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attractive than ever to single parents, college students, stay-at-home moms, and others looking for ways to earn extra money. Ads offering the opportunity to make big $$$ working from home can be found in newspapers, on the Internet, and even stapled to telephone poles along the road. But the U.S. Postal Service has issued warnings against these offers because, although there are some legitimate opportunities to earn money, many of these claims are simply scams. Unfortunately, as the number of jobs grows in response to public interest, so have bogus job offers.
U .S . Postal Inspectors warn you to proceed with caution
Most work-at-home jobs don’t guarantee regular, salaried employment. Many neglect to mention that you have to work many hours without pay. Others require that you spend your own money for products or instructions before finding out how the offer works. And the “work” may entail getting others to sign up for the same job—which continues the fraud.
During National Consumer Protection Week 2005, Postal Inspectors and the Postal Service’s Consumer Advocate joined other federal, state, and local consumer-protection agencies to educate the public about ways to avoid becoming victims of fraud.
“With so many Americans interested in working at home, it should come as no surprise that job scams have grown in popu- larity—but too many offers not only don’t pay, they cost victims thousands of dollars.” — Chief Postal Inspector Lee R. Heath
According to Postal Service Consumer Advocate Mike Spates, job seek- ers should do some homework before accepting a work-at-home offer. “Our goal is to educate consumers so we can reduce their chances of falling victim to work-at-home scams,” says Spates.
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