Here's an article that would've saved me a lot of headaches when I first
started working online 15 years or so ago:
The Seven
Signs of a Scam
By Sharon Davis
It's
a shame that there are so many people out there trying to rip off the
work-at-home job seeker. It's even more disheartening to see them
targeting the stay-at-home mom, the retiree, and the disabled. But the
fact remains; they're out there trying to capitalize on your desire to
stay home and earn an income. And they're making good money while
they're at it, because there's no shortage of people who want so badly
to believe their claims of easy income and instant wealth.
So how are
we supposed to separate the scams from the real jobs? The legitimate
business opportunities from the schemes?
Your number
one guide should always be your common sense (why would a lawyer in
South Africa select you to handle his billion dollar account, I mean
let's be honest!). There are always warning signs, and here are the top
seven.
1.
Advertisements for "envelope stuffing", "mail processors" and "home
typists".
In all my
experience in online recruiting, I have never come across a legitimate
job for an envelope stuffer. Nor have I ever, in my life, met someone
who was an envelope stuffer. (And could you really say with any measure
of pride that you are a professional envelope stuffer?)
These
advertisements are always the same. They charge you a certain amount of
money so that they can send you detailed instructions of how to
advertise for envelope stuffers. You're selling the very same packet
that you just paid 30 bucks for, but you only get $3. There's no
product, just their self-perpetuating ads to sell more $30 packets.
Home
Typists? What company needs 5,000 home typists? If a company needs some
typing done, they're not going to advertise it on the internet where
they're going to get 10,000 replies. They're going to hire an
administrative assistant who can type a report and hand it to them-
while greeting clients and answering the phones.
That's not
to say that there aren't legitimate Data Entry jobs available. Companies
often find a need for specialized skills that can be done by a
freelancer on a contract basis. Some examples would be database work,
research projects and seasonal billing needs. But the key is that they
involve a specialized skill that their existing employees don't have.
2. They're
asking for a fee.
If it's
supposed to be a job, how on earth do they justify charging a fee? I've
seen ads that say, "We have to charge a fee to make sure that you're
serious". Why don't they just post their job on E-Bay and give it to the
highest bidder? Imagine going for an interview and the employer says,
"Have a seat. Now, before we get started, I'm going to need $39.95 from
you. We have to make sure you're serious." Would you pay them? Of course
not! So why would you pay someone who is claiming to be hiring just
because it's on the internet?
Now, a
business opportunity is different. You have to expect start-up costs for
any business- but that's a story for another day...
3. Job
listings with typos and ALL CAPS.
These
telltale signs should raise a flag right away. Do you really want to
work for someone who can't spell?
4. The job
description says, "no skills or experience necessary!"
Really? Why
not just have their kids do the job for 50 cents an hour? Managing
remote employees is extremely challenging. Employers who hire and
supervise telecommuters want highly skilled, experienced employees that
they can trust. They have to be confident that they can perform their
jobs with little or no supervision. This is why most telecommuters are
required to work on-site for a certain period of time before they're
allowed to work from home.
5. Vague or
non-existing job description.
The more
vague a job listing is, the more likely it is to be a scam. There's
nothing more aggravating to a recruiter than getting bombarded by
resumes from unqualified candidates. This is why most legitimate job
listings read like a novel. They want to be sure that only the ones that
meet their criteria respond.
This leads
me to an important bit of advice for telecommute job seekers. Never,
ever respond to a job listings that you are not fully qualified for. I
spend a lot of time recruiting companies that have telecommute policies
to post at my site. Many of them are reluctant to post their listings
online because they are inundated with responses from people who aren't
remotely qualified. It gives all of us a bad reputation and cuts down on
the number of jobs that are advertised. I just can't stress enough how
important this is.
6. No contact
information.
If you
can't reach someone to ask a question, or ask for a reference, then
there's something wrong. A real employer wants to get the position
filled, and if you are qualified, they want to convince you to work for
them. You should be able to reach them (or someone in their company at
least) directly.
And the
number one sign of a scam:.
7. If it
sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
A case in
point: A company posted a job listing for U.S. Representatives. Seems
they needed people to accept shipments of computers and electronics and
then ship them to international destinations. They were offering an
outrageously high salary and reimbursement for shipping. They allegedly
had offices in the United States, so why would they need John Smith in
Hoboken, New Jersey to handle their shipping? Sounds fishy, right? It
was. They had people ship the computers all right, but never paid them.
Many people
rely on the website that carries the listing to screen out fraudulent
listings, but the truth is that most of them don't have the resources to
screen every post. In fact, most sites carry a disclaimer stating that
it is the job seeker's responsibility to screen potential employers.
The bottom
line is that you should let common sense be your guide. If something
seems not quite right, don't bother. At the very least, check out any
company thoroughly before making any commitment.
Below are
some excellent resources:
ScamWatch
ScamBusters
The Better Business Bureau
The Federal Trade Commission
--------------------------------
© Copyright 2001 Sharon Davis. When she is not researching scams, she is
the owner of
2Work-At-Home.Com and the Editor of the site's monthly ezine,
America's Home. In her spare time she reminisces about what it was
like to have spare time. To subscribe to her free ezine,
Click Here
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