TAMPA, Fla. — Working at home can be a great way to make money with a more flexible schedule.
- Consumer Wise: Work-at-home job seekers should beware of scams
- BBB: Legitimate employers would never overpay employee then ask employee to wire money
- Better Business Bureau
But job-seekers should beware of scams.
Sophia Preziosi was looking for a work-at-home opportunity and thought being a secret shopper could be a great way to make a little extra money.
Preziosi said she was surprised when she was notified all she had to do was deposit the $2,900 check a mystery shopping company sent her. And then buy Ebay gift cards.
"$50, $100, and $500," Preziosi said of the company's instructions about the gift cards. "Please purchase one of each and tell us about your experience."
After getting a phone call, and a slew of pushy text messages, she became suspicious.
"At this point, I was certain this was a scam…" she said.
She was right.
The Better Business Bureau gets hundreds of complaints about these fake jobs - after the checks bounce.
"If you deposit a check and wire money back to them or purchase a gift card and read the numbers of the gift card back to them, it’s very hard to see that money back. It’s just like handing them cash," said Bryan Oglesby with the West Florida Better Business Bureau. "Before you say yes to any job—do your homework."
Look for reviews on the company online, do a web search on the company’s name with the word 'complaints' - and ask for references to talk to other employees about their experience."
Preziosi spotted the red flags and now she wants to warn others.
"I’m hoping to prevent other people from losing money and fall for these scams."