Rebate Processor Jobs Are Scams!

[See our analysis of Angela Penbrook’s rebate processing offer here.]

Steve is in the shower washing the scam off, so I get to write the full review of rebateprocessorjobs.com. Like absolute suckers, we had to spend $39 of our hard-earned dollars, signed up and prepared to make tons of money. However—surprise, surprise—it’s not what the sales page led us to believe. Here’s the short review: to say that these are “jobs” is a bald-faced lie. It’s affiliate marketing. The sales page says you’ll make $15 per rebate processed. What it doesn’t tell you is that the $15 is what’s left of your sales commission after you send a rebate—from your own money—to your buyer.

Here’s the long review:
Why you’re here
What the site leads you to believe
The truth
Inside Rebateprocessorjobs.com
Other rebate processor “jobs” sites
But Joe, don’t some people make money with affiliate marketing?
Together we can put misleading Web sites out of business

Why you’re here
You’re probably here because you’ve searched for ways to earn money online. The Google gods sent you to sites saying they would help you get a job processing rebates at home. You thought, “Hmmm…that sounds pretty good. I can do that.” But you decided to look around a little to see if the site is legit. You searched some more and that brought you to us.

You came to the right place. Unlike other sites that say “we’ve tried them all and THESE are the legitimate ones,” we are not an affiliate of rebateprocessorjobs.com. We try stuff out and give you the straight truth.

What the site leads you to believe
Rebateprocessorjobs.com targets people who are searching for online jobs or other ways to earn money from the Internet. It counts on you being a little bit desperate and it appeals to your emotions by telling you that your money problems can be over and you can have the lifestyle you’ve always wanted.

It claims that you can make a lot of money by processing rebates at home, and it leads you to believe that this processing is “a job.” Well, it kind of depends on the meaning of the word “job.” If it means “work in which you throw up advertisements all over the Web in hopes that someone will buy from your ad,” then yeah, I guess it’s a job. But Rebateprocessorjobs.com knows that you don’t think of a job that way, so it’s lying by intent. Note to Rebateprocessorjobs.com: Hey! Yeah, you, “Cindy Dalton!” Here’s what “job” means: An agreement with an employer in which you exchange your time and skill for an agreed-upon amount of money. Of course, they already know that. They’re counting on you thinking that. The sales page is expressly written to lead you to believe this.

The site leads you to believe that you’ll get a job processing rebates. You think, like I did, that such a job would involve companies telling you which customer have made a qualifying purchase, and then paying you to do the necessary typing and stuff. This is not the case. The “company” making the sale is you through your Clickbank ads. The “forms” you’ll fill out to “process” the rebates are the fields necessary to send your money to the buyer from your PayPal account.

Rebateprocessorjobs.com also claims:

  • “Make money simply by filling out online forms”
  • Enter the data into the forms that we provide you, click submit, sit back and collect the money
  • You’ll earn $15 per rebate processed
  • You can make this much money:
    2 a day @ $15 each=$210 per week or $840 month or $10,080 a year.
    6 a day @ $15 each=$630 per week or $2520 month or $30,240 a year.
    15 a day @ $15 each=$1575 per week or $6300 month or $75,600 a year.
  • Opportunities like this do not come by every day.

The truth
All of these claims have kernels of truth to them, but they are intentionally misleading.

  • “Make money simply by filling out online forms.” This is a lie. You won’t make money by filling out the forms like you would if it were a real job. You make money IF someone clicks on the ad you created by filling out the form AND THEN buys the product!
  • Enter the data into the forms that we provide you, click submit, sit back and collect the money. Again, it’s far from that simple. The forms are not “provided” for you by this site. They are part of the process of creating a Clickbank ad. And you can’t just create the ad (i.e., “click submit”) and expect to make money. You have to somehow get that ad in front of LOTS of people so that someone will click and buy. There’s no “sitting back” involved.
  • You’ll earn $15 per rebate processed. Yeah, and my grandma’s a super model. Here’s how they came up with that number. IF you sell a $37 product from Clickbank and IF the commission is $23.50, and IF you offered a rebate in your ad for $8.50, the difference of $15 is yours to keep! Woo-hoo! What about the bajillion products in Clickbank that are not $37, and for which the commission is not $23.50? Rebateprocessorjobs.com doesn’t say.
  • You can make this much money:
    2 a day @ $15 each=$210 per week or $840 month or $10,080 a year.
    6 a day @ $15 each=$630 per week or $2520 month or $30,240 a year.
    15 a day @ $15 each=$1575 per week or $6300 month or $75,600 a year.
    This is utter nonsense. As you know by now, you won’t make $15 for each form you fill out, so all of these numbers are purely theoretical. They are only possible IF you put your ads in front of enough people AND enough people click on your ads AND enough of those who click make a purchase AND you’ve chosen Clickbank products with a commission of $15 or more.
  • Opportunities like this do not come by every day. Yes they do. Hundreds of them, day after day after day.

Once you’ve paid your money (which is nonrefundable), you learn the full story. Here’s how it all goes down:

  1. You sign up at Clickbank, an online clearing house of thousands of products
  2. You choose products you want to sell
  3. You create ads for those products
  4. You plaster those ads all over the ‘Net (this step could cost you money)
  5. You somehow get people to see your ads. (the site doesn’t tell you this, nor how to do it)
  6. You somehow get them to click on your ads, not the dozens hundreds thousands of other ads from your competitors (the site doesn’t tell you how to do this)
  7. You only earn a commission IF someone buys the product you’re selling after clicking on the ad you created. Read that again!
  8. You send part of your commission back to the buyer

Wait…where’s the rebate? Where’s the processing? You see the last step? That’s the rebate. The “processing” is when you look at the email addresses of your buyers and manually send them money through PayPal. Not quite the “job” you were expecting, is it?

Inside Rebateprocessorjobs.com
When you pay your $37, you get instant access to the member’s area of Virtual Training Solutions. The first page you’ll see in the “members area” is a list of other money making scamsopportunities. The generous folks at Virtual Training Solutions (which is the “members area” of rebateprocessorjobs.com) give you access to all of these for no additional charge! The links below are to I’ve Tried That reviews on each topic:

If you click on the links in the members area, you’ll be taken down an endless road of the site’s affiliate links: things they are trying to sell you so they can earn the commission.

Continue to the Rebate Processing section and you’ll get full instructions on the steps I numbered for you above. The steps they outline are true, and the instructions are reasonable, but by now, a buyer will have realized that this is not a job like they were promised. There’s no way in hell you’re going to sign up for this bullshit “opportunity” and start pulling in money right away.

Other rebate processor “jobs” sites
Seen one, seen ’em all. Folks, they’re all the same. I don’t care what the url is or what the sales page says. If they promise you big money processing rebates, they’re selling you the same stinky cheese. EZrebateprocessing uses identical images to show you how the program works, so I know the program is the sam. But it charges $197!! If you must throw your money away, I suggest flushing $37 rather than $197. Or better yet, send it to me via PayPal at joe[at]ivetriedthat[dot]com. I’ll at least say, “Thank you” and will still be here in the morning!

Be wary of the following individuals and sites:
Angela Pembrook (or Penbrook) at myrebateprocessor.com (BBB Report: F) (Also see our write-up of Penbrook here.)
Cindy Dalton and Rebate Processor Jobs at rebateprocessorjobs.com/ (BBB Report: F.)
Virtual Training Solutions at virtual-training-solutions.com/ (BBB Report: None.)
Angel Stevens and Process At Home at processathome.com/ (BBB Report: F.)
EZ Rebate Processing at internetprofithouse.com/

But Joe, don’t people make money with affiliate marketing?
Of course they do. A lot of people make some money. Some people make a lot and you can too. If you’re interested in learning how to make money through affiliate marketing, you need the proper guidance. That’s why we highly recommend the Wealthy Affiliate to every beginner who is looking to learn how to make money from home. Read our review on the Wealthy Affiliate by clicking here.

