Avoid Money Scams

Why am I writing about the Nigerian Money scam?  It is one of the most famous and continuous ongoing scams of this century.

According to snopes.com it originated in the 1920’s and continues today.  In essense someone from a foreign country promises great wealth in return for a limited amount of help with their funds.  After sending the money the scammer will follow up with additional promises and try to continue to get more money until finally the victim gets wise and stops sending money.

This scam, as simple and obvious as it may seem is widely successful.  Some figures estimate that scammers are recovering millions of dollars annually with this process.  Obviously a con artist is not going to stop a con that is working.

The lesson as always is to be vigilant.  If a letter, a fax, or an email appears to be fraudulent then be careful.  Don’t send money to strangers.  Don’t believe wild promises.

If you are looking for a forum that is a good resource for understanding scams then I recommend taking a look at scam.com .

There are so many different scams and fraudulent products out there that it is impossible for any single person to keep track of them.  In fact it is very difficult even for organized teams.  At scam.com the open public forum rallies the power of the internet to help spread the word about specific scams and advice on how to avoid their disastrous effects.

It is possible to find copies of specific craiglist scams and emails that have been sent out.  I don’t pretend on this site to have a complete list of all scams, but I do hope to spread the word about other useful sites.

This is a variation of the cheque cashing scam, but applied specifically to landlords.

In essence the scammer offers to rent a place, generally for a short period of time but willing to pay for a full month.  I.e. they have a wedding or a vacation or similar and won’t need to spot for a long period of time but need it (usually on short notice) and are willing to pay any all extra costs.  Naturally the landlord agrees (who wouldn’t).

The scammer pays with a money order or cashier’s cheque.  However, after the cheque or moeny order arrives the scammer calls up and cancels the reservation.  I.e. the wedding has been called off or an illness prevents the vacation.  Because it is a money order, they ask that a portion of the cash be wired back to them, but agree to let the landlord keep a good portion to compensate them for their trouble.

Of course, the money order or cashier’s cheque turns out to be fraudulent.  Which leaves the landlord holding the bag for check fraud.

In the internet age it easy pretty easy to take something on the computer screen at face value – especially if there is a pretty picture to go with the message.  It is easy to forget that a picture is only a picture and words are only words.

One of the easiest checks that a person can do to find out about a company is to find the physical address of the company.  Find the about or contact page and find out where the company is actually located.  What country are they in?  What state?  Is there more than just a P.O. Box to send a check to?

If you want to take it a step further, type that address into google maps (not affiliated).  The new features of google maps can allow you to find a satellite photo of the address.  If the photo shows a residence or a big sign of a different business you may want to think twice before doing business with that web site.

Why am I skeptical about MakingYouRicher.com ?

1. They start off promising unlikely amounts of money.  5K/month for doing next to nothing.  I don’t know any employer willing to pay that.
2. They marketing hype mimicks every scam out there.  Not really anything original on their site (though they are avoiding the recent trend to claim to have been scammed 200 times).
3. Its a membership program.  This usually translates into unexpected recurring costs that for some reason just can’t be stopped.
4. They claim that you need no current skills.  No legitimate employer or investor works with someone who has nothing to offer them.  If you guessed that the only thing you have to offer these guys is your cash then you guessed right.
5. The focus is on the money, not the product.  They are inviting you to go into business with them, but they don’t tell you what that business is.  Could you get a bank loan to fund this business?  No?  Then why should you give them a free donation to build theirs?

Do I need to continue?   Just keep in mind that anything that sounds too good to be real probably is.  Keep your money in your pocket and out of scammers’ hands.  And if you’ve had a legitimate good experience with this or another program, let me know.  I would LOVE to make an extra 5K a month for doing nothing.

The Fed cut interest rates again on Friday, sending stocks a mixed signal.  For consumers this could mean several things, not the least of which is that thier monetary future is still a mixed bag.

Hopefully lending institutions will find ways of making this money avaialable to consumers either directly or indirectly by injecting businesses with the capital they need to hire and retain employees.  Small businesses, in particular, have been hit hard by the credit and lending crisis and have been forced to make reductions including layoffs.

One thing to watch out for during these kinds of times are the scam artists who prey on the insecurity surrounding the unpredictable future.  Be especially wary of those who claim to have inside information regarding businesses or government plans.  Anyone claiming to know the direction of the stock market or the direction of the credit markets is either a liar or a fool.  Even the experts disagree about nearly everything, except that the future is uncertain.

Use a healthy dose of common sense in these times to avoid trouble.

GPT stands for Get Paid To, or at least that is what the scams tell us.  A more appropriate acronym would be Going To Pay.

GPT offers include fillng out surveys and providing market research.  Companies look for information about the consumer sector that they serve.  This is really nothing new.  Companies have been doing this kind of survey research for years.  I even once had a job for a company that did telephone surveys for various markets.  Often you can find these types of surveys at busy malls and shopping centers.  Companies will re-imburse you for your time with free product or a few dollars.

The hype about GPT online is that you can provide the same market information from the comfort of your home computer.  It sounds simple enough.  Unfortunately it does get a little more complicated than most GPT sites are willing to explain.

First, a couple of notes about the legitimate surveys.

• They don’t pay much.  Perhaps one or two dollars, if anything.  Often the payment is in the form of coupons or free product.
• Companies are looking for legitimate participants.  If you haven’t had experience with their market sector they will screen you out and you will get nothing.
• The surveys take time.  Often the hourly work rate calculates out to around $3.00 to $5.00 per hour, less than minimum wage.

Those are the legitimate paying surveys.  Now, for the true scams.  These are the sites that ask you to pay for the privilege of taking surveys through their system.  Of course, if somebody is asking for your money up front they are scamming you.  Don’t give them your money.  Odds are good you will never see it again.  One of the great dangers of the online world is that scammers can remain completely anonymous.  Never give away money, and never give away your credit card information without knowing exactly what you are getting in return and who you are doing business with.

A quick search about the company you are thinking about doing business with should reveal more of the truth about how legitimate their business really is.