Avoid Money Scams

There are literally thousands of sites on the internet where you can download all kinds of software. Knowing the warning signs of a site can save you a lot of trouble. Look for a site that has as many user reviews as possible. Steer clear of files that others have not downloaded before you. If the file is untried or untested then it could be a sign that others are avoiding it for some reason. Pay attention to any negative reviews. Owners are likely to spam positive reviews. Those who get burned will put up negative comments. Pay attention to them and to any replies. Look for owners who have a history of putting up solid content. Get files from familiar territory. Avoid illegal downloads. Often these files contain viruses, tracking software or other nasty tidbits that can make your life miserable – not to mention that it is illegal.

A word of caution regarding the local evening news.  Most of the time there is nothing horribly out of place or wrong with the evening news beyond some poor grammar or less than stellar camera work.

When the reports turn to issues surrounding health, investments, or other serious issues, be a bit cautious about what they say.  These are not doctors.  In essense a news anchor person is little more than an actor.  They have no real stake in what they are saying, which makes them neutral, bit they also often have no real knowledge about what they are reporting and they present only a portion of that knowledge.  That doesn’t mean that the reports are false, but that they may be incomplete.

Like everything else we may hear or read, look futher into it before making a serious decision.

Phishing scams are fraudulent emails sent with the specific intent of getting your personal information.  This information could be your address, phone number, or bank account information.  It could also be your login or password information to a popular web site.

Ebay and Paypal users are very popular targets for these types of scams, but nearly any large web site or banking institution could be the target.

The typical phishing email will have an appearance very similar to the official web page of the site or bank.  They will usually have a similar color scheme and may have stolen the logo as well.  Many times these emails have mixed up colors or the logo is wrong.  If the email doesn’t quite match what you remember about the site then it is a good bet that it is a fraud.  Notify the company right away and do not reply to the email.

There are tons of web hosting options out there. There are many, many excellent choices. Far be it from me to rattle off a list of good ones for fear of offending the ones I miss.

But I do want to say that Host4Profit isn’t one of them. How can I tell? Its pretty simple actually, the $24.95 price tag. Also the fact that you can’t find a reasonable link to their site without first going through the site of yet another money making scam. You know how I found them? Doing research on a site I blogged about before (link here).

Please, do some research. There are dozens of great sites out there that will give you excellent service for under $10.00 a month, and if you haven’t noticed, you can easily get hosted here at google for absolutely free. If you’re a blogger, like me, there is no reason to spend a penny to get your web site hosted, not one red cent. If you’re in the business of making money, then a slightly more professional hosting service may be necessary.

Go to google. Do a search for web hosting, and spend a few hours looking around. Don’t settle on the first one. Don’t settle on the second one. Heck, try giving them a phone call. A business that won’t answer the phone won’t be there when you need them, and the five minutes out of your day it takes to get your questions answered will save you the hours of headaches you’ll run into later.

Do yourself a favor. Take the $24.95 that you were going to throw away on these guys and buy your wife some roses. You’ll still be out the money, but at least your chances of getting lucky will have gone up.