You begin to spot the work at home scams, in part, because of the sameness of all their pitches.
One thing that becomes obvious is that any job that promotes itself in search engine ads as a "legitimate work at home job" most likely is not legitimate. If a company's marketing strategy is based on seeming legitimate, that is most likely because what it is offering is, in fact, a work at home scam…or at the very least a poor money making opportunity.
Do your homework. Do not send money to any organization without thoroughly checking it out. Keep in mind that most legitimate companies do not charge job applicants and that business opportunities are never risk-free.
Typical Work at Home Job Scams
While the work-at-home scammers are always coming up with new schemes, they tend to be variations on a few themes. Not all of these types of opportunities are always scams, but these are some of the more likely scams.- Direct Sales or Multilevel Marketing (MLM)
- Pyramid Schemes
- Business Start-Up Kits
- Anything Involving Cashing Checks/Wiring Money
- Home Assembly/Envelope Stuffing
- Becoming a Product Re-saler or Wholesaler
- Stock Trading Systems
- Directories of Telecommuting Jobs or Businesses
- Taking Online Surveys
- Mystery Shopping
- Data Entry/Call Centers (some are legit, the lure of these jobs is used to sell bogus start-up kits)
Spot the Work at Home Scam
One tricky scam technique is to set up a whole website dedicated to revealing work at home scams and then funnel people to the few "legitimate" work at home jobs, which, of course, are not legitimate.Keep in mind that truly legitimate companies hiring for work-at-home jobs, like any other employer, are looking for qualified, reliable people to do the work. Screening applicants is a time-consuming process. So those casting a wide net by advertising on search engines and many websites are not as likely to be legitimate.
And in the real workplace, employers don't charge employees to work for them. But many scams will ask for money. These jobs will often pose as "legitimate business opportunities" because business are expected to have start-up costs.
However, true businesses are typically not simple exchanges of unskilled labor for payment, as in home assembly and envelope-stuffing schemes. That's more common in contract labor or employment.
Yes, freelancers and independent contractors are paid on a project basis, but usually their skill levels are higher. And a real home business is developed over time with careful planning and research, not purchased online sight unseen.
Getting Started Finding Legitimate Work at Home Jobs
When getting started searching for work at home jobs, look to your own skills first. There are many careers for work at home moms, but most start with skills gained in the external workplace.Problem is that some people, who may be just starting in the workforce, may not have those skills. Or some are coming from a career path that is not easily transferable to the virtual workplace. However, there are companies that hire work at home employees in jobs requiring a high school education or less. And the skills gained in some careers that can't be done from home, like nursing or other jobs in the medical field, can actually be used in home-based jobs like medical transcriptionists or call-center nurses.
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