Subscribe Via RSSAvoiding Job and Work at Home Scams
- Are you reading this article because you’ve been scammed by some work from home scheme? If so please give details in the comment box below. If nothing else, your experience may help others and prevent similar disappointments.
The global recession and high unemployment, especially amongst our younger generation and stay at home parents has left many looking to better their financial positions by applying for home based work opportunities.
Unfortunately, genuine home based work opportunities are not easily obtained unless you have particular skill sets, not to mention the various laws which you could be breaking by using your own home for business purposes.
But that doesn’t stop the scammers soliciting thousands of people with so called lucrative, work from home jobs.
Work at Home Jobs to Avoid
The list which follows is a list of the most common work at home scams I’ve discovered (if you know of any more, let me know and I’ll add them to the list).
These scams are not new! Which in turn means these scam-artists are continuing to earn big-bucks by tricking the unwary into falling for them.
Here is my top don’t work from home jobs list:
The Stuffing Envelopes Scam
This stuffing envelopes scam is as old as the hills but still continues to catch the unwary.
This scam has been around since the Great Depression hit America back in the 1920s and 30s so you would think everyone would know about it by now. Yet, still thousand are caught out every year.
How the Scam Works
This scam hasn’t changed a great deal over the years, a company will offer you good money to stuff envelopes.
Scam 1: You have to send them a fee (about £20 usually) in order to get the details. This fee gets you an information pack on how you can earn a really good pay check, for just a little work stuffing envelopes.
Scam 2: You have to send them a small contribution (about £20 usually) towards the starter pack they will send you.
In both cases you usually end up with a few envelopes (you provide the postage), a highly targeted letter and set of instruction on how you can repeat the same scam on their behalf.
You stuff envelopes with their literature and entice others into the same worthless job and then fleece them in much the same way that you have just been conned.
Type at Home Scam
The type at home scam has been around since the production of the “modern” Remington typewriter in 1873.
You will find this one advertised in your local newspapers, on flyers, pinned up in shop windows, stuck to lamp posts and in your email inbox.
How the Scam Works
This con works in a very similar fashion to the stuffing envelopes scam. You will be directed to a website where for a small fee (£20 to £30) you can sign up to receive an information pack about earning money by typing at home.
The information pack will usually have very little information about typing as such. Instead, they will ask you to sign up as an affiliate to direct others to their same website so they too can sign up for the same offer (scam). You will be promised a fantastic reward, 75% of the takings, but of course, in reality, you will not receive a penny.
The Medical Billing Business and
Processing Claims Scam
The medical billing business scam can be very costly, FOR YOU. Once again, for a fee of possibly £200 or more, they say you will receive everything you need in order to begin your own successful medical billing business which you can run from the comfort of your own home.
How the Scam Works
In order to get “hired” you’ll need to buy equipment, software and pay for training. With the fee paid, you will in fact receive a CD/DVD containing a flash looking piece of software and a list of potential clients.
- The software is usually an old freeware program you can pick up yourself from most shareware sites.
The potential client list will be totally out of date or simply bogus.
Plus, do you really think any legal or medical professional would send personal and confidential data to a home worker? Just think of the legal implications if anything were to go wrong. I doubt very much if their insurance company would even consider the possibility.
Most practices process bills in-house or outsource them to large and dedicated processing firms.
Email Processing Scam
The email processing and processing claims scam is a variation of the envelope stuffing ruse.
For a small fee of £20 to £50 you will receive instruction on how to become a highly paid work at home email processor. No experience or skills are required for this very lucrative work, you just need a computer connected to the internet.
How the Scam Works
Once again you will receive instructions, usually by email, detailing what you are required to do. Unfortunately the instructions are not so much about how to become an email processor but rather how to become a spammer and circulate the same job offer to others via email, forums and newsgroups. This is another bogus affiliate job where you will receive nothing for your efforts and cause a lot of misery to others.
Fake Homeworkers List Scam
In this scam you will be offered a huge list (for a small fee) of companies that are looking for people just like you.
How the Scam Works
When you’ve handed over your money you think you will receive a list of homeworking opportunities.
In fact you will simply receive a random list of companies which is totally out of date, who stopped employing homeworkers years ago, or may never have even done so. Some of the companies on the list will have ceased trading a long time ago.
Premium Rate Information Line Scam
This, in my opinion, is a particularly horrible scam as the bills you will receive can be horrendous. From the perpetrators point of view, it is a quick and simple scam.
