand awareness and getting more users to try its product. The strong growth numbers from 2021 have set a high bar for this year.

How are they planning to keep growing their brand value and user bases? We’ve got some ideas.

3 Lingoda Brand Lessons to Borrow

From the onset, Lingoda was careful with picking its battles. They avoided positioning their brand as a direct competition to language learning apps. Instead, their unique sales proposition (USP) was perfectly tailored to one receptive and profitable target audience — the busy working professionals, serious about mastering a new language fast.

Their main brand differentiators reflect that. Lingoda is the only language school offering 450,000 live classes per year at any time of the day (or night).

Also, by choosing to segment their brand marketing, the team avoided costly competition for other demographics such as college students or hobby learners — already bombarded with pitches from other language learning apps.

By choosing to focus on one major customer segment, Lingoda managed to ensure steady growth numbers, thanks to a solid performance at the lower stages of the brand funnel — brand consideration and brand preference.

At the same time, they are very lean in their process and creative with their marketing. So there are several lessons other brands could borrow from them.

1. Use Gamification for Customer Retention

Usage of language learning apps increased during the pandemic. According to Duolingo, some 30 million people attempted to learn a new language on their app in 2020.

But how many people maintained their learning streak for 6+ months and turned into paying customers? As one informal survey of Duolingo users found, the overall completion rate for Spanish courses was less than 0.01%.

New customer acquisition can leave a big dent in your marketing budget. A lot of language students get disengaged midway and drop their studies. That’s why Lingoda goes at length to retain as many people as they can — and they worked out a very cool, gamified strategy for that. It includes:

  • Marathon courses — special 3, 6, or 12-month learning courses with a cashback reward of €50 to €1000 if the student attends 90% of classes.

  • Language Sprint — a quarterly promotion event, based on the “challenge” concept. If you take a 3-month Language Sprint learning challenge, you can get up to 100% of the course cost refunded to you.

Lingoda heavily promotes both reward schemes via influencers marketing — one of their pillar activities — mainly via expat and travel bloggers/vloggers.

The Takeaway: For many language learning products, user retention is a problem as people lose motivation halfway through. You may try to win people back with repeating email nudges or small time-sensitive discounts — but that’s what every product does.

Lingoda, however, decided to try a more daring strategy. Their rewards system bolsters our natural competitiveness and then slaps an attractive cash reward on top — and this approach works for them.

2. Build Your Marketing Based on Customer Knowledge

Lingoda was founded with a clear brand mission:

“We aim to empower even the busiest people to master a language anywhere, anytime.”

By “the busiest people” Lingoda assumes two types of targets:

  • Adult professionals (over college students or leisure learners), who want to achieve specific professional goals.

  • Expats who want to feel more integrated within a host country, move abroad, or gain more self-confidence at work.

It follows that most of their brand marketing is centered on increasing brand awareness among these targets and communicating the main brand advantages to them.

Influencer marketing is their go-to strategy for that. If you follow any expat YouTubers, you’ve probably seen a Lingoda ad insert more than once. 

 Continue reading: Youtube - Love Lingoda? 

Quenoticias.info Our Projects

Investigations ongoing

Quenoticias.info Our Projects
Quenoticias.info Our Projects 

This section brings together eight in‑depth investigations that expose hidden networks of corruption, organized crime, illicit assets, and systemic abuse of power. Each project is designed to provide transparency, evidence, and context for issues that affect public trust and democratic accountability. Explore the projects below:

  • Tracing Public Funds – How taxpayer money is diverted through shell companies and ghost NGOs.
  • Organized Crime Networks – Mapping the structures and influence of transnational criminal groups.
  • Criminal Assets Watch – Following the trail of properties, luxury goods, and offshore accounts linked to illicit activity.
  • Abuse of Office – Case studies of officials misusing authority for personal gain.
  • Money Laundering Pathways – Investigating financial systems exploited to clean dirty money.
  • Corporate Complicity – Examining businesses that enable or profit from criminal enterprises.
  • Judicial Capture – Documenting how courts and prosecutors are pressured or compromised.
  • Media Manipulation – Revealing staged narratives and disinformation campaigns that protect corrupt actors

📢 Call to Action

These investigations are not just stories — they are evidence of how corruption and abuse of power shape our societies. Transparency only matters if it leads to accountability. We invite you to explore each project, share the findings, and join the effort to demand integrity from institutions and leaders. Your awareness and voice are essential in turning exposure into change.


QA41 Deutsche Diplomaten
Cyberia: Crypto+Mining
Affenhaus
Don Aleman
Queretaro Fracaso
Office404
Mundogs Mafia
Lomas Perra Blamca


Der BKA Fall Black Orchid Virus

Warum kontaktiert uns das BKA?

Im Oktober kontaktiert uns ein Gotz Knobloch, der angebliche Leiter des BKA Mexiko und das seit mehr als 15 Jahren. Mit seiner Email schickt er uns einen BlackOrchid Virus, eine Luxus Virus den man ueber russiche Webseiten kaufen kann. Er ist nicht billig aber sehr effektiv.
Götz Knobloch Black Orchid Virus

Cyber attacks put Democracy Under Pressure



Democracy Under Pressure – Resilient Police

Cyberattacks on airports, hacking attacks on city administrations like the recent one in Ludwigshafen – hybrid threats are on the rise. Starting today, they will be discussed at the Federal Criminal Police Office's (BKA) autumn conference. The event is titled "Democracy Under Pressure – Resilient Police."

How investigators can improve

How investigators can improve is a two-pronged approach, says Manuel Atug, founder and spokesperson of the AG KRITIS – the Critical Infrastructure Working Group.

German Democracy Under Pressure
Democracy Under Pressure

 

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