Fraudulent Work- At- Home Schemes

You see ads, or are deluged by e-mail, promoting the ease and joy of working at home.

MAKE EXTRA CASH AT HOME!

***WIDE SELECTION OF JOBS . . . TOP PAY***

****WORK IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME****

**REAL JOBS WITH REAL COMPANIES**

"Every day thousands of people just like you are getting started working at home in the fields of computer work, sewing, assembling products, crafts, processing coupons, typing, telephone work and much more!"

"Home workers are regular ordinary people who earn an excellent living working at their own pace and their own hours. They are fortunate people who have found an easier way to make a living. They had absolutely no prior experience in this field. They earn several hundred dollars weekly in the comfort of their own home and you can be next!"

"Companies all over the country want to hire you as an independent home worker."

"The companies in our guide are legitimate and really need home workers. There are over one hundred of the top companies included in our guide offering an opportunity for you to make extra income at home."

"You are guaranteed to find home based work in our guide. No Problem!"

"We've helped thousands of people like yourself get started working at home. You can be next!"

THINK WHAT AN EXTRA $300, $700 OR MORE A WEEK COULD DO FOR YOU!

LET US HEAR FROM YOU TODAY!

THIS COULD EASILY CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOREVER!

DON’T LET THIS EXTRAORDINARY OPPORTUNITY PASS!!

THESE OPPORTUNITIES ARE PROFITABLE AND EASY . . . ACT NOW!!!!!!

EARN $200-$1,000 WEEKLY! Assembling products at home.
Call toll-free 1-(800)574-9635 ext. 150.

You call the 800 telephone number listed in the ad and speak with a sales rep who describes their work-at-home job program.

The conversation goes something like this:

"We specialize and are very successful in giving current data on companies who are looking for home workers. Right now, we have over 100 companies working with us that offer jobs of assembly, arts and crafts, sales, professional services and electronics work".

"So my chances are pretty good then?"

"We guarantee that you will get a job. They will not reject you for any reason."

"What are they like to work for?"

"We check on all the companies to make sure that they are safe, legitimate companies for you to work for and if you have any problems or any questions at all, we have a customer service person who handles everything"

"What type of work will I be doing?"

"The first thing that you’ll be receiving is a portfolio of all of our companies, their pay scales and the things you can assemble. That’s so you can pick out your job because there are about 85 different jobs for you to choose from and you are guaranteed any of those jobs."

"What does all this cost?"

"We do have a one-time, lifetime enrollment fee of only $38.95. Now, that enrollment fee is backed with a 90-day money back guarantee. All we ask is that you participate in the program for 60 days."

"Is that all?"

"Right. The only fee you pay, is to us, for the enrollment."

"What kind of money can I make?"

"These are just a few of over 70 guaranteed home jobs."

	assembling wooden calendars for $252 a week,
	making towel holders for $306 a week,
	assembling electronic circuit boards for $500 a week,
	making hair bows for $300 a week,
	making beaded earrings for $360 a week,
	or assembling holiday decorations for $600 a week.

So you send in your money and receive only a thin pamphlet listing the name and address of approximately 80 companies, along with a brief description of the assembly projects each company is purportedly offering. It is entirely up to you to contact each company you are interested in for more information. In most instances, you must also send each company an additional $30-$40 in order to receive a "start-up kit".

Dismayed, you seek a refund but in order to get your money back, you must send them a proof of purchase date, a copy of the purchase receipt, the name and telephone number of two contacts made using the pamphlet, a copy of one application form you completed by using the pamphlet, and a statement of your actions resulting from using the pamphlet, all after sixty days.

Assembly of Crafts and Other Items

You are lured into this type of fraud by the promise of high pay, earned while working in the comfort of your home. You may be required to eventually purchase materials, equipment and training—at high prices ranging from hundreds to thousands of dollars—from the fraud perpetrator, or his referrals, in order to assemble your work products.

Some "earn money at home" offers are intended to sell appliances such as a sewing or sign-making machine from the company. Others offer "assembly work" but require payment for instructions and assembly kits. These advertisers sell the materials and kits to make such articles as ties, baby shoes, etc.

