Work From Home Scam

The ‘work from home’ (WFH) scam is where people are fooled into paying to start a business, which never happens, or being tricked into completing work for which they are not paid. Scammers have also used phishing techniques to trap many homemakers and students along with unemployed people looking for part-time jobs. As you search for work from home job opportunities, it’s important that you make sure they are legitimate. Scammers may pose as companies or independent contractors to try to offer you fake remote jobs. By being careful, you can protect your identity, your finances and your wellbeing. In this article, we offer tips on how to tell if a work-from-home job is a scam and share common scams you may encounter. Work-from-home scams are when deceitful people create fake job postings to benefit themselves. They may use these as a means to steal your personal information or financial assets. As work from home jobs become more popular, scammers are starting to target this market with seemingly lucrative job offers. They may pose as a company or reputable person to get you to trust them.

There are few tips to avoid scams:-

1. Do not respond to calls, text messages or emails from unknown numbers or suspicious addresses.
2. Never share sensitive personal or financial information over email, text messages or over the phone.
3. Do not click any links in a text message from a number you do not recognize. If a friend sends you a text with a suspicious link that seems out of character, call them to make sure they weren’t hacked.
4. File a report with local law enforcement if you have lost money or possessions due to a scam

Working from home is very widespread right now due to the coronavirus pandemic. Unfortunately, so is unemployment. It’s a bit of a perfect storm for a type of scam that’s been around for a while: fraudulent “work-from-home” job offers. Should you get one of these “offers,” here’s a guide to how this scam works, how the prevalence of working from home right now is bolstering it, and how to avoid falling victim.

Common work from home scams what are they and how to avoid them:- 

Another vital work-at-home strategy that doesn’t get as much attention — but should — is avoiding work-from-home scams.

The temptation to increase earnings with active and passive income streams is great, especially in tough economic times and for those not presently working full time. Enterprising scammers prey on our natural inclination to maximize the economic value of our work. When they succeed, they leave us worse off — financially and psychologically — than before.

While individual work-at-home scams often crop up and disappear faster than the authorities can track them, many take on familiar, easy-to-recognize forms. Common work-from-home scams include:

1. “Middleman” opportunities, such as forwarding packages or cashing checks for a third party
2. Gray-area pursuits that can be legitimate but often aren’t, such as mystery shopping and medical billing
3. ill-defined “business opportunities”