Together we can put misleading Web sites out of business
Scams like this one thrive on ignorance and emotional appeal. You can help put these guys out of business by spreading the word about this post and the dirty tricks of scammers that want to kick you when you’re down.

Fake Check Scam: FCP Group

Despite tons of warnings in the past, I still get emails asking if this “payment processing” job is real. I’ve even had people write to me saying they’ve read my warnings in the past, but are considering working for a similar scam.

Listen, I know how tempting it could be to join. They target you because they know you’re in need of money and pretty much make an offer you can’t refuse. But the truth is, there is no such thing as a payment or check processing job. They are ALL SCAMS and working for one of these criminals will leave you thousands of dollars in debt.

The FCP Group Scam

Here are the current fake job postings and emails circulating Craigslist…

Company Name ; FCP Group Ltd

Detailed Job Description – Office Assistant

The primary goal of the Office Assistant is to provide local customer
support to our clients within North America. This includes providing
convenient payment options and informing them of shipping and the
terms of sale.

You will be assisting our clients within North America, the assistance
to be provided will include: payment collections and customer service
via email.

Your duties will include:
– Collecting Local Payments
When a buyer in the US decides to purchase an item through an online
auction from our sellers he has the following payment options: pay
pal, international wire transfer, international check, local certified
check or local wire transfer. The quickest option of these is local
wire transferring. Local wire transfers and certified checks are the
options that the sales support representative will provide to the
clients.

– Managing Data
Along with the payments received from buyers you will be receiving
details for these sales. These details will include items sold, price,
and buyer’s information. You are to file and maintain these purchasing
records and transactions.

– Forwarding of the Payments
Once you receive each payment you will be keeping 5% as commission
and forwarding the rest to the seller or representative, whose
information will be provided prior each transaction. It is crucial to
complete forwarding of the payments in a time efficient manner.

– Correspondence
You will be submitting brief reports, weekly reports, and monthly
reports. Weekly and monthly reports are to be done in Excel format and
are to summarize all transactions completed within the week, or month.

Here is an example of a brief report:

Date: August 2, ’09
Buyer: John R. Smith
Item: Jowissa Men’s Watch
Price: $ 1,921.27
Commission 5%: $96.1
Fees: $ 50
Total Forwarded: $1775.9
Forwarded to: Godwin Newton, Whitefield ,United Kingdom
Reference Numbers: 23497839

– Fees, and Transferring Procedures
All fees are covered by the company. The fees for transferring are
simply deducted from the payments received. No client will contact you
during initial stage of the trial period. After three weeks of the
trial period you will begin to have contact with the buyers via email
in regards to collection of the payments. For the first three weeks
you will simply receive all of the transferring details, and payments,
along with step by step guidance from your supervisor. You will be
forwarding the received payments through wire service.

-Salary
During the trial period, you will be paid 1,800USD per month while
working on average 3hours per day, Monday-Friday, plus 5% commission
from every payment received and forwarded. After the trial period your
base pay salary will go up to 2,400USD per month, plus 5% commission.

-Taxes
You will receive a monthly invoice stating your total income. All
applicable taxes are covered by the company.

– To Apply
Kindly fill out your personal information below for immediate
consideration of this position so you can get started as soon as
possible

Personal Information
Full Name :
Full Address:
City:
State:
Zip/Postal code:
Home phone :
Cell phone:
Recent occupation:
Gender:
Personal Email Address:

The employee,acknowledged the Trial and Detailed Job Description
and signed _______________
(First Name and Last Name of Employee)

I replied and received this email:

Congratulations!!

Your Information was reviewed and You’ve qualified for our Payment Personnel Position.i want you to acknowledge that you are working for FCP GROUP LTD as a representative that will be in charge of all payment coming in your area,,Please we will like to know how honest you are and how can we trust you with our funds. Also we will like to know how often you get on the Internet because our job requires much checking of your email.

Please answer these Questions below……………………

* Can we trust you with the money?
* Will you deposit the check the same day you get it?

An instruction on how to cash any check that would be sent to you by any of our customer would be sent to you in our next email.After you have answered the questions above.

Please get back to us as soon as possible.
Thank you,
Management.
FCP GROUP LTD.

The easiest way to tell this is a scam is that they’re asking you if you’re trustworthy with money and if you’ll deposit and move the money the same day you receive it. News flash: no one sends thousands of dollars to strangers just to have it “processed.” What’s stopping you from just running away with the money? Look how easily one simple question debunks this entire job posting.

Do Not Work for the FCP Group

The work they want you to perform is nothing more than another payment processing or fake check scam. They ask you to “process paychecks” by depositing fake, or even stolen, checks into your bank account. They then ask you to quickly send a portion of that money overseas and to keep a portion of it for the work you performed. Even thought the check isn’t real, you can still deposit it into your bank account and have access to the funds immediately, allowing you to withdrawal the money to send away. The check will eventually bounce. It ALWAYS bounces. At this point, you just sent thousands of dollars overseas and are now responsible for recovering the missing funds.

These types of jobs are ALWAYS SCAMS. Even worse, they’re illegal. Not only will you lose thousands of dollars, but you could also land a criminal record for receiving fraudulent or stolen funds. Never ever agree to a job where your primary duty is to process payments. If you receive a fake check, tear it up immediately and cease communication with the scammer. Do not cash it!

I Was Scammed at the Mall

Are mall kiosk salespeople like Internet sharketers? I think so.

I had just left Dillard’s and was headed back to Victoria’s Secret to pick up my wife. No, really. That’s where she was. But before you get any big ideas about what she was shopping for, think of this: my daughter was with her. So yeah. I guarantee they weren’t shopping for Valentine’s Day gifts for me. (At least I hope not, because…the horror!)

All I wanted to do was get from point A to point B. Shopping for shoes in the mall was bad enough. I kind of prefer Target where all the shoes are right smack in the middle of the store, and there are only six varieties so I don’t get confused. So I’m walking with my new shoes minding my own business when this slick (read: young, cute) sales girl smiled at me and said, “May I?”

I had to stop. I mean, she smiled at me. Cute young girls haven’t smiled at me since pre-marriage days. Excluding my four-year-old. She’s cute and young, but it’s not the same, you know?

So I stopped (that was my first mistake) and let this girl tut-tut over my dry hands. There was no question about it: they were dry. And such a shame, too, good looking guy like me, she says. Next thing I know, she’s buffing my thumbnail with some kind of buffer thingy. I don’t know what it was. It was blue. And it left my thumbnail shiny.

Meanwhile, she learned that I am a writer, that I am married and have children, that I had just bought shoes, that I was at the mall for dinner with my wife and daughter, and that I had not yet bought her a Valentine’s day present.

I mean I’m so not a chatty person. That’s more than my coworkers know about me! I swear, if she had asked me for my social security number and my deepest hopes and dreams, I would have given them to her.

See, the thing is, I’m not even sure how it really happened. One minute we were just friends and the next I was a customer and had spent $40 I didn’t plan to spend on stuff my wife already has sitting on the dresser. Cuticle oil (WTF?) and some kind of lotion. She might have called it “butter” or something. Oh yeah, and salt from the Dead Sea. For scrubbing into your skin. To make it soft.

