Outsmart The Work At Home Scammers
There are plenty of people who will take advantage of the vulnerable and desperate, yet through their machinations they fail to see the misery they’ve brought on themselves. As a result, there are those who can have their identity stolen and their credit scores ruined in minutes- all with just one phone call or email. By educating yourself on how these scams work and what you can do to avoid them, you will not only feel safer about your personal information but also help others enjoy peace of mind as well.
Outsmart The Work At Home Scammers was created for those looking for an easy way to reduce the threat of identity theft while learning how to spot and avoid scams. This site will focus on the most common scams and provide tips on how to avoid them. It is no secret that there are a lot of scammers out there and they will take every opportunity they can to steal your information and your hard earned money.
Many people are not aware that some of the most common work at home scams have been around for several years and still continue today, but in different forms. You don’t want to be one of the many who get taken advantage of by these scammers or ruin your credit or even experience identity theft. The information you will learn on this site will help you scam-proof yourself and keep your hard earned money where it belongs, in your pocket.
Recognizing A Work At Home Job Scam
One of the most common work at home scams around is the ‘job’ offer. Most people believe that if they can get a job that pays a lot of money for very little work then why not go for it? Unfortunately, most of the time these job offers aren’t real. You send in your hard earned money and then never hear from them again. Many of them will only ask for a small amount at first and then gradually ask for more and more once they have caught you in their trap.
In order to avoid becoming one of these unfortunate people, follow these rules:
1. Any job that asks you to pay a ‘start-up fee’ is not legitimate. It is rare for legitimate companies to ask for a large up front payment to work for them or pay even a small amount in order to work for them at all. When in doubt, contact the company directly and ask if they are legit before sending any money.
2. Scammers will ask you how much money you make currently and if you can increase that income level with their program. Do not tell them what you currently earn. Keep that information to yourself.
3. Never work for a company that does not have an address and phone number where you can contact them quickly. By law, all companies have to have an address and telephone number listed to contact that company. Before you agree to start working for a company, call them so you can verify the information is real and belongs to the company you think it does.
4. If it is too good to be true then chances are it is not true at all! Don’t be fooled by promises of thousands of dollars a week with very little work involved or companies promising jobs in your area which pay well- those are likely scams right there.
5. Always ask for references from the company you are thinking about working for. Get in touch with them and verify that your potential employer is actually working for them.
6. Keep records of all correspondence from employers and check your credit report on a regular basis to make sure someone new is not using your personal information without your knowledge.
7. Never give out any credit card or banking information to anyone! Legitimate employers never need this information in order to pay you or provide you an income, so do not give it out unless you are sure they are legitimate.
8. Only work for a company that is listed on the Better Business Bureau’s website- not in the ‘look up a business’ section but by actually searching them directly. This way you can verify the company’s legitimacy before sending any money to them.
9. Whenever possible, only work for companies that use direct deposit or pay out their employees via check or money order. This way you will know right away if your employer is stealing your money. Otherwise, you might be waiting for months before you find out if they stole from you or not.
10. If you are contacted by someone who offers to pay you a large sum of money to do something that seems too easy or implausible, then it is likely a scam!
11. If a company claims that they are going to pay you a lot of money for a small amount of work and want to interview you via email or videoconferencing, then it is likely a scam. Legitimate companies want to meet with people face-to-face before hiring them.
12. Never give out personal information without verifying the identity of the person who needs that information from you. Keep in mind that even some government agencies will ask for this information online and they are not allowed too. If a company wants you to email them or give them information over the phone, ask them to send it via fax or snail mail instead.
13. If a company is trying to collect information about you online and you feel uncomfortable with this, then do not respond! Often times these scammers will try to use your credit card information or contact information in order to steal more money from you. Once again, never respond online asking for help or sending out contact information when in doubt.
14. There are some companies that may have some legitimate work at home programs but they will offer very small amounts of money with no experience required and no background check required from potential workers. These are not usually scams but those types of companies often do not survive very long in the work at home world.
15. If a company is asking you for a lot of money in order to start working for them, that is a red flag. If you need some type of certification or training to get started at a job, then it can be reasonable to pay for that. However, if you need five years worth of training and have to buy all your own equipment, then this is a very bad sign and should be avoided!
16. Any time you think there may be something suspicious going on with the company or with potential employers, ask yourself how they can possibly make any money with what they are offering. This can be a good way to figure out if you are dealing with a scam or not.
17. If a job requires you to buy products from them at extremely high prices, then that is another very good indication that they are trying to scam you. Legitimate companies will never force their workers to purchase products from the company in order for you to make money.
There are hundreds of scams out there and unfortunately, people fall for them every day. However, most of these scams can be avoided with some common sense and due diligence on your part.
Conclusion
There are many different scams out there, but if you are savvy and willing to do some research and due diligence, you can get a bunch of work at home scams knocked off your plate in no time at all.
All in all, there is no need to be afraid of scams being out there. In fact, most of them are pretty easy to spot if you know what to look for.