There are many tempting offers out there, not all are worth following up on.
The overall golden rule with the internet is ‘if it seems too good to be true, it probably is’. However, there are useful opportunities out there, and there is no real harm in trying a few out if you follow these three common-sense rules:
- Always use an email address that you set up just for these ‘opportunities’. Never use the email address you use for social or day to day business, just in case. If for example what seemed to be a legitimate opportunity ends up flooding you with emails you can just close that account and have done with it.
- Never give any personal details that are not 100% necessary. You may need to give a basic address if you are joining a site which you believe will make you some money, but they will not need your address, birth date and your mothers maiden name. Be very cautious of any site that asks for sufficient info to allow them to impersonate you. One piece of identifying info is probably legitimate, more that two is suspicious.
- Never, I repeat never, part with any money. Never take up a free offer that needs your credit card details, never pay to join anything. There are enough genuinely free offers out there that at least whilst you are trying things out you can learn how they work without risking anything.
Allowing for these three rules still leaves many freebie sites, get paid to read email opportunities, paid surveys, writing for the web sites and similar things which you may want to experiment with. When you try a new one out, be prepared to spend a few hours a week at first giving it the full benefit of the doubt, but if at the end of a month you can see no sign of any result, consider whether it was a valuable use for your time and if not, move on.
Best of luck!