It was just so fast. And she seemed so sincere and I thought she really liked me and I believed her when she said that the softness on my hands would last for a week and the shine on my nail would last for three. I mean, why would she lie? We bonded, I tell you!

So what do you think? Are there any parallels? Discuss.

Beware of Kyle Waitley, Credit Report America, and Rent to Own Scams.

The latest scam to hit craigslist and inboxes across America could cost you your identity. The scammer operates under the name Kyle Waitley and he promises you a list of very cheap foreclosed homes for a mere $2 and a credit check.

First Contact

Below is a sample email Kyle Waitley sends out to unsuspecting victims. It’s possible you may have received a different, yet similar email, but the overall gist is the same. The main point of the email is to get you interested in fixing your credit and finding a new home for cheap.

Subject: who wants to go Rent 2 Own home shopping with me this weekend?

Hello,

Friday is here and I want to know what kind of home you’re interested in…
– ranch
– 2 story
– condo/townhome
– big yard
– etc…

We’ll the National Forclosure list has all of the above PLUS some!

All you need to do is pay $2 bucks (THATS IT!) to access the list and
start shopping for your new home below…

-URL REMOVED-

It’s only $2!!!

Look if you’re not willing to invest $2 bucks into your future then
I can’t help you… seriously

What I do is real… I give you the option of picking out your very
own home and having us buy it and RE-SELL it to you on a Rent to Own

And the only way to pick out these homes is from the National Forclosure
list (we CANNOT buy full priced properties… doesn’t make any sense
and the private lenders we use won’t allow it)

The listing service I personally use (and recommend) is below…

-URL REMOVED-

They have the…
– largest selection
– most pictures and information on each deal
– constantly updated
– and only cost $2 bucks to get full access!

-URL REMOVED-

After you pick out a few properties that you want more information about
email me the direct links of the homes AND your phone number.

Make sure the subject line reads… “Kyle here are my homes”

Now start this weekend off right and get on over to…

-URL REMOVED-

Email me back,
Kyle Waitley

ps – I have 3 early showings today so I may not be able to get back to you
until a little later

Clicking through on one of the many URLs ultimately leads you to a site that wants to run a credit check on you to make sure you qualify to use the list of homes Kyle offers. The credit check is supposedly free, but they need to charge your credit card $1 for verification purposes.

Handing over your credit card and private information to these people is a bad idea. Aside from potential identity theft, there are a lot of consumers warning that multiple unauthorized charges are appearing on their credit card statements ranging from $2 to $35. The victims claim that having these charges reversed is proving to be quite difficult.

Experiences with Kyle Waitley and Credit Report America

The following statements are from others who have personally dealt with Kyle Waitley and Credit Report America.

Here is my experience with Kyle Waitley (an alias) and Credit Report America…

Credit Report America’s site states, “Your credit card WILL NOT be charged during the FREE trial period. However, a refundable ONE DOLLAR activation fee will be made because valid credit card information is required…”.

They did attempt to get me to sign up for other services such as credit card monitoring but I declined all of them.

Once I accepted the “free” offer, I checked my bank account and I was NOT charged $1… but there were TWO successive charges to my bank account, one for $2.95 and one for $29.95. I placed the order for my FREE credit report Sunday evening… there shouldn’t have been ANY charges on my credit card except for ONE $1 ping on my account. I should not have $32.90 on hold due to these people.

I called the company at (800) 712-7224 and the girl who answers the phone is trying to tell me that my card has not been charged and that the two charges are only pending. Right… funny they don’t tell you THAT in their disclosures, do they? I told her what she was failing to understand is $32.90 is a hell of a lot more than the $1 that they’re hawking on their site. I canceled my account and called back and spoke with ‘supervisor on staff’ Steve who stated he was shocked and that he would find out why that happened. I’m still waiting to see if these charges clear or if they come through on my account.

I’m one of those Americans who is trying to clean up my credit and own a home… you know, the American Dream. Too bad that people like these have to turn it into the American nightmare. When I saw the charges on my account, I shot off an email to good old Kyle… guess what? I haven’t heard ANYTHING from him. Nope. Quiet as a church mouse! Yet prior to me ordering this credit report? I was getting 2-3 emails PER DAY from him.

An attempt to get in contact with Kyle:

I checked out an ad in CList for “rent to own your own home”, and automatically got sent to Kyle Waitley’s website. He outlined a 4-step method to become a home owner while “repairing bad credit” in the process. With each step’s email, he also sent an auto link to a credit score site, where you get a “free trial” for “only” a dollar, supposedly refundable. I emailed this guy FIVE times, saying I already know my credit score, i don’t need to join this club to obtain my credit score. He never answered any of my mail. This sent up a red flag to me, because to obtain a credit score, you have to use your ssn. The way he writes is unprofessional. No business-oriented person would speak this way. But I did NOT proceed with his pitch. Chalk it up to woman’s intuition.

Known Contact Information

  • Aliases: Kyle Waitley, Tim Roberts, Jeremy T. Blunt
  • Business Names: Credit Report America, CoastWest Holdings Ltd., CreditReport America, YouRentYouLoseHomes, RentToOwnHomeSearch
  • URLs: http://www.renttoownhomesearch.com/ http://www.yourentyoulosehomes.com/ http://www.Homeownershipmadesimple.com/ http://www.realestatefreedominc.com/
  • Possible Email Addresses: renttoownhomesearch_com@realestatefreedominc.com, rentoownwithkyle@hotmail.com
  • Possible Contact Number: 1-800-712-7224

Remember, that there is no quick-fix for credit repair. It takes time to fix a poor credit history. Don’t let someone lead you to believe that it can be fixed overnight.

Have you had any experience with Kyle Waitley or Credit Report America? If so, leave a comment below.

Is PostcardProfits.com a Scam?

Today’s post is by I’ve Tried That reviewer extraordinaire, Miyako. She is the Web master at http://www.gokugirl.com, an Anime fan site. Check it out. Another reviewer, Barney, had a less favorable take on Postcardprofits.com. I’ll post his remarks on Wednesday.

When I started this review I thought, “There is no way someone could make $52,923 in five days by mailing postcards. That’s almost $10,600 per day! Who is this Luke Jaten guy? Does ‘Direct Marketing Group Inc.’ even exist?”

The most interesting thing I’ve discovered about this program is that it actually seems legit. The postal address on the terms and conditions page is real and DMG Inc. is actually located there (according to Google Maps). There are video testimonials. Jaten’s eBay seller account has been ID verified and his listings qualify for 100% PayPal buyer protection. His positive feedback is 100%. He has sold ten copies of his multidisc course on eBay for the same price that it’s being offered for on postcardprofits.com, but he supposedly threw in something called a project license for free. From what I understand, the license gives the purchaser permission to use one of Jaten’s “projects” that he has already developed and tested. It’s worth at least $1500, but the purchasers of the “Buy It Now” auction were so special that he wanted to give it away to them. The eBay auction information is essentially a transcription of his sales pitch from the video on the Postcard Profits website.

After signing up with your name and precious credit card information and paying $4 for shipping, you enter into a 30 day trial period. If you return the course within that time frame you pay nothing. If not, you are billed $59.99 in five (weekly? monthly? yearly?) installments. On top of this, if you try your best and don’t make at least $10,000 in 90 days, he will not only refund the money you spent on the course, but will also FedEx you a check for $500 just to say “thanks for trying it out.”

