| by Dr. Jeffrey Lant Hundreds of thousands of folks worldwide have been bilked by Internet scams to the tune of millions of dollars. Now hear this: not one of these people had to lose a single penny. EVERY scam under the sun can easily be identified.... and hence avoided. Here are the signs of clear and present danger: 1) Scams prosper by telling people they can get rich without work. Here's a dead give away! Real businesses can and should make their offers as good as possible, always maximizing advantages while minimizing what you must do to achieve results. But scams cross the line, touting success without effort. Here's where the old saying comes in, "If it seems too good to be true... it isn't!" Your mother told you this, and your mother was right. 2) Scams never feature how long they've been in business. Why? Because they aim to arrive, defraud the maximum amount as quickly as possible... then pick up silently and leave. Real businesses are proud of the number of years they've been helping people. You'll find this information prominently displayed. They want you to know they've been here... and plan to remain here. Scams don't. 3) Scams are not accredited by The Better Business Bureau or other professional associations. Real businesses understand that people may have hesitations or doubts about doing business with a new, untested company. They, therefore, make it a point to earn professional designations which give their new customers peace of mind. The Better Business Bureau, for instance, the world's best known consumer protection and consumer advocacy organization, has a business accreditation program. After such extensive "due diligence", you can bet the business will proudly display their seal of accreditation. Scams don't, because scams can't. 4) Scams do not incorporate where they are subject to legal regulations and scrutiny. Ask a scamster just where his business is incorporated and who regulates it. Answer will come there none. Legitimate businesses are willing to submit to government oversight and review. While every business person under the sun bemoans the extra work this entails and the inevitable "red tape," in fact they welcome government oversight and review since it tells the public they are real and reputable. Scams are neither, so they don't bother to incorporate. 5) Scams don't sell real products. In actual fact, what they sell is greed. Talk to any business person in the land about their products and services and they'll happily burble on for hour after factual hour. Not so scamsters. A scam has no product or service. It doesn't sell anything worth having; it's all about tapping into and controlling you through your own potent avarice. Real businesses are ecstatic to talk about what they can do for you, the beneficial details. Scams don't dare tell you what they're all about, so they tap deep into your own greed and use that to blind you to what they really do! 6) Scams don't provide real name, real address, real phone numbers, etc. Real businesses, legitimate businesses are here today, here tomorrow. They live or die by treating old customers well so they return... and motivating new customers to come and visit. This means providing these customers with necessary contact information. Scams are different. Go to their website. Can you easily get address, phone, etc? No. In fact it's just about impossible to get any genuine contact details. Remember, scams don't want you to know who they are, where they are located, how to contact them. Quite the contrary. 7) Scams don't tell you the names of the principals and their credentials Remember, scams profit by dazzling you with riches without work. Such mundane details as the names and credentials of the principals -- always trumpeted in real businesses -- are never provided. Scamsters, remember, count on you being so excited about your imminent prosperity that you won't notice you have no information about the people at this enterprise who are responsible for providing its benefits. Last Words There have been scams as long as there have been humans. The Internet, however, has empowered scamsters as never before. Luckily for you, every scam in the world can be easily detected. You simply must control the avarice that makes scams so attractive... and apply the common sense admonitions found here. |
