How to Distinguish a Work at Home Job From a Scam

It has happened to all of us. You enter "work at home" in the search engine and you get page after page of work at home sites. How do you know whether it's a work at home job or a scam? In this article, I will share with you what I have learned over the past three years.

About five years ago I spent many hours unsuccessfully searching for a telecommuting position. I wasted money paying work at home sites to gain access to their database. What was supposed to be listings of contracts with employers was nothing more than expired ads - lists that had not been updated in weeks or even months in some cases. I gave up for about a year and then decided to renew my search. This time I happened to come across a well-known work at home forum from which I have learned and benefited greatly. I have received quite a few job offers during these past three years and have not had to spend a single cent.

There are three things that I look for to determine whether it is a legitimate offer or not.

First, if I receive an e-mail without applying for a position, I know that it is either a scam or a business opportunity. (I do not mean that business opportunities are scams but the results are often exaggerated or are introduced as work at home) Legitimate companies that offer telecommuting opportunities receive so many applications and resumes that they do not need to send unsolicited e-mails to people. They rarely advertise.

The formatting is another thing that helps me to determine whether it is a genuine position or not. Have you noticed that scams are usually written in big font and bright colors? They do this to catch your attention.

Thirdly, I think it's funny when they do a break down of the income potential. For example, they will state what you can earn hourly or per piece, and then they will show you what you could make if you worked 20 hours or processed 50 applications. If this was a legitimate offer, do they think that you are so ignorant that you can not do your own math? In that case, why would they bother to offer you a job?