You will find this one advertised in your local newspapers, on flyers, pinned up in shop windows, stuck to lamp posts and in your email inbox.
How the Scam Works
All you have to do is call a premium rate number for more information on how you could earn a fortune working at home. Easy!
When you dial the number you will hear a worthless recorded message lasting several minutes. If you haven’t realised by the end of the message that you are being scammed you will be asked to ring another premium rate number for further information or to sign up for whatever crap they are offering.
The aim is to keep you on the line as long as possible. The spammer earns several pounds (FROM YOUR TELEPHONE BILL) for every second you are online.
Your Own Craft Assembly Business Scam
The craft assembly scam is another tried and trusted con which has been around for many years.
The opportunity here is for piece work, meaning you will be paid in return for making certain craft items, such as toys, dolls, chess pieces or possibly even small electrical items such as plugs.
How the Scam Works
To begin the work you must buy the company’s starter kit, usually about £30. They say you will be able to earn that back in no time at all as long as your workmanship meets their standards.
Of course your workmanship will never meet with their approval. Anything you send them will either be dumped or recycled into the next product pack. Their aim is to sell you starter kits, which they buy for a fraction of the price they are selling them to you.
You will always be told you need more practice and must buy another starter kit and try again.
Pyramid Schemes, Multi Level Marketing and Chain Mail Scams
First let me say pyramid schemes are illegal. If you find a pyramid type scheme, report it to the police. Avoid them totally.
A pyramid scheme is an unsustainable business model that involves promising participants payment for enrolling other people into the scheme. There are no real products or services. The money simply travels up the chain. Only the originator and a few at the top levels of the pyramid make money.
Chain mail and email are simply a variation on the pyramid scheme. In this scam you send money to the person who’s name appears at the top of the letter or email. You then remove their name, add yours to the bottom of the list, and then forward it on to X number of people in the hope that one day your name will rise to the top and you will get paid. Take my word for this, you will NEVER get paid.
These schemes have existed for at least a century in various incarnations to hide their true nature. Many people consider all multilevel marketing plans to also be pyramid schemes. I advise you to stay clear of both.
Online Businesses Scams
Do you want to start your own online business and get rich? Be very wary of these type of ads too. What you will do is end up paying for a guide to working at home which duplicates information you can find for free.
If you want to start an online business then read the articles on this website and other similar sites. All the information is provided free of charge.
If you have questions about starting an online business, drop me a note in the comment box below and I will try to answer or at least point you in the right direction (no charge). In the UK you can also find local Business Link organisations run by either your local council or the government. Enquire at your local library or give your local council a call. All provide advice and training for free. If you are under 30 years of age, have a look at, The Princes Trust website.
The Winner of All Scams
The winner in the work from home scam contest is of course the sites which offer to provide you with information on only genuine, upfront, top class and legitimate work at home jobs, for a nominal fee of course. Don’t do it!
How to Spot a Word From Home Scam, Evaluating Job Listings
How can you tell whether a work from home job posting is a scam or a legitimate work from home job. Try the following suggestions:
Check Out the Job
First find the answers to these questions:
- Is there a salary or are you paid on commission?
- How often are you paid?
- How are you paid?
- What equipment (hardware / software) do you need to provide?
There is No Get Rich Quick Scheme
Avoid schemes guaranteeing wealth and financial success and talking of get rich quick. Stay clear of schemes offering you excessive income for part-time hours especially where no prior skills or experience is required.
Hang on to Your Money
Do not send money! Legitimate employers don’t charge to hire you or to get you started. Don’t send money for work at home directories, information packs or start-up kits.
Check References
Ask for references. Request a list of current employees or contractors and ask them about the company. If the company isn’t willing to provide references (names, email addresses and phone numbers) say goodbye.
Think Twice Three Times
If it sounds too good to be true, then it’s too good to be true. Read all “offers” very carefully. Think very, very, very carefully when giving bank account information for payment purposes. Employers do NOT need your credit card details and NEVER GIVE PIN NUMBERS OR PASSWORDS TO ANYONE, NOT EVEN YOUR BANK. As you bank keeps telling you, no-one from your bank will every ask you for such information.
Disclaimer
You may see advertisements for work at home jobs on this page in the Google Adchoices banners, because that’s the topic of the article. Just because you see an ad here doesn’t make it legitimate. Carefully investigate all companies you are interested in, always.
If you remember nothing else remember this:
- If it’s too good to be true, then it’s too good to be true.
Walk away (and keep your money in your pocket).