What Luke Jaten is selling is not a program where you profit simply from the act of mailing out postcards. It’s a course on how to use postcards to convince people to buy your products. And he never promises anything else. It’s true that the name of the site is as misleading as the terminology he uses to refer to postcard marketing (“postcard project”), but if you pay close attention to the video (or to the transcript) then you won’t be taken by surprise. The eBay listing isn’t clear on whether a product comes with the free license.

This DOES NOT mean that he is squeaky clean. Some of his business practices are on the shady side. He claims in the eBay auction information that you don’t need an actual product or an idea for one to get started. The last time I checked, it was illegal to sell merchandise that you didn’t have. [Note by Joe: I suppose you could use his tactics to sell products as an affiliate. That means you don’t technically “own” the product, but you still have the right to sell it.]

After Googling information from his site, I found three more websites dedicated to the Postcard Profits course. The sites are 1) postcardprofits.com, 2) postcardprofits247.com, 3) makingmoneywithpostcards.com, 4) profitswithpostcards.com, 5) simplepostcardprofits.com. Only #1 and #3 are in the Go Daddy WHOIS database as being the property of DMG Inc. #4 contains information in the footer that points to Relevant Marketing Group as the owner, but the organization doesn’t exist. Even without Googling them, it’s easy to be skeptical as there is absolutely no contact information listed on the website besides an e-mail address. Googling the organization with double quotes turns up three sites, one of which is supposedly the home page (relevantmarketinggroup.com). The entire site consists of a single page with a single link labeled “Postcard Profits” that points to website #4 above. Website #2 references two different phone numbers that connect to the same prerecorded sales pitch, four written testimonials from people who are different from the ones on site #1, and the sales pitch transcript. It is also the only site to mention a mailing list. I signed up for it.

DMG Inc.’s official Postcard Profits Web sites have secrets. If you use Google’s advanced options to search within each domain exclusively, you find longer video interviews of the people in the video on postcardprofits.com and a privacy policy that none of the pages link to. The policy was copied almost verbatim from a site called doubleyourdating.com. The two e-mail links in the policy still point to doubleyourdating.com e-mail addresses in the HTML. Site #3 keeps you on the main page unless you use Google because the page’s only link links to the page that it’s on.

There seem to be two phone numbers that will connect you to an actual person. One number was found on the Better Business Bureau website (and, yes, there have been complaints filed against them) while the other was found on the terms and conditions page of postcardprofits.com. I received the same voice mail message after dialing each number that said everyone was currently out of the office. I wonder if it’s worth trying again.

As almost a side note, Luke Jaten and Matt Trainer from TheMarketingMoron.com seem to be friends. The video on postcardprofits.com is copyrighted to Matt Trainer and Trainer conducted a 38 minute web cam interview with Jaten that was supposed to be about Postcard Profits but instead focused almost entirely on Pay-Per-Click advertising and Google Ad Sense. The video is supposed to have a second part, but I doubt there will be one as the first part was posted to Trainer’s blog in April. There was also some sort of seminar on Postcard Profits in Phoenix, AZ in May with both Jaten and Trainer. I have yet to find commentary about it.

Is Transam Associates Scamming You?

If you have done very much searching online for medical transcription jobs, you have probably heard of Transam Associates. Maybe you have even heard from them, like our reader, Teresa.

Like many of you, she posted her resume online and has started to hear back from scum sucking bottom feeders cesspool worms people claiming to be recruiters.

Here, for your education and edification, I include the email they sent her along with my editorial commentary [in brackets and bold]:

Subject: Medical Transcription – Will Train – No Experience!
[“No Experience!” Here is the first red flag. In a tight economy, employers are more concerned than ever about getting the most bang for their buck when it comes to employees. Legitimate employers who are indeed willing to hire with no experience aren’t going to shout about it. It will come up in the interview if you impress the hell out of the interviewer.]

via Beyond Job Alert

Hello, Teresa
Thank you for your sharing your Beyond resume for this work at home Job Alert! We are a medical transcription company.

After reviewing your resume we are interested.
[Uh-oh, second red flag. Not that Teresa doesn’t have a killer resume—I’m sure she does. But this just doesn’t sound like the language of a real employer to me. While jobs in which employers chase the employee are certainly real, I believe based on years of experience that they are rare. You chase the employer. That’s the way it works in the large majority of cases.]
Transam Associates provides precise medical transcription of voice files that doctors dictate for hospitals, clinics and doctor offices.
[Maybe. But its Web site is so cheesy that if I were a clinic looking for a transcription service, I would not give it a second glance. This leads me to believe that Transam is not really interested in doing transcription.]

Transam Associates also conducts its own training program that prepares individuals for the medical transcription profession. This training is done online in the comfort of your own home. A personal trainer is provided to guide individuals in the training program through a Live Chat environment.

As a recruiter for this national transcription service, I am seeking full-and part-time, home-based medical transcriptionists. We are committed to providing a work environment where medical transcriptionists can grow and be respected for the professionals they are.
[But can you provide jobs? Not according to some of the complaint sites I’ve been reading.]

This is for entry level individuals and if you are not yet qualified, we’ll provide tuition FREE training and a personal trainer that you’ll need to become qualified. Once you meet our criteria, which will be defined for you before you begin, you will be certified by us as an accomplished medical transcriptionist and can begin to work for Transam Associates, Inc. Our special books and software are required.

[Remaining paragraphs deleted because we’re not going to do their advertising for them.]

After transcribing this sample we will answer all your questions.

You are asked to transcribe a simple audio file and submit it to Transam for consideration. I can’t prove it, but my hunch is they would accept just about anything as a transcription of the audio file.

Why? Because Transam Associates is not looking for transcriptionists. It’s looking for people to sell its software to.

After you submit your sample transcription, you will receive another email that says it was true and accurate and worthy of moving forward (their words, not mine), and inviting you to request an application agreement.

The agreement is too long and boring to reproduce here, but it boils down to this the following. Transam claims to be able to train you in medical transcription and then to set you up with paying jobs.

First, however, you must by the proprietary Transam software, which apparently runs about $500. Here is one user’s experience:

They will do no more than rip you off money by making you buy their MT software and never putting peole into real work situations. The only thing they care for is for your MONEY from your purchase of their equipment(total of $490). This is obviously a SCAM. They want the money upfront and they offer NO refunds for any circumstances.

Transam Associates has a BBB rating of C-, for what it’s worth. I don’t put much stock in BBB reports, personally, but if you want to read it, it’s here:

The BBB has received complaints concerning the business’s selling practices and product quality of the software it sells. Specifically, consumers filing complaints with the BBB have stated that the business misrepresents its program. Consumers stated that they are required to purchase medical transcription training software in order to work for the business. Once the software is purchased, the business then requires that they complete practice tests prior to being given paid work by the business. Consumers are not provided work by the business until the business feels they have successfully completed the program. Additionally, consumers have stated that the software the business requires does not work properly.

So, back away from the computer and go for a walk. You are not on the verge of making $4k per month using your typing skills. (Oh, and here is a free bonus tip: MEDICAL TRANSCRIPTION INVOLVES MUCH, MUCH MORE THAN GOOD TYPING SKILLS.) You are about to purchase non-refundable software and a lot of headache.

I’ve Tried That Investigates: iJango.com

It’s “the center of the online universe,” proclaims its Web page at nowijango.com

That’s a pretty big claim, even for your Googles, your Yahoos! and your Ivetriedthats.

But coming from a company that hasn’t even officially launched yet, it’s, well, laughable. Kind of like the chihuahua with an attitude that screeches and yaps at the big dogs on the other side of the fence. “Yip! Yip! Yip! Come on over here and see if I don’t tear your ugly heads off your mangy shoulders! Arf! Arf! Arf!

