Work-at-Home Scams to Avoid
We’ve all seen, and been tempted, by the get-rich-quick and work-at-home jobs advertised online and in newspapers. Admit it. You’ve probably even picked up your phone a few times or contemplated whether or not the job was right for you. While there certainly are some work-at-home jobs out there, very few are fruitful or legitimate. These scams have affected hundreds of thousands of people, wasting not only their time but money as well.
One of the most common work-at-home scams is envelope stuffing and craft building. These companies claim to pay you for the products you assemble after you’ve shipped them back and they have analyzed your work. If the work you’ve produced is up to par, then you receive payment. While this may sound like a reasonable measure, it is actually your downfall because these companies will generally find a million different things wrong with you work. By the time you’ve figured out the scam, these companies have already received more than enough free product assembly to make a pretty hefty profit.
Get-rich-quick pamphlets are also dangerous. These companies claim to provide you with the information you need to start your own business. But, before you can get started, you need to purchase all of their promotional material. In good faith or perhaps because people want to believe they can earn money with little to no effort, people actually buy into it. They spend hundreds of dollars on pamphlets, books, and seminars, only to find that they really haven’t received any helpful information. These companies generally prey on the sick and disabled, stay at home moms, or those who are poor.
There are also companies that claim they can set up your very own medical billing company at home. Generally, you pay up to $1000 for all of the equipment and ‘up-to-date’ software. What these companies don’t tell you is that most hospitals and clinics process their own medical bills, which ultimately makes your company obsolete.
The old "call this 1-900 for more information" trick will get you every time. These companies don’t have any useful information to provide. In fact, the way they plan on making money from you is by having you call the number in the first place.
Some scams even try to turn you into a scammer. There are several different forms of this scam. ‘Email processing’ is just another word for scammer. You pay a small fee for all the information and then you are told to forward that same email ad to other people. For every person who falls for it, you receive payment. Ads that claim to allow you to type at home are another way scammers try to turn you into one of them. They expect you to try and sell that the same packet of information you purchased from them.
While there certainly are legitimate work-at-home opportunities, it is important you do your research before purchasing anything. Contact the Better Business Bureau to find out whether or not the company is legitimate and whether or not people have had issues with it.
