Online Scams and How You Can Avoid Them

Many newbie internet marketers become victims of online scams.

They get sucked in by the cool photos of the good looking guy standing in front of the sunset or the gleaming Lamborghini.

Hypnotised by the flashy headlines and animated graphics it does not take long before the credit card is out of your pocket and you end up buying the latest shiny object.

Hell, I’m not even a newbie and even I still get caught out.

What I do know though is falling victim to an online scam.

Can be damaging to both your health and your bank balance

There are so many ways that you can get caught out by internet fraud these days.

It is hard to keep up with the dodgy websites and online scams with new ones springing up every day.

The online scammers are working hard to come up with more and more ways to try and take your money.

From a dodgy website to online shopping frauds, let’s go through some of the things that you should be looking out for to avoid losing more than just your money.

 MY TOP TIPS FOR AVOIDING THE ONLINE SCAMS

Tip No 1

If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is, do you recognise this headline,

“24 year old makes $1 million in 6 months using this easy method”
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Do you know how easy it is to get young actors these days to do a nice video, proclaiming much greatness and wealth from the latest hare-brained scheme?

You must do your research and due diligence first on any offers that you come across.

Is it a dodgy website? Does the website have a secure connection HTTPS: or is it a standard HTTP?

If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is an online scam

In case you need a second, third or fourth opinion you could check out some reviews on the product first.

Do they currently have an online presence with solid reviews?

Or are they just another company flogging you a half baked product.

It is as simple as typing into google

“Get rich in 24 seconds review” 

or whatever the title of the product may be.

 

Tip No 2

One Time Offers, Up-sells, back sells, side sells, now I am not saying that some of these additional products aren’t useful.

But ask yourself this if the main product or service is so good, why are they not giving you the time to digest it before they push something else on you.

I have so many e-books downloaded on my hard drive about “Getting rich in 7 days”,  it would take 10 years of hard reading and unemployment to get through them

 

Tip No 3

Have you ever received the same offer from several different people or companies because you happen to be on their mailing lists?

My opinion is that if a product or service is being pushed so heavily by so many people then the value is in the sale of the product, not the product itself.

When I see this happening I usually don’t buy it unless I see evidence of the sender using the product and getting some success.

If you are looking for a way to generate income online then the best place to start is with businesses that have been around for 5 years or more, the reason for this is they have a history of success.

A good way to find out how long a product or service has been around is to just type into Google, 

Example “How old is ClickBank”, this result returned 21 years.

If a company has been around for 21 years do you think they would be more trustworthy and reliable,  than Micky, fly by night, who just wants to make a quick buck this week? (sorry Micky if you are reading this ?)

 

Tip No 4

You must only give your email out if you really really want that information on the product or service.

Because once you’re on the buying list you may soon find yourself overwhelmed with product emails.

Eventually, you’ll start pulling out the credit card and buying get rich quick shiny rubbish.

If you are interested in a free way to separate the marketing emails that you receive from your personal emails then take a look at my review of viral inbox.

I use this amazing email cloud-based software as my sign up email when I  purchase anything marketing related online.

The reason is that all my email from the marketing lists that I am on, go to one central place.

So if I decide that I want to read some emails about new products or services then it is up to me.

It also keeps my personal email clutter free which means, less stress from a pregnant inbox.

The other thing viral inbox lets me do is a 1 click unsubscribe, with that kind of power at your fingertips, it leaves you feeling like POTUS with his red button.

It also puts a barrier between me and the dodgy offers and online scams which hit my junk box all day every day

 

Tip No 5

Personally, I avoid video only sales pages or webinars, I hate this type of online scam so much.

It normally involves spending 60 -120 minutes of your life which I hasten to add you will never get back, listening to some nitwit tell you how great his life is now that he is using “get rich while you blink” product.

The story normally starts with a hard-luck story about the presenter living in the sewer.

They always had, loads of debt, then, magically they discover the ways to wealth and they want to share it with you pah! 

But never for free, I hasten to add.

The big problem for me is they never get straight to the point, it is always fluff, fluff, fluff then at the end “it’s gonna cost you $997, but if you sign up today” blah blah blah.

As per Tip 1, do your due diligence on the company before you waste your time.

Tip No 6

So you come across a well-written sales page

The product images look great but where is the contact information.

Just in case something goes wrong, steer clear of this type of sales page.

I made the mistake once of buying from a page like this, I didn’t even get a thank you email when they took my money.

When the software did not work, I had a hell of a time tracking down the vendor.

Eventually, I did, the vendor then tried to blame my lack of coding knowledge on the software not working.

I reminded him that having to know coding was not mentioned on his sales page.

Once I threatened him with a Paypal resolution, my money was back in my account quicker than you can say Rat and drain pipe. 