(True tangent: My in-laws used to have a hihuahua-Pomeranian mix. Mitzi. One day during dinner we heard her start to squeal in the back yard. We rushed out, sure that she was being dismembered by the little brat who lived next door. But there was Mitzi, screaming bloody murder, pinned to the ground by (I kid you not)…a rabbit.)

Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against marketing slogans or tag lines. “We lose money so you don’t have to” ring any bells? But your marketing slogan should have some footing in the reality-based world.

Is IJango.com a Scam?

It’s too early to tell. And honestly, I don’t think so. But here’s what we now know that it is: A network marketing company (yes, an MLM) that claims that you can earn money just by doing what you always do online and recruiting other people to do the same.

When you become an “Independent Representative,” you are set up with an iJango “portal,” which is kind of like a home page for all your online activity. Your shopping, searches, social networking, and everything else is done within the iJango portal.

iJango gets paid a commission for all your purchases and traffic and then pays you and your downline (ah, how I hate that term) a percentage.

That’s it in a nutshell. I won’t go into the compensation plan, which I have read twice and still don’t understand. I do understand this, though: To get started with your magical portal to Nirvana, you will have to pay a refundable $50 “application fee.” But if you really want to get serious about your ijango business, you’ll have to pay $149 to become a “Director,” and $19.95 per month thereafter for your “back office maintenance fee.”

The intro video uses all the MLM industry buzzwords, including these perennial favorites:

  • “Work for yourself but not by yourself!”
  • “Our success depends on your success!”
  • “Building wealth depends on being in the right place, at the right time, with the right opportunity!”
  • [An interchangeable schlocky quote, dubiously attributed to Warren Buffet, Bill Gates, or other rich dude.]

I’m Not Impressed Yet

Nothing here looks new. We’ve seen the model where you supposedly get paid for doing what you were going to do anyway (Amway, My Power Mall). And we’ve seen the promotional videos of people who are “so excited to get started” and who say “it’s a no brainer.”

But nothing in the promo materials tells me that it will work. Here’s why, and all MLMs I’ve ever seen have the same weakness:

People that you recruit to be in your downline will be all jazzed and will say things like “no brainer” and “I’m so excited” to perfectly nice friends and family. They will change their habits for a time.

But people who are not in the MLM won’t change their habits just so you can become rich.

From what I understand, you have to recruit 20 customers who are not Independent Representatives. That means you have to convince 20 people to use your iJango portal as the gateway for everything they do online. But why would they? What’s in it for them other than a customizable home page, which they can get many other ways? They might tell you they’ll do it, but they won’t.

Maybe your mother will do it to help you out, but don’t count on it. Not if your mother is as technically inept as mine.

Bottom line, I don’t think Cameron Sharp or Steve Smith (from Excel Communications) are trying to rip you off. But I do think they’ll make plenty of money from people who sign up, even if those who sign up never make a dime.

Want to Make Money from iJango?

Then, here. I’ll give you a free business idea. Pay a licensing fee to Cameron Sharp so that you can print up t-shirts and coffee mugs with clever slogans on them and sell them at iJango conventions to iJango reps with permasmiles are so excited. I’ll give you some for free to get you started:
Do you jango?
Who needs coffee? Ijango.
You can’t handle the jango!
I jangoed all night with a hot chick in Belize
If you can’t stand the heat, stay out of the jango.
iJango. It’s like Amway but with clicks.
iJango. Not a single vampire.

Duped by a Magazine Salesman and My Experience with Unlimited Sale, INC.

Yes, I’ll admit it. I was duped into ordering a magazine subscription by a door-to-door salesman yesterday. Man, I hate rereading that sentence, but it’s true. Here’s what happened.

The Oh-So-Friendly Knock

I was getting ready to go meet some friends for dinner last night when I heard a knock on the door. I assumed one of my friends decided to meet at my place first and I opened the door to an unfamiliar face. Before I could even get a word out Mr. Salesman had already begun his pitch.

Immediately, he started explaining his life story to me and how he wanted to go back to school to become a sports announcer and magazine sales were helping him achieve his dream. I told him that I wished him luck, but I wasn’t interested in any magazine subscriptions. Frustration swept over his face and he went off on how he was a top-seller and was only a few hundred points from winning a trip to the Bahamas. I again told him good luck and no thanks, but that wasn’t about to deter him.

He asked if he could write down my name and address so his boss knew that he was out trying to get subscriptions. I was in a hurry to get him out of here and started telling him my name when he cut me short. He needed something to write on. I turned around to grab a notebook off of my kitchen counter. I grabbed it and turned around to see him sitting on my couch. He said he could just use the table here to write as it would be much easier.

Okay, now I’m a bit creeped out. This stranger is in my apartment and isn’t very good at accepting no.

He wrote down my name and address and started his pitch again. This time he handed me a list of magazines that were available and told me to look through it. I again told him that I didn’t need a magazine but instead of acknowledging what I had said he asked me what type of music I listened to. I was a bit thrown off and regrettably replied “Rock.” And thus the final attempt at his pitch began.

“The Rolling Stone would be perfect for you,” he told me as he started rattling off prices. Initially he wanted me to sign up for 4-years for $125, but since “he liked me” he offered me the two year price at $52.00, which is still a ridiculously inflated rate.

It was about this time that I had found the cancellation instructions on the back of one of the papers he had handed me. Armed with these, I decided to play his game to just get him the hell out of my apartment. He was ecstatic to hear me agree and informed me that “you’ll be saving over $50 on the cover price when you order through us!”

He then informed me of a $15.00 “processing fee” as he handed me a $67.00 bill. I wrote out a check payable to the company listed on the order form and sent him on his way.

It had been a very uncomfortable fifteen minutes.

Immediately after he left, I started to Google as much information about the company as possible. I stumbled upon hundreds of complaints at Rip-off Report with claims of being charged and never receiving any magazines. The two companies in charge of handling magazine subscriptions are the Pacific Coast Clearing Services Inc. and Unlimited Sale, Inc. (253)851-8414 located at 5775 Soundview Dr., Suite 103C Gig Harbor, WA 98335. I quickly called Unlimited Sale Inc. to let them know that I had changed my mind about the order. They told me to mail away a copy of my receipt and assured me that the check would not be cashed.

A word of advice, if a kid comes to your door trying to sell magazines to win a trip or further his or her education, cut the conversation short and get them on their way as quickly as possible.

So, here I sit anxiously checking my bank account every 15 minutes to make sure that the $67.00 I sent away doesn’t leave my bank account. I don’t have much hope at this point. I’ll let you know of any further updates.

Leave a comment below if you’ve had an experience with these people or if you know how I can definitely get my money back.

Government Grant Scams: The Good News and The Bad

At the risk of sounding like a broken record, here is yet another warning post about free government grant programs. Maybe it’s the last one, though, as those crappy programs seem to be on their way out.

The Truth About “Free” Grant Programs

We and other watchdog sites have written extensively about this stuff, so I won’t repeat all the nasty details this time. Just a quick summary for those just coming to the game. Skip to the next heading to get to the good news/bad news part of this post. In a nutshell, here is how the government grants garbage programs work:

  • You click on an ad or email link that promises easy government money for any purpose under the sun. I even get email messages about this from someone calling himself “President Obama.”
  • You see a sales page like the one at usagovernmentgrants.org, full of flags and seals to lend legitimacy.
  • You are urged to send for your free kit (or CD, or ebook, or member access, or whatever). Now! HURRY! BEFORE THE MONEY IS GONE!
  • You click through and give your name and credit card info to pay the $1.95 shipping and handling charge (for an electronic product…red flag!!)
  • You failed to read the terms and conditions which might inform you that once your 7-day trial expires, you will be charged up to $82 per month for your ongoing membership.

