There are many legitimate work-at-home opportunities out there but there are even more work-at-home scams.
These scams promise to make you rich overnight but deliver only empty promises and disappointment.
The internet has provided millions of people a great way to earn a living from the comfort of their own homes, but it has also given the scammer a powerful tool to take advantage of the uninformed job seeker.
Data Entry Jobs
Perhaps the biggest online scam of them all. The victim is lead to believe that there are hundreds of companies out there who need people to type their ads for them.
Victims are told that they can make $1000′s per day just typing up certain ads with a list of provided keywords.
Well, you will be typing data, alright. And if you get paid, it’ll be from people that you yourself have scammed into the program.
You see, when they say that you will be typing ads, you absolutely will. You will be typing ads to be placed on Google or Yahoo which promise other people the same pipe-dream that you fell for.
So, in order to make any money from this scam, you must become a scammer also.
Now, keep in mind that there are real opportunities with Google Adwords and Overture Ads (see our Pay-Per-Click page) but these opportunities do not show you how to scam people, but rather show you how to write effective ads and develop affiliate tools to market just about any product imaginable.
Envelope Stuffing
Promoters usually advertise that, for a “small” fee, they will tell you how to earn money stuffing envelopes at home.
Later – when it’s too late – you find out that the promoter never had any employment to offer.
Instead, for your fee, you’re likely to get a letter telling you to place the same “envelope stuffing” ad in newspapers or magazines, or to send the ad to friends and relatives.
The only way you’ll earn money is if people respond to your work-at-home ad. With this scam, as with many others, the only way to succeed is to become a scammer yourself.
Processing Emails
Envelope stuffing – gone electronic. Virtually the same deal as with envelope stuffing: the only money you will make will be if someone responds to the (scam) email that you send them, and purchases the “processing emails” program. The “processing emails” program will usually consist of a .pdf file which will contain some sample ads for you to run – along with other useless information.
This, in now way, should be confused with the opportunities on the Paid Emails [http://www.gatormoney.com/email.html] page on our site, which shows how you can earn money by reading emails – not processing them. Also, our email programs are 100% FREE to join.
At Home Assembly
This has been a very successful scam because of many factors. First of all, it “sounds” legitimate: A company needs parts to sell and they want to pay you to assemble these products.
It’s completely believable – and is an idea that many legitimate companies operate on as 1st. and 2nd. tier suppliers for other large companies.
However, that’s where the similarities end. After you pony up the initial $100, $200, or even $500 dollars for your “Start-Up Supplies” and start assembling these parts, you soon find that none of the assembled parts you submit meet the company’s “Quality Standards” or some other such line of bull.
In fact, none of the parts you ever submit will ever meet the company’s “Quality Standards”.
You could have these parts assembled by master craftsmen using precision equipment and none will ever pass. That’s the scam.
There is no company waiting to buy your “assembled” products. The scam is to sell you a $25 box of parts for $100 – $500.
How To Detect A Work At Home Scam From a Legitimate Home
The Business Bureau Bureau, which is also known as BBB, is a non-profit and non-government organization supporting the objectives and ideals of bureau and stands as the link between business and consumers.
They report and collect information to help people who call to their agency make decisions.
The organization works with other agencies, police, associations, and the government to be of assistance to the people and make them informed.
You can inquire at their site through sending questions that will be answered as soon as possible by the agency. The BBB also offers tips and advices on how you can avoid being scammed.
According to them, the most common pattern of a scammer’s scheme is receiving the information through the Internet and the newspapers, luring the consumers on big income that they can receive through joining.
The BBB has revealed two things based on its experience after answering to the scheme of stuffing envelope.
The consumer will either end up receiving no reply from the said firm or they receive an instruction telling them to post advertisements just like theirs.
They will gain income here through encouraging others to join and send you money then instruct them to do the same thing also.
BBB informs people to be very discerning when looking for work-from-home jobs or business opportunities, as scams not only cost thousands of dollars and countless of hours with no return, but they may also tarnish your reputation because of inadvertently selling nonexistent products or services. In worse scenarios, you may get accused of perpetrating a fraud.
Aside from checking BBB rating section (http://search.bbb.org) for the assessment of the company you are planning to work with, making your potential employer or source of home business opportunity answer the following questions will be of great help:
· What tasks will I have to perform? (Ask the program sponsor to list every step of the job.)
· Will I be paid a salary or will my pay be based on commission?
· Who will pay me?
· When will I get my first paycheck?
· What is the total cost of the work-at-home program, including supplies, equipment and membership fees?
· What will I get for my money?
The answers that you will get from your potential employer will help in rounding up whether the opportunity will meet your expectations – physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially.
Other Background Check SOP
Sure, we would all love to work at home. We can get up at any hour we want to. We are our own bosses. One problem regarding working at home is how sure you are, as the employee, about your employers.
The most difficult thing about working-at-home opportunities is that the contact is mostly done online or over the phone. This connection may be too shady for most people.
Surprisingly, it works for other people. In fact, moms, retirees, and disabled people actually rake in cash by taking on work-at-home opportunities.
Work-at-home opportunities can actually be pursued full time. But how do you know whether these are legitimate or not?
Always, always proceed with caution. Because of the inter-connectedness brought by the Internet, so many schemes are out there waiting to lure gullible people in.
Some of which ask you to give money all for the promise of getting rich quickly. If the offer sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Here are some ways for you to know a scam in a blink of an eye:
- You must always check the company’s address and number. Double check that they are listed and that their offices aren’t simply post office boxes.
It may be a work-at-home opportunity for you, but that doesn’t have to mean that it must also be work-at-home for them.
- If they have a website, that’s one assurance that they are legal and they will not dupe you.
A website shows professionalism on the employer’s part. But it must not be just any simple website with a splash of words here and there.
There must be further details on what exactly you should be doing for the company from your home.
- Always make sure that you are in close contact with a person that is responsible for your payment. Ask them first-hand when you can accept your paycheck.
Get their contact information and keep in touch with them as much as possible. It is fair enough that you get paid for the work you do.
- Terms of agreement must be spelled out in writing. It can be posted on their website or they could send you a brochure.
If you finally have these in writing and your mind is set on working for them, at least you have something to show when called for.
Having terms in writing makes it easier for the employee to have some sort of evidence when he is in a dispute with his employer. This condition makes it easier for both parties in the legal sense.
Now as a home worker, you are an independent contractor and you wouldn’t be getting the traditional employee benefits.
For that reason, it is then your duty to get your own health insurance or any form of compensation that is attributed to a regular employee.
You must be responsible in tracking down your expenses. Some work-at-home business opportunities pay their employee on a project basis.
Therefore, what the employee earns vary from month-to-month. Not only must the home worker track his expenses, he must also keep a record of the work he is doing, so that he will get paid for these correctly.
Just make sure that whatever transaction and action are going on between you and your employer are legitimate.
You can find countless work-at-home ads out there promising hundreds and even thousands of dollars a month – all at your home.