You are urged to purchase the materials needed to complete the job, based on a promise that once the product is assembled, they will buy it back from you and sell it to a well-known retail chain.

Respondents to these offers must sign a contract which obligates you to buy a machine or materials, but which does not obligate the seller in any manner.

You invest, but they never buy the product back from you, often closing shop and moving on to a new location. You are left with products for which there is no market and little opportunity to recoup your investment.

The kit seller may or may not offer or guarantee to buy back or pay for the finished product but may initially ask you for a sample of your work which demonstrates your skill, plus a small registration and evaluation fee. Then they refuse to pay for your work because it doesn’t meet "quality standards".

Unfortunately, no work is ever "up to standard," leaving you with overpriced equipment and supplies, and no income. To sell your goods, you must find your own customers.

Product Testing Frauds

Product testing frauds usually begin when you receive a handsome brochure showing dozens of products and a sales pitch asking you to enroll as a product evaluator. The cost for postage and handling is purported to cost from $5 to $9 and you get to keep the hundreds of gift products you receive for testing. There is usually some sort of enrollment fee ranging from $10 to $25 dollars.

Many consumers never receive a response after sending their enrollment check. They are the lucky ones. Those who are enrolled and request products for testing may end up paying hundreds of dollars in postage and handling for items worth far less than the fees.

Reading Books for Money Frauds

You respond to an ad which claims you can make a potential $30,000 per year reading books at home. The ads indicate that all you have to do is ask for a list from which you pick a book, submit a report and then get paid right away.

You send along your one time fee of $57 and what they send you back is a listing book of publishers, without even contact addresses. After tracking down several publishers, you discover from them that publishers don’t hire people for this purpose sight unseen and certainly not without prior experience and proper educational or vocational background.

Home-Based Computer Work Fraud

You respond to an ad which proclaims:

"PC Users - do overflow work and earn $14/hr with Data Entry and Word Processing from the comfort of your home!"

They indicate there is a money back guarantee after 90 days so you send off your $65.

In return you receive a disk containing generic information on running a business and a list of 500 business names around the country. You attempt to contact the ones that are still in business and determine that while some require actual visits to the distant office, most pay an amount per entry which works out to only about $2 per hour.

You remember after 90 days to call for a refund but the line has been disconnected. Behind the scenes, the business has once again changed names and phone numbers and continued on with its nationwide advertising, knowing that their victims seldom make a fuss over the small amount they have lost to this deception.

The Reality of Work-at-Home Offers

"Earn hundreds in your spare time!"
"Our people have come from all walks of life and succeed with no special training!"
"The market for your work already exists - this huge, untapped market is waiting for you! Order Now!"
"Only $29.95 will bring you thousands in earning power!"
"Profits will start rolling in with your first completed item!"
"Popular demand will force us to raise our rates soon!"

Legitimate work-at-home program sponsors should tell you —in writing and for free —what’s involved. Here are some questions you might ask a potential employer:

	What tasks will I be required to perform? (Ask them to list every step of the job.)
	Will I be paid a salary or on commission?
	Who will pay me?
	When will I get my first paycheck?
	What is the total cost of the work-at-home program, including supplies, equipment, and membership fees?
	What will I get for my money?

Many ads don’t say you may have to work for many hours without pay. Or that there may be hidden costs. Countless work-at-home schemes require you to spend your own money to place newspaper ads, make photocopies, or buy the envelopes, paper, stamps, and other supplies, instructions or equipment you need to do the job.

People deceived by these ads have lost thousands of dollars in addition to their time and energy.

According to the U.S. Postal Service Investigation Service, envelope stuffing has become a highly mechanized operation using sophisticated mass mailing techniques and equipment which eliminates any profit potential for an individual doing this type of work at home.

They know of no work-at-home promotion that ever produces income as alleged. In just one twelve month period they put about 3,500 of these work-at-home operations out of business through mail stop orders, consent agreements, or criminal proceedings.

To raise public awareness and assist law enforcement, the Better Business Bureau and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service answered 112 work-at-home advertisements around the country and found that nearly 100 percent of the heavily advertised opportunities are fraudulent.

The yearlong investigation, called Operation Job Fraud, found that 21 operations were out of business before the study concluded. Another 12 did not respond after applicants sent money, and 10 more stopped responding after an initial inquiry.