There is Good News…and Bad

The Good News The Bad News
Facebook has stopped publishing ads by these misleading grant programs. Google has not, as you can tell by the paid search results when you search “free government grants,” and by generated ads, maybe even on this page
Grants.gov is the number-one ranked search result when you Google “free government grants” with or without the quotes. Usagovernmentgrants.org is number two. It is a sales page, or lead-capturing page, for EZ Grant Pro. Its “free” information will cost you $94.38 per month, which includes two paid memberships you didn’t know you were signing up for.
Grants.gov publishes the facts:

We have all seen them, late night infomercials, websites, and reference guides, advertising “millions in free money” Don’t believe the hype! Although there are many grants on Grants.gov, few of them are available to individuals and none of them are available for personal financial assistance. To find an alphabetical listing of federal personal assistance visit USA.gov website’s Government Benefits, Grants, and Financial Aid page.

Usagovernmentgrants.gov implies just the opposite, and that’s what people want to hear:

If you are in need, out of work, working part time and income doesn’t cover basic expenses, or are ill, all types of grants, loans and in-kind services are provided by the federal government and by private foundations. These funds are available on an emergency basis or long-term basis.

Maybe we won’t have to publish any more grant warnings.
If we keep hearing about people losing their money and having problems canceling their paid memberships, maybe we will.

Look, nobody blames you. The promise of free money that you don’t have to pay back is a hard thing to ignore. But get over it, people! (I had to.) Nobody is going to bail you out by giving you free government grants.

Angela Penbrook? Angel Stevens? A Scam by Any Other Name…

Hey, you! “Angela Penbrook!” We’re calling you out. You are deliberately misleading people desperate for legitimate work so you can sell your “rebate processing program.” We’re gonna expose you.

When we said we were going to review the “rebate processing jobs” that have become popular over the last year, one of the first commenters asked if we were going to look at Angela Penbrook’s system at myrebateprocessor.com or processfromhome.com. Or is it “Angel Stevens?” It doesn’t really matter because both “women” and their claims are equally misleading.

[Update March 10, 2009: ABC News’s 20/20 program featured this scam on March 6. Click here to watch the segment.]

We didn’t sign up for her program because it was $197, while other sites are offering the exact same “opportunity” for as little as $29.95. And because we didn’t sign up, this is not a full review. It’s merely my opinion based on experience and based on the claims on “Angela’s” own website.

Read All About “Rebate Processing Jobs”
If you’re new to I’ve Tried That, you’ll want to click over to our full review of rebate processor jobs. We signed up for one of them and tell you all about what they’re really offering.

After you’ve read that original review, this one will make a lot more sense. It’s the same pig, just with different lipstick.

It’s Not a Job. They’re Barely Rebates
What Penbrook is offering you is not a job. You’re not going to get batches of work from Home Depot of Blockbuster or Netflix. It is internet marketing. And to call what you would be doing “rebate processing” is deliberately misleading. Here’s how the program is supposed to work:

  • The forms you fill out are used to create Internet advertisements for companies selling products through Clickbank, a large Internet marketing clearing house.
  • After you create an ad, you have to get lots of people to see it. You do this by spreading your ads all over the ‘Net. (Psst! That’s called “spam” and is frowned upon in polite societies.)
  • When lots of people see it, some will click on it.
  • When lots of people click on it, some will purchase whatever your ad is selling.
  • Then, and only then, will you get paid.
  • The “rebate” is you sending part of your commission back to the buyer.
  • Lots of Hype, Little Substance
    Here’s a clue you can use to spot misleading “job” advertisements every time: look for the sales tactics. Why are sales tactics a clue that you’re about to be taken to the cleaners? Because the scammer led you to believe that you’re learning about a job. But if you read the whole page, do you have a good idea of what you will be doing?

    Imagine going to a job interview and your potential boss tells you a sob story about how broke he was, how he finally “made it” and how you can make thousands of dollars a day. Wouldn’t you be suspicious he didn’t tell you what work you would be doing? The same principle applies to Internet “job” advertisements.

    Here are the sales tactics Angela Penbrook uses at myrebateprocessor.com. See the looooong page that starts out with emotional hype? See the clock ticking down until your chance to buy expires? Those are designed to sell you something, not to get you to do legitimate work. Do you really think the positions are almost full and that “today might be the last day?” It’s a sales tactic. See the testimonials? See the pictures of riches and happy people? All are designed to push your emotional buttons to get you to click and buy.

    The Full Truth About Some of Her Lies
    $15 per rebate? If you make a sale from your Internet ads AND the commission is more than $15 AND you decide to send all but $15 back to the purchaser as a “rebate,” then yes, you made $15. I don’t know about you, but that’s a lot of “if.”

    Three easy steps? Yes, you can sign up at Clickbank, create ads, and see who has made purchases that are eligible for refunds. I guess those are three steps. But they are NOT easy steps. They’re categories of steps, each one requiring countless hours and clicks. You’ll spend many hours just to get started, let alone the complex steps involved in getting people to see and click on your ads.

    The reasons processing rebates is profitable. These reasons are about halfway down her page, after the table showing how much money you can make. They are deliberately written to make you think companies are dieing to “hire” you to work from home processing their rebates. I hope it’s clear by now that nothing could be further from the truth.

    If You Don’t Believe Me, How About the Better Business Bureau?
    The BBB report has this to say about myrebateprocessor.com:

    Complainants allege false advertising, misrepresentation, inability to obtain refunds, and failure to honor their money back guarantee. Some customers complain that instead of receiving an employment opportunity, they received only instructions on internet sales tactics. Other complainants report they are unable to speak with anyone at the company or that company personnel is rude or fails to resolve their concerns. Most complainants allege the company fails to provide any information or instructions on obtaining refunds. All complaints are pending at this time.

    And this:

    We believe this company’s advertising is deceptive and misleading. They are not directly offering employment. They sell information, not viable work opportunities. In our experience, the only one collecting any money will be this company collecting your $197.00. We know of no work at home offer that has ever generated the amount of income implied or advertised in the offer.

    Scrubbing the Ick Off
    I could go on, but I’ve spent enough time with Angela Penbrook. I need to go take a shower now. I’m so thoroughly disgusted with her deception, I can’t even tell you. Here at I’ve Tried That, we hear from lots of people who are just trying to make a little extra working from home, and they get taken in by lying pages like this one. They usually spend money they don’t have to sign up for programs they don’t understand. Angela Penbrook knows this and plays your fears to make herself rich.

    We’ve written a book that tells you how to find real jobs online and how to spot deceptive advertising like rebate processing sites use.

    [Update: April 5, 2008]
    This is very revealing. Connie in the comments called “Angela’s” 1-800 number to demand a refund. The rep on the other end of the line took her name and information, put her on hold, and then came back and said her refund was being processed. But Connie never signed up to begin with! “Angela Penbrook’s” operation is probably being run from a kitchen table somewhere with a pencil and paper.

Can You Get Free Government Grants?

Yes, under very carefully controlled circumstances. You qualify for financial aid as a college student, for example, or you are a business owner trying to reach out to specific targeted groups.

