Mystery shopping is unfortunately one of the industries that scam artists love to target. Mystery shoppers are believed to be easy targets by scam artists. We work from home, accepting work assignments from companies that we largely communicate with via email. Further, we get paid per assignment rather than based on salary, so we are constantly in search of that perfect assignment that requires little effort and that has a big payout. In our eagerness to get that assignment before others do, we can sometimes jump the gun and put ourselves at risk of being targeted in a scam. So how can you avoid falling into the trap laid out by scam artists?
Double Check Your Source
First and foremost, always double check the source of email correspondence. One of the tricks that scam artists love to use with mystery shoppers is posing as their providers. Some have copied logos, have email addresses that look similar to the providers you work with, and even have the same employee names sending you a job offer. Unfortunately, however, when you click on a link provided in the email, you may be taken to a bogus assignment that winds up costing you a lot of time and money. Rather than click on links in emails, it is always a good idea to manually type in the website address and look for the job offer on the main website. If this is not possible, contact the send via a known or publicized phone number. Don’t rely on the phone number provided in the email sent to you.
Too Good to Be True
The truth is that nobody has ever gotten rich being a mystery shopper. If you are offered an amazing mystery shopping assignment that seems like it is too good to be true, there is a very good likelihood that it really is too good to be true. Any time an offer seems amazing and causes you to read through the email a time or two to be sure you aren’t misunderstanding the assignment, you may want to consider this a red flag. Keep in mind that the best assignments that offer such amazing pay are usually offered directly to a handful of top mystery shoppers on a very limited basis.
Read the Latest News
Some scam artists are using last years’ tricks, but the smart scam artists are constantly at the head of the curve. They may be plotting some new and exciting way to strip you of your hard-earned money. Many mystery shoppers will take time to inform other hard working mystery shoppers of scams as soon as they become aware of them. If you want to stay ahead of the curve and keep up with what scam artists are up to, take time to visit MysteryShopForum.com regularly.
Scam artists a true nuisance to mystery shoppers, but they can’t steal your time and money if you don’t let them. Keep your senses finely tuned to their ploys, and you can stay free from the damage they can cause.