Of the 69 remaining, two said the jobs had been filled and the rest sent instructions for setting up another work-at-home company, products to assemble, books and lists of other work-at-home companies to contact or offers for software, books or videos.

While about 20 million entrepreneurs this year will earn their income from enterprises run from basement offices and kitchen tables nationwide millions of others will fall victim to work-at-home scams that are spread through classified ads, direct mailings, and the Internet and e-mail.

They will say things like: "Work at Home, Earn Up to $40,000 a Year!"; "Easy Work for Excellent Pay!"; "Be Your Own Boss, Work Your Own Hours!"

One person who paid $54 for a software package that she thought would allow her to launch a data-entry business found that when she installed the software, the only directions that popped onto her screen told her to place ads in local newspapers to get others to purchase the software. "And if, by chance, any other sucker bought the software, like I did, then I would get paid $7."

Another victim spent more than $2,100 on a home computer and training software after answering an advertisement to work from home as a medical-bills processor. But after getting set up, she called the company for help and found that the telephone number was disconnected.

Items to look for when suspecting a fraudulent home business opportunity:

	No experience is required.
	You can make a fortune working a few hours a week.
	Ask yourself why they would pay you for something a machine or factory worker in China could do faster and cheaper.
	The ad is bold-faced, CAPITALIZED and full of exclamation marks!!!
	The ad is totally vague about what you’ll do but implies untold riches.
	You are asked to call a 1-900 number and are billed for seeking more information.
	For a fee, they will send you a list of businesses that are looking for home-based workers.
	When following up they pressure you to make a decision immediately.

Other Sites:

Friends in Business Scams

Susan Simerly sent along this offering Dec 21, 2001.

HOME-WORKERS NEEDED! $300-$1000 PLUS WEEKLY Simple, pleasant work...you do at home.

Dear Friend,

Are you seeking a rewarding second income? Would you like to set your own work schedule? Work the hours you choose? Earn extra income for your family? If so, then we may have the answer.

Current statistics show that by the year 2010, 40-60% of the American work-force will be working from home. Get a jump on your future and secure a job through us. Our company provides a special work-at-home program that is used by thousands of people and businesses across the globe.

With your help, we can reach and provide a better program to more of these people and businesses, faster and at a lower cost, than our competitors. The vast majority of these positions require no special skills or experience, just a sincere desire to GET STARTED, and EARN MONEY!

YOU CAN EARN GOOD MONEY!!!

Potential incomes range from $300 to $1000 weekly or more, depending only on the amount of free time you have available. The effort you invest can make you a substantial income. You'll find this work, done easily and quickly, can double or even triple your income.

With just one or two hours per day you will be excitedly surprised at how easy we've made it to get the type of position you want and how profitable this work actually is. You can earn enough money working in your spare time to purchase that new car or boat you've been wanting, pay off credit cards, bills, or even take a vacation. Maybe just add more financial security for yourself or your family. Whatever the reason, you can't go wrong.

ALL BUSINESS CAN BE DONE RIGHT FROM YOUR OWN HOME

You can start the same day you receive our program and instructions and begin receiving money within a matter of days. Most of these positions require no prior experience or special skills and our program is specifically designed to get you up and running as fast as possible.

HELP SOLVE YOUR MONEY PROBLEMS

If you are looking for an excellent extra income to relieve financial pressures, you owe it to yourself to investigate our program. Naturally, no company can afford to send out expensive information for free to everyone who writes in asking for it. Therefore, we must ask each person for a one time fee of $10.00.

This fee covers all the cost of our work-at-home program and includes complete details. It also assures us that you are serious about working as a Home-Worker. We will not ask or require you to pay us for any additional information, instructions, or materials. There is no hassle. However, you must act promptly.

At this time there is a need for dependable Home-Workers in your area, some of whom may start in the very near future. There are only a limited number of positions needed for each position for each region and as soon as each position is filled, we will cease to offer this program. Your help is needed now! So, if you're a productive, positive person, we're looking forward to hearing from you and seeing you benefit from our program.

SIMPLE, EASY, AND PROFITABLE, THIS PROGRAM MAY BE THE BEST WAY TO MAKE AN EXCELLENT INCOME AT HOME.