The US Government does NOT give grants to little people like you and me to live our daily lives. It also does not give money to start a business, in direct contradiction to many of the “government grant” claims out there. (To get free money with no strings attached you have to be a huge investment bank with high-paid lobbyists. But I digress.)

But don’t take my word for it. Here it is from the maw of the beast:

But the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, says that “money for nothing” grant offers usually are scams, whether you see them in your local paper or a national magazine, or hear about them on the phone.

Some Web sites out there will holler at you that government grants are widely available and easy to get. They even often claim that the government gives grants for starting businesses. This is a direct lie, according to the federal Small Business Administration:

Please Note that the U.S. Small Business Administration does not offer grants to start or expand small businesses, though it does offer a wide variety of loan programs. While the SBA does offer some grant programs, these are generally designed to expand and enhance organizations that provide small business management, technical, or financial assistance. These grants generally support non-profit organizations, intermediary lending institutions, and state and local governments.

Grant Every Day? Um…no

Enter the strange case of governmentgrantsearch.com. That’s the site that Kathryn, the reader from my last post on grants, tangled with and lost to the tune of $100+.

Why “strange case?” Because the site has some good information. The problem is the crap product it promotes: the “Grant Every Day” program. It advertises a “free” CD (+ shipping and handling) with all the information you need to start getting government grants. You can get your first check in as little as one week!

What the heck, right? Three bucks for info. I can handle that. But then I read the fine print and decided not to sign up. Holy Add-ons, Batman! Your “free” CD will cost you $90.89 if you are not careful. Every month.

Here is the fine print:

By submitting this form I am ordering the Grant Resource Information and trial membership. After the seven day trial I will be charged sixty eight thirteen a month thereafter if I do not cancel. I also agree to the fourteen day trial to SBA Connection for thirteen forty two and the twenty one day trial to Kind Remind for nine thirty four, should I choose not to cancel. I have read and agree to the PRIVACY POLICY and Terms & Conditions. Cancel any time by calling 1-800-235-1364 or 1-888-276-8105.

See the parts I bolded? Yeah, those are dollar amounts. Have you ever seen prices written out in words? I don’t think I ever have. In my humble opinion, there is only one reason to do it in the fine print: TO HIDE IT. The promoter knows you’ll scan the fine print, but won’t read it carefully. They don’t want to call attention to all the extras by putting $68.13 right there for you to catch.

And not only that, but these add-ons come completely out of the blue. NOWHERE does the page promoting the free CD mention that you are also signing up for a monthly paid membership (what for??) the “SBA Connection” (what the hell is that??), and “Kind Remind.”

This is deceptive, “gotcha” marketing at its worst. FREE CD! Only $2.95 shipping and handling! Then, hidden at the bottom of the page, lots of extra garbage and recurring charges.

But it gets worse. The Terms and Conditions state that the company can sell your information to whomever it wants, and that it can have its telemarketers call you, even if you have opted out of telemarketing:

By submitting personal information at the Website, you agree that such act constitutes an inquiry and/or application for purposes of the Amended Telemarketing Sales Rule (16 CFR §310 et seq.), as amended from time to time (the “Rule”). Notwithstanding that your telephone number may be listed at the Federal Trade Commission’s Do-Not-Call List, you give us the right to contact you via telemarketing in accordance with the Rule.

The Company may disclose, transfer, and sell Individual Information to entities affiliated with us at our discretion.

Click here to read a customer/victim’s complaint about “Grant Every Day.
And Ripoff Report has more.

Rules of the Road for Government Grants

The FTC (Federal Trade Commission) recommends the following guidelines if you’re interested in government grants:

  • Don’t give out your bank account information to anyone you don’t know. Scammers pressure people to divulge their bank account information so that they can steal the money in the account. Always keep your bank account information confidential. Don’t share it unless you are familiar with the company and know why the information is necessary.
  • Don’t pay any money for a “free” government grant. If you have to pay money to claim a “free” government grant, it isn’t really free. A real government agency won’t ask you to pay a processing fee for a grant that you have already been awarded — or to pay for a list of grant-making institutions. The names of agencies and foundations that award grants are available for free at any public library or on the Internet. The only official access point for all federal grant-making agencies is www.grants.gov.
  • Look-alikes aren’t the real thing. Just because the caller says he’s from the “Federal Grants Administration” doesn’t mean that he is. There is no such government agency. Take a moment to check the blue pages in your telephone directory to bear out your hunch — or not.
  • Phone numbers can deceive. Some con artists use Internet technology to disguise their area code in caller ID systems. Although it may look like they’re calling from Washington, DC, they could be calling from anywhere in the world.
  • Take control of the calls you receive. If you want to reduce the number of telemarketing calls you receive, place your telephone number on the National Do Not Call Registry. To register online, visit www.donotcall.gov. To register by phone, call 1-888-382-1222 (TTY: 1-866-290-4236) from the phone number you wish to register.
  • File a complaint with the FTC. If you think you may have been a victim of a government grant scam, file a complaint with the FTC online at www.ftc.gov, or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft, and other fraud-related complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

Sadly, for you and me, there’s no such thing as free money. Don’t fall for the free government grant claims.

An Inside Look at Nigerian Scams, Part 3

[This is the last post in our series about Nigerian scams written by Mr. Chekwube Okeke.
Read Part 1 here.
Read Part 2 here.
]

Who Wants to Make a High School Boy a Millionaire?

The Nigerian scam affects not only the westerner who gets scammed, but also honest Nigerians who are in search of legitimate work. I have come across work at home jobs that exclude Nigeria from taking part. Clickbank does not accept Nigeria into their programs. PayPal does not allow people to open accounts from Nigeria). When I make inquiries, telling these online programs who I am and where I live, I don’t get any response from them.

What Kinds of Scams Do They Pull?

Here are some products from the Nigerian scam industry:

The Fake Money Order Scam
Back in 2004 in my university days, this scam was the most popular among scammers on campus. The scammer surfs the Internet looking for a date. Depending on the gender of the person he comes across, he poses either as a male or female. For example, if he meets a white or black female, then he’s a white or black male as the case may be, or if meets a white or black male, then the scammer is a white or black female, and the dating begins. The scammer could be chatting with more than one person at the same time to speed up his chances of getting at least one of them to fall for his scam. In one chat box, he might be a white girl, in another chat box, he’s a white male, and still in another, he’s an African American lady.

The stories the scammer tells his dates are the same especially if they happen to be chatting with a white male. He tells his dates that he’s a white lady visiting Africa for the first time on some archaeological expedition, to visit the ruins of ancient Africa and that ‘she’ is a student of UCLA for example, or any other story the scammer can come up with. The dating may last for days, weeks or even months but the main idea is to get the white guy to fall in love with ‘her’. That’s when the real scam kicks in.

The scammer, when he is sure the white guy has fallen in love with him, comes up with a sad story, telling the guy of something bad that happened to ‘her’ while ‘she’ was on the expedition. Now ‘she’ cant return to the U.S., but ‘she’ came to Africa with some money orders and would like the guy to help ‘her’ cash them and send the money back to ‘her’ so ‘she’ can be able to return home.

An ex-course mate of mine after getting this white guy to say “I love u”, told this guy living in the U.S. that ‘she’ was robbed in her hotel room in Africa and was left with nothing. But wait, the robbers didn’t take her money orders. Could he please cash the money orders for ‘her’ and send the cash back to ‘her’ so ‘she’ can return to the U.S.?

