subject: How to prevent Paid survey Scams [print this page] How to prevent Paid survey Scams How to prevent Paid survey Scams
If you are at least slightly internet savvy you should know that the World Wide Web is filled with worldwide scams. Web surveys that pay cash can sometimes be no different. Doing surveys for money is quite often used to lure unsuspecting online users.
You will find hundreds of paid survey sites online and only handfuls of them are actually reputable sites. The scammer sites focus on housewives who are looking to make a few extra dollars. What these stay at home moms don't understand is, when they are registering to take a few surveys for cash, they could very well be becoming a member of bogus sites and wind up taking a loss, getting phished, hacked, or else scammed.
These work at home making money doing surveys online scams prey on the unsuspecting and scam them by a few of the following ways:
First, there is the fee for joining. Some scam sites require you to pay money to make money. Some savvy users will recognize this like a rip off and X from the site. Others, however, might not be aware of the ways of the scam artist's world. The fees are generally less than $50, but, the scam site promises the chance to create thousands and thousands of dollars by filling out surveys that any literate person could do themselves. Consider it, whether it was feasible that anybody might make thousands, not just thousands and thousands or dollars simply by doing surveys, the roads will be empty because everybody would be home doing the work. Why go through the 9 to five grind when you can click the right path to a good salary?
These websites are generally careful and cover their tracks using the small print which often states that not everybody can make a lot of money or anything. Stay away from these sites at all costs. The chances of you creating a hundred dollars as well as breaking even with $50 is slim to none.
There are dozens of sites you are able to join which are reputable; however, you may only make a few bucks per survey completed. But, seriously, really how hard is it to click your opinion? It's not; therefore, it's not feasible that someone would pay out thousands of dollars to do so.
Another scam to avoid is the mobile phone scam. The website requests your cell phone number to verify your membership. Moments pass and also you obtain a call on your cell. You may think nothing from it until you look at your bill later and discover a $4.95 charge! Most people disregard the charge on the bill; you should make sure you're checking your charges on your cell phone bill because these scammers are relying on you not to check on it. Also, be cautious about the text from the site saying you have won a prize. You get the text also it says to retort back to them. When you reply they charge you for that text anywhere from $1 to $4. Do not give out your cell phone number to any website, especially the kinds we are referring to in the following paragraphs.
The switcheroo scam involves having you participate in a survey and find you find yourself being forwarded to another site. The site you're redirected to asks you to definitely show an interest in a product or service by clicking good or bad. They request you to do that to show support to their marketing partners. In reality, you are just wasting time which "survey" will never end until you finally accept among their offers. My mom fell prey to this once by clicking yes she had an interest in health insurance. What she got from this was tons of telemarketers calling her home offering her sky high insurance rates and asking for her ssn and banking account information.
If you are ever taking a survey and are directed to show interest in their marketing partners, stop what you are doing, X from the site, and mark the incoming e-mails from them as spam
Providing your telephone number to any survey site, or nearly all other site isn't a good idea. Another common scam found with internet surveys may be the phone bill scam. For example, you might have been offered the chance for any free issue of a magazine. You sign up to get the free magazine and to be billed later. What you don't know is going to happen is. They take your name, address, and telephone number after which bill the season amount of money to your phone bill. You didn't read the small print saying that by putting your company name down you are authorizing these phones bill your phone bill for that magazine. How these folks sleep at night is beyond me.
The above mentioned are just 4 common scams that some of these paid paid survey sites have. There are other scams to list, but, not the time to go through all of them. These are just 4 of the basic warnings I can provide you with at this time. This should be more than enough to open your eyes to the risks associated with doing online surveys for cash. As stated prior, you will find legitimate sites to earn money online doing surveys. Just be careful of your work, browse the fine print, never pay a fee to earn money, never hand out your telephone number, so if you're ever redirected in order to support the sites marketing partners you need to exit the website immediately. Doing surveys online for free or doing online surveys for cash can be fun and safe, if you are using a reputable site that doesn't inflict from the above.
Refund Advice For Scam Victims
Due to the fact that online scams are, by their very nature, out to deprive you of the money, obtaining a refund is practically impossible. As more individuals are turning to the Internet to earn extra money or replace the money using their jobs, the online scammers are making a fortune by preying on the hopes and inexperience of these hopeful, new, home based business owners.
Unfortunately, the normal refund advice fails when you are a victim of a scam. With any legitimate business, the companies will often have not a problem refunding your hard earned money - an easy customer support request might have the problem resolved, the goods returned as well as your money refunded.
Online scams are not, however, legitimate businesses. The best advice is to prevent them altogether that is less simple since it sounds for a number of reasons.
o Online scams target new home business owners, who have no training or understanding of how to earn more online.
o The websites for online scams are simply as professional (and perhaps, more professional) as those for legitimate businesses.
o Their support staff are often highly trained sales professionals having a goal of having you to definitely hand over more income instead of refunding any money you've already paid.
o Not every online scams are small, one man business operations.
o It is not unusual for larger scam businesses to make use of threats against those who attempt to discredit them and, as their customers are usually new and inexperienced, these threats often imply that the refund request is dropped and also the company in question has the capacity to go on scamming more and more people.
Unfortunately, for the vast majority of scam victims the only recourse is to move ahead in most cases this means they give up on their hopes for being a successful home business owner because they are in possession of to face the added debt they've accumulated by buying to the scam in the first place.
So, if the normal refund methods don't work, how can online scam victims obtain money-back? Luckily the web wields its powers both ways. Which implies that you, being an Internet user have that same power at your fingertips. By using it from the business that scammed you, your chances of receiving a refund are greatly increased. Actually, there is a proven blueprint for doing that.
o Keep track of all dealings using the company, dates, times, names, telephone numbers, etc.
o Record all your conversations with their 'support' staff.
o Make use of the search engines to locate other victims who've been scammed by the same company.
o Research the background from the company executives. Many of them may have been involved in previous income generating scams that have since been shut down.
o Write a complete and honest account of how you personally were scammed through the company.
o Ensure all your information is accurate and that you have the necessary evidence to back it up.
o Once you have all your information together, publish it on the dedicated website and inform the organization of your actions.
These actions will force the company to negotiate along with you or risk the exposure of their scam operations towards the global Internet community, that will lessen the number of future customers they can continue to scam. Typically, you may expect the negotiations will require you to take down the information once you have been refunded your hard earned money. Online scam operations rely on the fact that their victims aren't able to pursue the refund request beyond the normal methods. However, by standing up for your rights, you not only substantially increase your chances of obtaining a refund of your hard earned cash, additionally you help to ensure that other hopeful home business owners don't go on to become victims.