I understand that the Home-Workers Program does not contain and is not in any way a get-rich-quick scheme and that the fee I am enclosing is a one-time fee only and that ZCC Marketing will not ask for or require any further funds.

**Processing fee must be in US FUNDS ONLY please. *

Send to: ZCC Marketing 1489 Marine Drive #514 West Vancouver, B.C. CANADA V7T 1B8 Because we are a company soliciting people from the public we must assure you that we are the BEST type of company PERIOD.

No Pot of Gold at the End

I want to let people know, who hopefully find this site before getting scammed, that Rainbow Expressions is a total scam. They offer all kinds of work-at-home programs all over the internet and have many sites linked to them - here are a few: workathomeconnection.com; workathomesite.com; findworkathomeemployment.com; rainbowexpressions.com

Rainbow Expressions
P.O. Box 130275
Fort Lauderdale, Florida 33313

I found them by typing in work-at-home jobs. I figured they were legit because no matter which site I went to, there they were. I paid them $47.00 dollars for their start up fee for supplies to stuff envelopes.

I really regret not finding this site before sending them my money. I wrote them a mean letter and requested they refund my money if they have any decency - knowing that they will probably just laugh and cherish my letter as "A job well done" on their part.

It is so sad to know that there are people in the world that do this to others. I am not able to go out and work in an everyday work environment as most people can, because of disabilities and thought this envelope stuffing job was an answer to our prayers. Extra money of any amount is very hard to come by in my household.

Linda MFP 01/06/02

Not Barefoot Yet

There is a site I got involved with called Iron Stone Publishing at ironstonepub.com. They charged me $24.95 to get downloads of jobs at home.

I applied for dozens and never got one reply. When I applied for a home job they had listed for Pinkerton I received my envelope back marked address unknown.

When I informed them of this I was called stupid and uneducated and incapable of following orders or applying for a job. Nothing could be further from the truth, believe me.

When I mentioned that I was going to tell people what had happened to me, they informed me that if I discussed anything about their site, with anyone, they would sue my socks off.

After I advised them that I was alerting Pinkerton about them, I never heard back. Just thought I'd warn others.

Siouxscot 01/05/02

Med Quest Inc at www.Med-Quest-Inc.com say they guarantee you a job but after you pay them a fee all they do is send you a list of companies that are supposedly hiring. When applicants called the companies listed, the perspective employers were very upset and wanted to know who's list they were on so they could be removed.

None of them knew what you were talking about and were not working with that company although a few of them seemed to have had this problem before with Med Quest. Applicants have not got money back even though they said it was money back guarantee.

Don't Follow This Star

Get paid to chat. $.56 a minute. No fees. Not phone sex or psychic.

When hundreds of people signed on for one "work at home - get paid to chat" opportunity they were told they would have friendly innocent conversations with European men or recruit other phone actors who called.

But instead of answering phone calls from a lonely hearts line they had to make the phone calls and many times it was long-distance. The deception involved hundreds of people who were charged thousands of dollars for phone minutes.

The home-workers were told to connect through an inaccessible toll-free number but when that did not work they were given a long-distance line to call and told they would be paid $1.48 per minute.

They said they would be reimbursed the call-in charge of up to $1 a minute but never got that or payment for their time. Instead they incurred phone bills in the thousands of dollars.

"I answered an ad advertising for recruiters, people to actually recruit the phone actors and actresses who would talk to people on the North Star line. You would just try to keep people on the phone and chat with them."

As for the lonely European men, a few workers remember hearing some men on the line. But the only one located thought he was being paid to talk to lonely women. After navigating through some fairly explicit material, the home workers connected to people who sounded mysteriously like other home workers.

"So I was talking with the women who had kids, talking about recipes and cooking dinner. But after a few days we began putting two-and-two together and figured, hey, we're just chatting with each other."

The company behind this, North Star Communications Group Ltd. was traced to 21 year old Mike Bain alias Mike Bailey of Winnipeg, Canada.