Tip No 7

Product support is usually a good indicator of how good a new product or service will be.

If you do get sucked into a get rich quick online scam, to check legitimacy.

Send a message to support, if you have to wait for a response for any longer than 24 hours ask for a refund.

Tip No 8

Phishing emails are another online scam to be careful of.

There are two types of Phishing attacks.

Phishing which is where a scammer sends out an email to as many people as possible.

They are hoping that some people fall for the trick of clicking a link or some other interaction in the email.

The other type of email internet fraud is

Spear Phishing, is where a scammer sends out an email to a specific person using information about that person to win trust.

Therefore it is more likely that this person would click on a link.

As an example, if you got an email from what was supposed to be your bank.

You would more likely click on that link, than if it came from a bank you did not bank with.

Here are some additional tips to protect yourself from falling victim to this sophisticated online scam.

No Signature
If the person who has emailed you usually has a signature and it’s not there this is a warning sign as the email has not come from its usual source.

Contact the person in a different way such as a phone call, text or even face to face if they are in your office and make sure before you reply.

Spelling Mistakes
Spelling mistakes are usually a big giveaway on phishing emails.

If an email from Lloyds Bank is full of spelling mistakes.

You can bet that it’s probably not Lloyds Bank that has sent it to you.

Mismatched URLs
Phishing emails often contain links. If you hover over the link it will show you the actual hyperlinked address.

If the two don’t match it’s suspicious and I wouldn’t recommend clicking on the link.

Misleading Domain Names
The email may say that it has come from John Smith but does the actual email address match up with that?

There have been both phishing and spear phishing emails with domain names in the email address that are not legitimate.

Transactionpaypal@mail.com is quite obviously not PayPal’s email address.

It’s Irrelevant
You’re unlikely to register for an Apple or Amazon account to your work email unless its part of your job to use their services, so if you receive an email at work from them then you should be suspicious.

It’s the same as when you’re told you have won the lottery but you haven’t bought a ticket.

You haven’t initiated any interaction with that organisation so there is no reason for them to contact you.

Tip No 9

Membership sites that don’t make it clear how much it will cost per month.

They also have a habit of making it difficult to cancel.

They normally entice you in with Free trial sign up for x days.

You enter your credit card details then promptly forget that you have signed up to the site.

If you are lucky sometimes you will get an email telling you that they will be applying for payment soon.

You then go to the site but then can’t quite find the button which stops the payment leaving your account.

I have been stung this way a few times as I have a memory like a fish.

So be careful, read the fine print!

And only if you think this site will make a difference to your life do you part with your card details.

Tip No 10

Avoid pyramid schemes, these involve signing up to some scheme or product which usually involves parting with some money.

You then have to recruit other people to your club to recoup your investment.

Many family and friends have fallen out due to pyramid schemes.

There are some really good network marketing companies out there but once again make sure you do your due diligence.

Make sure that what you want to earn from the venture is realistic.

Many people have been sucked into these schemes with promises of earning $1000’s within a couple of months ?

It usually turns out to be nothing more than a pipe dream

So if you want to avoid losing money by falling for the online scams.

There are a couple of things you can do 

 

Avoiding Internet Fraud – The Breakdown

• Do your due diligence, look for reviews and feedback from users, if there are any.
• Ask yourself if the new product or service that is being offered to you why are you being offered so many bonuses that you will likely never use.
• If more than 2 people are mailing you about the product or service, it is more than likely new and has never been tested for bug’s or whether it actually works.
• If you are going to invest in a product or service check how long the company has been around and check their track record
• Only give out your personal email if you absolutely must, you’ll thank me when you’re not getting 20 – 50 marketing emails every day.
• Webinars and sales videos, if you have the time to waste go for it, just don’t believe the hype
• Make sure that you always have access to contact details if you are buying something new.
• Check that emails you receive are from genuine people and companies

Power Tip

Another great way to avoid online scams is to use a prepaid payment card for your online purchases.

If the worst happens and a fraudster gets your prepaid card details.

As it is not linked directly to your bank, it will keep your losses to a minimum.

It puts a barrier between the fraudsters and your bank.

I never keep more than $40 on my card, so it is virtually worthless to a professional online scammer.

 

Stop wasting your time and money searching for that pot of gold and take a look at my No1 recommendation.

This company have been around for 13 years and counting.

They have helped thousands of people get online and start their own successful online businesses.

The only thing you will lose by joining my No 1 recommendation is your fear of Internet marketing.

You’ll gain lots of knowledge while also having access to a vast community of fellow internet marketers.

Who will willingly give you support and answer your honest questions.

Oh and best of all you can  join for free

See you on the other side

Always get independent advice if an offer involves money, personal information, time or commitment.

Please feel free to drop me a comment below or you can always get me on Facebook or Twitter