Sebastiaan ter Burg/Flickr/Attribution License
- Side hustles are becoming more and popular among workers, but with many of them, there’s a high risk of getting scammed.
- Many scams require up-front fees, or find ways to get you to work for free as a part of the interview process, but there’s no job to actually get.
- Here are eight jobs that would be great side hustles, if only they weren’t complete scams.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Not only are we living in the age of the gig economy, we’re now officially living in the era of the side hustle. More than ever, folks with moxie are taking on after-hours challenges to supplement their day job.
But not all side hustles are created equal. Some are lucrative and exciting, and can pay for your next vacation or catapult you into a new career. Others are simply scams, designed to separate you from your money.
"There are lots of valid opportunities out there. The concept of a side hustle is empowering and can change people’s lives. But if it’s promoted as an easy gig and sounds too good to be true, it probably is," Craig Markovitz, an assistant entrepreneurship professor at Carnegie Mellon University’s Tepper School of Business, told Business Insider.
We’ve rounded up eight of the worst side hustles that will probably never earn you a dime. Because they’re scams. Steer clear.
Mystery shopper
Reuters
Not all mystery shopper jobs are scams, of course. After all, there are real mystery shoppers.
But as fun as the job sounds, the mystery shopping field is overrun with scammers.
Here’s how it works: The company sends you money in the form of a check that you’re supposed to deposit in your own bank account, which converts the cost of your first mystery shopping excursion. You’re instructed to test a store’s in-house money transfer service by sending back some of the money you just got. Unfortunately, you’ve wired real money from your own account and eventually, when the bank realizes the original deposit was a fraudulent check, you’re responsible for that, too.
Multi-level marketing companies
Shutterstock.com/Monkey Business Images
MLMs, as they’re known, often have a veneer of respectability. After all, many of us (or our parents) grew up with brands like Avon, Amway, and Tupperware.
But many MLM businesses behave more like pyramid schemes, prioritizing recruiting new members over actually selling product. If your potential MLM seems laser-focused on acquiring sellers rather than customers, that’s a serious red flag.
Other warning signs include costly training and seminars, pressure tactics to get you to buy inventory, and an uninspiring product line that has poor reviews or isn’t something you’d want to use yourself.
Envelope stuffing
AP Photo/Paul Sakuma
If you’re looking for a low-pressure gig you can do from home in the evening, you’ve almost certainly seen ads for the opportunity to stuff envelopes.
But don’t get too excited: Envelope stuffing is a scam.
"There are hundreds of jobs posted that claim to pay you for stuffing envelopes. Sadly, there isn’t a single job available that will pay you to do this," Saranya Ramanathan, a personal finance blogger at One Fine Wallet, told Business Insider.
Here’s the grift: You are directed to send a small fee for instructions, after which you are instructed to recruit other people to buy the same envelope-stuffing opportunity. Like a pyramid scheme, you’re only paid if other people join in.
See the rest of the story at Business Insider
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Source: Business Insider – feedback@businessinsider.com (Ryan Ariano)