2025 Corydon Ave Suite 162, Winnipeg MB R3P 0N5
385 St. Mary Ave, Winnipeg, MB R3C 0N1

Try Collecting From Them

Operating since at least 1998, A.V.I. Data Processing Center of Highland CA have had a pattern of unanswered complaints regarding alleged false advertising and misrepresentation of an employment offer with them for data entry which they promote through www.aviathome.com

While they appear to advertise data entry work at home employment, processing legal judgment notices, clients are not offered employment of any kind.

Instead, for an advance fee of $175.00, they receive a package containing software, a book with information on starting your own business, instructions on how to search court records for unpaid judgments and are told to mail a series of letters to the prevailing party at their own expense, offering to collect their judgment for a fee of $20.00.

Refunds and cancellations can only be obtained if the complainant sends proof of receiving 50 checks from clients within 60 days.

The company responds to a few complaints by denying refund requests but most complaints are unanswered. Both A V I Data Processing Center and Nationwide Collection Services operate out of a mail drop. Neither company has a published telephone number, and calls to the phone numbers on their printed materials reach recorded messages.

The individual below is trying to get his money back and is going to file a suit locally against this company. He would like to know if anyone that has been victimized by them would care to have him represent them.

Robert M Brady
38545 35th ST E
Palmdale, CA 93550
cjfa.org@ earthlink.net

Update 04/15/02 / 07/29/02

The BBB has 117 complaints filed against AVI on file.

The USPS has notified AVI that they are under investigation through their Consumer Protection Program, and have 45 days to resolve this situation, or face possible prosecution by the United States Attorney's Office, as well as a possible administrative action taken by the Legal Department of the USPS, to cut off their mail service.

Bob had meeting with Rick Stevens - Special Investigator with the San Bernardino District Attorney's Office, who have launched a formal investigation by the Specialized Prosecutions Group (Consumer Fraud) Division and has filed complaints with CA Department of Consumer Affairs, the FTC, and the CA State Attorney General's Office, but hasn't received any word from these agencies as of yet.

He is looking for legal counsel that will represent a class action though so far only two victims have contacted him. He is hoping to get access to the BBB complaint file but told that a court ordered subpoena is required.

He put together a website dedicated to this specific issue. For his efforts he has been served with a lawsuit by Higgins, the guy that said he didn't own AVI in the beginning. He is suing for Defamation, Trade Libel and Unfair Business Practices.

Robert wants to get him into court anyway so a Judge can see for himself what's going on. He has the help of Stephen Rohde, the immediate past president of the Southern California ACLU who is helping him structure his legal motions and filings. He feels that the DA is right around the corner from filing charges as well.

08/19/02 - Filed Motion To Strike "AVI's" Complaint so that the issue of "deceptive and misleading" advertising will be brought in front of a Judge for review. The Hearing is set for September 17, 2002 in the Superior Court of San Bernardino, Dept. S5. No word yet from the District Attorney's Office regarding their investigation.

Lesley Fountain (www.friendsinbusiness.com), who was named as a co-defendant in this lawsuit, has Jesper Rasmussen from the California Anti-SLAPP Program (www.casp.net) helping her to put her motion together.

Good luck as they go toe-to-toe with AVI Data Processing (Dameon Higgins)

11/14/02 - The hearing was scheduled for the next day but a fax arrived stating that Mr. Higgins is dropping the lawsuit against them.

03/27/03 - In February, we won a judgment against AVI for our "Costs & Attorney's Fees" for over $76,000. Now they are complaining about that so it's back to court. We also found out that we would likely have won the "Motion To Strike" as well, if he hadn't dropped the lawsuit.

Stock Routing Scam

While I have yet to figure the workings or ultimate goal of this operation I thought I would put it up for display and eventual investigation. They explain the process thus:

We process packages from our partners around the country and feel the need of honest person, who can route our mail to destinations around Europe. All our letters and packages are legal, and will be received by you from big well-known corporations such as Toshiba, Gateway, HP, Fujitsu, Dell.

We do know about the Anthrax threat in USA these days, so we promise you - there are will be no packages/letters from unknown individuals, just well-known corporations.

PAYMENT: We arrange payment at end of first probation month of work (30 days) $2000.00 in U.S. Dollars and second month and after that - $4000.00 in U.S. Dollars.

In future, salary may be up to $120.000 per year, but work can become full-time. In addition to payment above, you'll receive all money you'll spend for shipping for our company.

