Once the kids go back to school and mom has some more time on her hands she may begin to consider ways to bring in some extra money. Spending time on the internet searching for work at home opportunities can often be rewarding, provided one understands that there are many scams being offered, many targeted for the stay at home parents looking to make extra money, so be careful.

Working at home is an inviting concept and many opportunities exist that present a legitimate means of finding work. Unfortunately, there are plenty more where the only ones who make money are those offering the opportunity. Beware of headlines such as ?Learn how to crack the code to internet riches,? and ?I was a victim of 37 scams until I stumbled across this opportunity.?

When looking through offers for an internet based business opportunity, one needs to ask oneself some serious questions about the offer. Many will carry a similar theme indicating they have found a way to make bundles of cash online and want to share the secret. What one needs to ask oneself is, why? Here is a perfect stranger, willing to share with me the secret they use to make millions of dollars online. Of course this secret is not going to be free, and usually it is available for a limited time price of just (and some amount of money, usually between $19.95 and $39.95) and you will receive their complete information package of how you can make money.

Another question one needs to ask oneself is: Why aren't they sharing this information with family and close friends so they can have an entire family of wealthy relatives? Why are they offering this opportunity to strangers? Well, quite possibly because their family and friends were suckered into their last get-rich-quick scheme.

One of the most abundant scams online is signing up to be a secret shopper. There are many companies that make use of secret shoppers to visit stores and restaurants and turn in a review to the company informing them how a particular unit is performing. To claim this company can hook one up with many companies where one can get paid up to $40 an hour doing things one loves to do and keep everything one bought, is nothing more than a scam, so be aware of this.

Yes, these companies have the names and addresses of the companies that use secret shoppers and that is what one will be buying. Once one has sent in their payment, which varies from $19.95 to $39.95, one will receive a list of companies that use secret shoppers and instructions on how to fill out their online applications. If the company is looking for more shoppers they might contact the purchaser for a future interview. Most of these offers carry no guarantee that one will ever be chosen to be a secret shopper, let alone get paid $40 an hour for going to a restaurant.

So, If you know of any stay at home moms, you may want to get them to read this article, might save them a buck or two.

Up 'n Up

Copyright ? Christopher Baxter