Questions about common work at home scams
How
can I avoid being scammed?
The easiest way to avoid being scammed is
just to NEVER, EVER pay for a job! You'll
never get scammed out of your money if you keep it in your
pocket.
Beware of anything that sounds too good
to be true - it usually is!
Don't fall for pressure tactics. Scammers
want your money now because they don't want to give you time
to change your mind. If the special offer ends tomorrow, in
all likelihood, the same offer is given every day and there's
nothing special about it.
Be wary of ads that shout at you in all
caps with lots of punctuation.
Check out any opportunity thoroughly. Ask
for references. Make sure the company has a physical address
and a phone number. Call them. Check them out with their local
BBB.
Be skeptical of return email addresses @hotmail
or @yahoo. While there are plenty of honest people using those
services, scammers use them all the time, and change them
all the time, so you can't find them when you want your money
back. In the same vein, be careful of companies using free
web sites such as yahoo, geocities, etc.
Watch out for 800 numbers. You don't have
an 800 number unless you're selling something. And don't call
900 or 809 numbers either because they're just making money
off your phone call.
If you're told there's no fee, make sure
that's no fee ever, or you might find yourself owing money
every month after being hooked in the first free month.
If you're told you've won a prize and you
haven't entered a contest, you can be sure there's money involved,
and it'll be coming out of your pocket, usually to pay for
shipping or something else that costs far more than the prize
you've been promised.
Always print and keep a hard copy of all
information (URL, email address, etc.) pertaining to any offer
you're considering.
If you can, always pay by credit card. That
way you can ask your credit card company to charge back the
company if you're not satisfied. But be careful in what manner
and to whom you give your credit card information to.
Don't be fooled by money-back guarantees.
You can't get your money back if you can no longer contact
the company you sent it to.
Common
Work At Home Scams
Envelope stuffing
Envelope stuffing is one of the most popular
scams. You won't be stuffing envelopes. What you'll be asked
to do is place the same ad (at your own expense) that you
responded to, in order to scam other people.
Craft/Electronic Assembly
Craft/Electronic Assembly: You will be asked
to pay anywhere from $10 to $200 for a "kit". You
will then be sent something to assemble that, no matter how
brilliantly done, will never meet their so-called quality
standards.
Purchasing lists of companies that "hire
homeworkers"
Lists of companies that hire homeworkers:
These lists are often compiled from the telephone book, and
many of the companies on them, if they exist at all, don't
know they're on such a list, and don't hire homeworkers.
Reading books for pay
Reading books for pay: Another list, this
one of publishers, which you could find yourself on the net
for free. While it may be true that some publishing companies
pay people to review manuscripts, they pay their secretary
or their mother's best friend, so unless that's you, save
your money.
Home typists
Home typists: They say the only requirements
are a computer and a good quality printer, and of course,
your payment up-front. What will you be typing? Almost always
the only typing involved is taking orders from other people
that you've had to advertise for who want to work as "home
typists" and are willing to pay the fee just like you
did.
Order taker/application taker
Order taker/application taker: same as "home
typists".
Email Processors
Email Processors: see "envelope stuffing"
above.
$6 Chain Letter
$6 Chain Letter: It's only $6, so why not
give it a try? Because no matter what they say in their loooong
pitch, it's totally illegal and doesn't work!
Use your brain
Now, if you're still not convinced, look
at it this way: If a company was willing to pay you $2 for
every envelope that you stuff, and said you could make $1000
a week, AND you could live anywhere, AND they accept EVERYONE
who applies, can you imagine how much money they'd be paying
out? And if it were really true, do you think they'd have
to look further than their own back yard to find people to
fill the positions? Nah, they'd have people knocking down
their doors to get them - they certainly wouldn't have to
advertise for people out-of-state!
So, always remember, if it sounds too good
to be true, it is, and never pay anyone for a job, no reputable
company will ever ask you to.
What
can I do if I think I've already been scammed?
If the company offered a guarantee, first
try to get them to honor it. Follow their instructions for
obtaining a refund to the letter if possible.
If you paid by credit card, call your credit
card company, explain the situation, and ask if they can charge
back the amount.
If you paid by check, you can put a stop
payment on the check, but only if it hasn't already been cleared.
Report the scam. Following are some good
places to do so:
- http://www.scamwatch.com/forms/report.html
- http://www.bbb.org/complaints/company.asp
- Email uce@ftc.gov to
report unsolicited commercial email "get rich quick"
schemes.
- Email the National Fraud Information
Center at nfic@internetmci.com
- Email the Internet Fraud Center at fraudinfo@psinet.com
- Email the US Postal Inspection Service
at fraud@usps.gov or customer@email.usps.gov
to report unsolicited chain letter email scams.
- Call PhoneBusters at 1-888-495-8501
to report telemarketing fraud.
- For AOL members, email TOSSpam@aol.com
to report spam email.
- For Compuserve members, email compuserve@austintx.net
- Email webmaster@bookrealm.com
to report writing/publishing scams.
How
can I tell if a job is "real" or not?
A real company offering a position, whether
it be work at home or in an office, will ask to see your resume,
probably want references, maybe want to see samples of your
work, and might want to communicate by phone, etc. If they
don't ask for any of that, be careful!
A legitimate company
will NEVER ask you for money to work for them!
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