LETTERS & PACKAGES TRAFFIC: You receive about two packages per week - 1 8 lbs per package maximum.

REQUIREMENTS: 1)5-10 hours per week 2)Address for letters and packages (not a P.O. box) 3)Fax us any kind of your I.D. - such as drivers license, national I.D. etc. to 720-528-7930 (U.S FAX) (You can understand, without simple verification, we can't begin to work, because our packages have very high value and we don't want to risk) 4)When you receive our packages & letters, you must send them out via USPS Global Express Mail (EMS) to our destinations and provide tracking number to us.

ABOUT US: We are Sprint Ordering, Ltd. engaged in distributing of exclusive electronics. We help people in purchasing brand-name electronics such as DVD-players, A/V receivers, digital photo and video camcorders, some kind of rare accessories for them.

Also we are interested in distributing different computer parts, complete computer systems (notebooks only). You can check our website at www.sprintordering.com for more information.

The reason of our activity is the absence of possibility to buy that kind of electronics in those regions (high tax-rates, high prices, absence in the shops or expensivness).

We need to sign contract before the work. Let us know your decision. Look at the contract:

E M P L O Y M E N T C O N T R A C T

THIS AGREEMENT, entered into this the ____ day of _____________, 2002, by and between Sprint Ordering, Ltd., (410 W. Colfax Avenue, Denver, CO, 80204, USA), in the furtherance "Employer", and ______________________, in the furtherance "Employee".

WHEREAS Employee identifies himself as ______________________ residing at the following address: ________________________________________________WHEREAS Employee states that he's citizen or permanent resident of the US and his residence is in City of _____________, State of __________________, USA.

He submits as verifications of these facts a true & accurate copies of his I.D. card (Driver's License, SSN Card etc.) that are incorporated herein.

WHEREAS Employer is liable both criminally and contractually to keep information (such as SS and Driver's License numbers) confidentially.

N O W T H E R E F O R E, FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION of the mutual promises and benefits to be derived by the parties, they do hereby agree to the following:

1. The employee is being hired as a _Stock_Router_________ to perform the following general duties: _route our mail and packages to location we specify_.
2. Hours of employment: 20 hours (Number of hours per week: 5 hours).
3. Working month is counted from the moment of getting first package (letter) by Employee. Employer guarantees this to happen within ten working days from the date of signing this agreement. Employee must inform Employer by any way the same day as this will happen.
4. Ending date of employment: Until termination with or without cause. Employee will be paid back all expenses according to the date of termination.
5. The Employee's compensation shall be paid and received monthly in the following order:

(A) First Month $2000.00 plus reimbursement for all and any S&H charges the Employee has paid,
(B) and Second Month and following months $4000.00 plus Employer agrees to pay a reasonable advance fee but not less than $1000.00 to Employee (as "expense account fund") to cover all and any S&H charges the Employee will pay.

6. This agreement may be terminated without notice by either party.
7. The Employee acknowledges that in the course of employment he may become aware of certain information about the Employer's operations or clients that is considered proprietary.
8. The Employee agrees not to disclose such information or use the information in any manner that might be harmful to the Employer's business for which Employee is liable both criminally & contractually to keep confidentially.
9. No modification or amendments shall be made to this contract unless it (they) are in writing and executed by both parties.
10. TIME IS OF ESSENCE for both parties.
11. This contract is governed by the laws of the State of Colorado or those of the State of the Employee is residing in.
12. Should any disagreement arise between the parties as it relates to employment, each party shall be responsible for their own attorneys' fees and court costs unless the Court orders otherwise.

THIS IS THE WHOLE AND ONLY AGREEMENT (CONTRACT) BETWEEN THE CONTRACTING PARTIES.

FOR THE Sprint Ordering Ltd.:

William A Chambers
Robert T Gray

Note: Most likely a Nigerian scam, money laundering, check fraud, bogus orders operation.

Med-A-Fax is supposed to be a "work at home" based business that deals with sending faxes to medical institutions to help doctors and such find work. They charge you a fee of $298 for the package, if you want to know more about the company, what it has to offer, etc.

They tell you very little, if anything, about the opportunity BEFORE you send them a payment.