“Why, sure thing!” The white date replied. Why would he allow his ‘beloved’ whom he’s just dying to meet to be stranded in Africa? And so the scammer sent the money orders to him. Another former course mate of mine told me that for this scam to work, the guy would have to take the money orders to the bank and not to the post office. If they are cashed at the bank, the bank in turn will take the money orders to the post office to be cashed. There, they would be detected as fakes and the person who cashed them at the bank arrested. I heard the guy was arrested. He tried to make contact with his ‘beloved’ but it was too late. The scammer scrapped his e-mail address, bought a benze and took friends out for drink to celebrate his success.

The deftness with which these people use information on the net to fool people is impressive. Another ex-course mate of mine pretended to be a girl living in Cuba. After growing irritated and tired of his date asking about the area in Cuba ‘she’ comes from, he simply Googled cities in Cuba and told his date ‘she’ was from Santa Clara!

The Credit Card Scam
Only recently, I saw a credit card for the first time in my life. They are not common the way they are in your country. Before then, though I had never seen them, except in movies, I came to be more knowledgeable about them through this same ex-course mate of mine who received hundreds of them from a hacker friend of his. So many were these credit cards that my friend never had enough time to sift through all of them and check their validity.

He copied the details of each credit card one by one, pasted it on a certain site and tried to make a purchase. If the purchase went through, he would then know the credit card was valid and separated them from the rest. If it didn’t go through he simply deleted the expired or invalid credit card.

Night after night, after I was through studying, we would go the café for some ‘Internet shopping’ and to chat with his ‘dates’ before finally retiring to the hostel.

Back then, I also learnt that most companies do not send items paid for with a credit card to a Nigerian address for obvious reasons. So what my friend did was to give these sites a western address. He has a partner over there who would then send the items to Nigeria. He told me that if he were to sell all he had been ordering at a give away price he would make no less than $25,000.

The Nonexistent Product Scam
“….we are a company looking for distributors and sales agents for our polymeric polyol product. Interested persons should please reply via this mail…..” What you have just read are the lines to a scam invented by this same ex course mate of mine. I call this the non existent product scam. He simply looks for distributors and sales agent telling them his company has a product to sell. He gives them a very large figure of the commission they will make as a way of motivating these distributors and sales agents to get buyers, If these distributors and agents find buyers, they are to pay half the price of the product before receiving the product, and the other half after they receive the product. The buyers pay this advance and ZILCH! ZERO! No product is forthcoming because there was none to begin with!

“What the hell is a polymeric polyol? It won’t work,” I told him. He would only receive replies asking what a polymeric polyol was. He told me I was only being cynical. He was right. He got a sales agent and almost made money from this scam.

The Dating or e-Begging Scam
Are you a westerner searching for love across the Atlantic? You happen to succeed in finding one, and you think you are chatting with an African chick? Think again! You might just be dating a Nigerian hustler who is just waiting for you to say “I love you” so ‘she’ can start making financial demands on you.

Like the fake money order scam, this involves posing as a female. Only here, ‘she’ is not a westerner, but a Nigerian girl. Sometimes, the scammer might send the westerner a picture of the girl he is pretending to be, (even when the westerner didn’t ask for one) just to make it all look real. When the scammer is sure you have really gotten to like ‘her’, it is now time to start asking for money. And would he refuse to send a couple of thousand bucks to the ‘girl’ he loves, who is struggling to make ends meet in a harsh economic environment?

Some westerners might be eager to see their dates through a webcam. “Now the scammer is in for it” you might say. Unfortunately, this is not a problem for the scammer as they are equally prepared for this and can go as far as recruiting their own girlfriends into the scam. “At last” the westerner thinks. He can see his African date through the webcam. What he will not see is the real mastermind behind the scam, sitting right next to the girl, but just out of sight of the webcam, telling the girl what to type on the computer. Finally the chatting ends on a happy note and the westerner goes to bed, satisfied to have seen his Nigerian girlfriend. Poor westerner doesn’t know he is dating a man like himself.

The other side to this kind of scam is much easier: I am a Nigerian man. I browse online dating sites and find myself a female date. I don’t need to lie about my gender or my nationality or where I live. I am doing the normal and regular dating everybody else is doing. Only thing is, I am only dating this white girl because I intend to ask her for some cash later on. This may not look like a scam but it is, when you consider that I am in the relationship just for the money. That’s why we call it the e-begging or electronic begging scam.

The Box of Money Scam
This is my favorite scam. I managed to get the picture you see here from a friend who makes up to 500 dollars almost monthly from this scam. Similar to the lottery scam, you receive a message with the picture of a box of money, telling you that you’ve won it, and an ambassador is getting ready to visit your country and hand you your box of money, but that you have to pay a certain amount to redeem your winnings.

This friend also told me that WESTERN UNION MONEY TRANSFER, (the payment channel through which he receives the cash they send) has warned westerners times without number, not to send cash to people they don’t know in Nigeria. But “a fool and his money are soon parted”. So now we have greedy westerners who keep sending money to strangers in Nigeria, knowing very well at the back of their minds that what they are paying for is a scam.

It’s All About Greed

One reason these scammers are so successful is that the people who fall for these scams are themselves greedy. Like I said, they may have it at the back of their minds that the mails they get are scam mails, yet blinded by greed, they lose money to these scammers. Another reason is that they exploit the trust, honesty and forthrightness that is hallmark of most western societies to their advantage.

How to Detect Scams

There are a few ways to detect if a mail is a scam. It’s most likely, a scam mail if

  • It appeals to the emotions
    If the sender is telling you a tragic or pathetic story about something that happened to him and/or his family, then it is most likely a scam. This is meant for you to have compassion for him and let your guard down’ and be moved to help him do whatever it is he is asking you to do in the mail.
  • It has too many grammatical mistakes or is hardly fluent
    The scammers are Nigerians. They may speak English but “English ain’t our mother tongue”. Some of these scammers do not write good English. Why would a senate president, or a bank CEO, or a finance minister, make such grammatical blunders in his mail? Doesn’t he at least have a secretary whose job it is to proof-read what he writes, including his mails before he sends them out?
  • What they are asking you to do is illegal
    Most westerners may not know this, but some of the help these scammers are asking for is illegal. For instance, they might tell you their father who was a secretary to the federal government of Nigeria was murdered by a dictator and left some few millions in a bank somewhere in Nigeria, and he needs your help in getting it out of the country. Question is, how did his dad (a secretary to the government) come about such money? And why is he desperate to get it out of the country?

Really, there is no one way of spotting scams from Nigeria. Some of these scammers have no other job they do except go to café and send scam mails. For some of them, this is the only thing they do to put food on the table and feed their families. So they will keep coming at you with everything they’ve got until they succeed. You westerners just have to be on guard at all times. Some of my fellow Nigerians that may come across this writeup may hate me for spilling my guts here but I can’t help it.

Nigerians are one of the most gifted and innovative people on earth. Sadly, their ingenuity is mostly used to do bad rather than to do good. A certain talk show host in the U.S. said all Nigerians are fraudulent. In a way, that might be true. We have come to accept corruption, fraud and deceit as part and parcel of our daily lives as you might hear some Nigerians say trash like “I like that so and so governor. Even though he stole money, at least he did one or two few things for my state…” Or “…nobody says they (the government) shouldn’t steal money, but while they steal they should try to do something for the citizens….”

Come October 1 2009, Nigeria will be 49. (A fool at almost )50, we are a people who are docile, cowardly, and thoroughly laid back. Not wanting to struggle to do away with the ultra corrupt government that has long been in place, we are smiling and suffering in silence, preferring only to talk about how corrupt politicians are and how bad the economy is, in street corners, in churches, at news stands, in bars, in beer parlors, and in goat stew joints.