If you have been using the Internet long enough to set up some sort of email address, you will almost certainly have been invited to earn some extra money by filling in on line surveys. These so-called paid on line surveys are aimed at the growing number of people who stay at home all day with a computer, little capital and no work. They are particularly aimed at stay at home mums and the out of work.
It is feasible to earn a few dollars a month from some of these on line survey companies, but many of them are cons. They can make their money in a diversity of ways, but normally the cash out figure for the person surveyed is quite high, often $50 or $100. It is hard to attain that amount at the rate of one $1 survey per week. However, they have you running back and forth to their website in the hope that you will click on one of their adverts and they will get paid.
The first sign of a scam survey firm is the up front registration fee. This is normally less than $50 and seems a good deal if you are going to be earning the thousands of dollars that they ‘promise’. Well, not actually promise, because the disclaimer always states that you may not make as much as the ‘people’ who have sent in the testimonials that you read plastered all over their web sites.
Testimonials from people like ‘Mary T., New York’, completely undetectable, unverifiable, probably fictitious ‘people’, who claim to be earning enough money doing on line surveys to pay off the mortgage, purchase a big car and vacation in the Seychelles every year. Rule number one for avoiding on line scams: never pay a fee on the assurance of probably earning money.
The mobile phone scam is always very popular amongst con men and women. In this swindle, you will be asked to verify that you are a real person by replying to a simple text message. What you are not told though is that you are texting a premium number which will probably cost you up to $5. The firm is sure that you will not notice this charge, especially if you are pay-as-you-go and do not receive monthly statements.
Another popular scam is where you are promised special offers or even cash for clicking on the banners of the site’s ‘partners’. You will be asked to seek more details by clicking on a banner. You may be promised 30% off or five cents for clicking. What you are not told is that you will be pestered from now to kingdom come by telesales people. Health insurance, pet insurance, free holidays, you name it. The only thing that you can be certain of is that you will end up paying more.
Then there is the free magazine scam. You are offered a free magazine on an exciting topic of your selection. Again they ask for your telephone number. What they do not say is that your free magazine comes with a subscription to their magazine which costs $19.95. The payment will be made to your phone bill and you will probably never even notice it, which is what they are counting on.
Never give out sensitive information over the Internet if you do not know who is receiving it. Phishing is also a lucrative scam, where an email purports to come from a bank or even Google or Yahoo. You are told that your account has been hacked and that you should corroborate your details. As soon as you do, your account will be compromised sure enough.
About the Author:
Owen Jones, the writer of this article writes on quite a few topics, but is at present concerned with Web Based Marketing. If you would like to know more or check out some great offers, please visit our website at
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