Got the package-it doesn't work. Just false advertising of how much money you can make, and how the business works. Plus if you have a complaint they will not answer your calls/letters/email, etc. When we requested a refund, they gave us a run-around and refused to refund our money (even after sending all of the material back to them). Beware of this rip-off.

Thomas 03/12/02

Don't Staple, Fold or Mutilate the Payment Though

I received a work at home offer in the mail and as I have been burnt before so I was not stupid enough to fall again.

The scam is "Stapling Booklets at Home". The promise is "Up to $2500.00 Weekly" with a registration fee of $39.00 - $3.00 extra for shipping within 7 days".The address to return the filled out form and money is:

N.K.D Enterprises
4119 N. State Rd. 7
P.M.B. 135
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33319

The envelope was post marked NO VA P&DC and had no return address.

I wish that there was a site that could list the suspects. Why does someone have to get ripped off and then fill out a bunch of forms before the word can start trickling out about a particular scam?

Scott Boldwyn 08/19/02

2 Oct 2002 NorthantsnewCrimeBeat UK

A conman who tricked people out of their money with a bogus 'work from home' scheme was yesterday jailed for two years. A court was told 32-year-old Neil Jeans, Corby, advertised for mailing staff and charged them money to purchase an introductory kit.

Only later did workers find they were required to place advertisements in local shops at their own expense to recruit more people for him to cheat. Even after being convicted of eight charges of deception in November last year, Jeans set up another firm and continued the deception.

He had first established Aquamass UK, of Corby, and placed advertisements in newspapers in September and October, 2000. Applicants received a letter promising "extra money doing pleasant work at home" and were asked to send off for a starter kit.

Leicester Crown Court was told yesterday applicants who did send off later received a booklet entitled Helpers of People. But only when they received it did they realise they had to place advertisements at their own cost.

Catarina Sjolin, prosecuting, said Jeans' business proposition was actually "a self-perpetuating scheme, with no real work done, achieved or produced". Jeans offered 40p for every address secured by his 'employees', leaving the victim almost inevitably out of pocket.

At a magistrates' court hearing last year Jeans was found guilty of netting £114 through the fraud. He asked for a further 13 offences, committed in January and February this year to be taken into consideration.

Miss Sjolin said he had now operated the scam four times, with previous convictions in 1994 and 1997 and one year-long jail sentence. Tony Stanford, mitigating, conceded the matters were serious but insisted the aim had been to create a genuine mailing list.

He said: "Mr Jeans concedes that the way in which he went about it was not appropriate. But he stopped at an early stage." Mr Stanford added that Jeans had recently become a father with his new partner and would be prepared to repay his victims.

But passing sentence, Judge Richard Bray said: "One can't exaggerate how much anguish these sort of frauds cause members of the public. This was an unpleasant scam which preyed upon the credulity and trust of customers, many doubtless desperate for work."

I visited your website and have a question about an envelope stuffing advertisement.

In my local newspaper I saw the ad, placed my name and received information. It said I have to send in money to receive a directory which lists jobs I can get like envelope stuffing or assembling things. Also, there is a website www.HomeJobSecrets.com.

The company is located at 599B Yonge St., Suite 259, Toronto, ON M4Y 1Z4, but for all I know it's probably just a mail box.

I know it's a scam because you have to pay money to work, but this company is based in Toronto and is called Canadian Consumer Services Inc. which offers the service of selling directories.

Even if this aspect is a legal business what about the companies in the directories? Could they be scam jobs and if so how is this legal? It says it's registered with Ontario Consumer and Commercial Relations and the Chamber of Commerce but how could they let these scams go on.

How can they set up and run businesses like this without being caught? If this is illegal then how come they’re not getting caught by authorities in Canada or anywhere else?

Sarah Sawah 06/13/03

Federal Trade Commission v. end70 Corporation, et al.
The Federal Trade Commission announced the filing of a complaint against the defendants alleging that they made deceptive claims in the sale of Internet home-business opportunities. A temporary restraining order has been entered by the court.

Examples of "Work at Home" sites:

www.ushomeworkers.info

www.homeworkersunited.com

www.HomeJobSecrets.com

Crimes of Persuasion

Schemes, scams, frauds.