Investment Scams

Contrary what many conned people say, shady investment deals are easy to identify. It's just that people often let their common sense be overtaken by their dreams of easy money. Speaking of easy money, promises of this kind should ring a warning bell in people's heads. The promised easy money could come in the form of fast and high investment returns than other investments. Promises of big profits and no risks are also signs of shady deals. Another sure bet on figuring out scams is the promoter pressuring would-be investors to decide quickly instead of advising to take their time and think about the investment offer. If people consider these things before plunging on deals, their money would have been saved.

There are ways to arm yourself against offers and scams like these. Ignoring unwanted electronic mails and calls are the easiest to do. If you want to invest, research, find reputable sources, and then make your own calls. Think before doing or committing to anything. Good deals will usually encourage you to take your time and call them again when you've thought about the investment. Remember that information and your common sense are your only weapons against these scammers. If you do find yourself subjected to suspicious deals, check the existence of such brokerage firms and call the authorities. Even if it turned out to be a false alarm, at least the broker will know that you're not someone to mess with.

There's a sucker born every minute, so they say. Every minute, there's some conniving scammer born who preys on these poor suckers. Every one hated to be a butt of anybody else's joke. But nothing compares to being conned by investment scams. If you don't want to be the unwitting dupe of investment scams, you should read on. These are just five of the top five scams that are widely popular.

Ponzi schemes-- who hasn't heard of them? I'm sure you know of some who have been a victim of this. Named after the con artist Charles Ponzi, this scheme's method is easy-- pay your previous investors with the money you get from your current investors. Another scam is the affinity grouping where most people that were victimized were part of ethnic and religious groups. Key here is not to trust anyone with your life savings, even if he's from the same church or ethnicity as you. Promissory notes are often made by insurance agents who promises high revenue if you would lend their company some money. The thing here is that there is no company, therefore, there wouldn't be any returns for you.

The Internet also fast became a breeding ground for scammers, thanks to annoying spam mails. These scammers send you an email, claiming they are some government official from somewhere and asks you to help them through depositing money on some bank account. In exchange for your help, they would deposit money on your bank account and would ask for you account number. Before you know it, these creeps have already exhausted your account. You should also not easily trust insurance agents who sells securities. If you want to buy a security, check first with the securities regulator in your state whether the agent is registered or not. If not, don't invest. Some of these independent agents are scammers.

To avoid all these tricky scams, or any type of scam for that matter, keep one thing in mind-- if it's too good to be true, it's a scam. Always ask around regarding a certain investment. It is very important that you know where you're investing your money.

It is indeed heart-breaking to know that there are numerous bogus investment schemes that have robbed Americans thousands of dollars. I really feel for these unfortunate victims of such schemes. You see, instead of helping them save money, schemes take their money away.

Never allow this to happen to you at all times and costs especially if you are planning to get a regular mortgage loan. A typical scheme is called Advance Fee Scheme. This happens when you pay a particular amount or value of money as payment for something which you are made to believed to have a higher value. I have always believed that these things can never be true.

The value of such advance fee largely depends on the bogus artist which may products, services, and other things of similar import. When confronted with this, it must really be something that is too freakin' good in order to be real. To prevent this from happening, you must identify the person you are transacting with. Make sure that you are aware of the trends and practices in the business. Always take a bunch of care in everything that you do.

The dawn of fast internet connections has ushered a myriad of fascinating possibilities. Many business transactions are now facilitated by the internet. The internet is also the best place to advertise because it has the ability to reach worldwide audience. The internet has changed the economic landscape. Routine transactions between corporations are now automated because of computer networks. An overwhelming resource of information on almost all topics can be conveniently access through the internet. Banking and finance also benefited from the internet. Investors can easily update their investments by simply accessing their accounts.

Along with the boon came the bane of internet. The internet has more junks than useful materials. Some of the destructive junks in the internet are investment scams. Investment scams may be as simple as email spams or as sophisticated as stock market scams.

One type of internet fraud is the saturation of false investment information. Some virtually useless stocks may suddenly rise in price just because people tend to believe information they gathered on the internet. The owners of these useless stocks may then sell their share at a higher price even the business is not really doing well.

“Truth is a lie told several times.” This is the perverted view of the Nazi propagandist Josef Goebbels. However, this same principle is clandestinely applied in most commercials. After all, commercials are just methods of mass brainwashing people to buy things that they really do not need.

This very same principle is used in some investment frauds. Swindlers will usually advertise in many online newsletters or websites to claim legitimacy. Their method of mind conditioning is simple and subtle. Online newsletters are the swindlers’ version of search engine optimization on the web.

The basic strategy involves saturating the web with false information. The newsletters will purportedly claim to provide useful information and insights about certain stocks. Articles in these newsletters claim to be unbiased and promote free analysis. The truth about some of these newsletters is that they are really promoting certain stocks to thousands of prospective investors. Writers in these fraudulent newsletters are actually paid employees of some fraudulent companies. When many investors believed a supposedly unbiased analysis in a newsletter, the particular stock in question will rise in price. The fraudsters who own these unstable stocks will then sell these useless stocks to the unsuspecting investors.

Wireless technology such as mobile phones and WiFi internet access undeniably facilitated the growth of business. However, this same technology is being exploited by some unscrupulous groups and individuals to swindle other people. Being fooled by hoaxers is not a matter of intellectual deficiency. Even intelligent can be people fooled by some fraudulent claims. Investors and philanthropists are victimized because they do not possess accurate information. Fraud perpetrators rely on the good intention and trust of other people. For instance, false charitable foundations may be set up to lure donors.

Philanthropists and investors should be wary about certain claims. One fraudulent method is using the names of prime banks. Prime banks are the top fifty banks in the world. Prime banks usually trade using low risk transaction instruments such as IMF bonds and Federal Reserve notes. An investor should be cautious when the names of prime banks are used in investment offers.

Fraudsters will usually claim legitimacy by convincing investors that their money will be used to buy prime bank instruments. They will promise dizzying returns for every investment. However, these trade instruments are often counterfeited.

If something is too good to be true, be critical. Do not readily believe an investment claim just because it is well-presented in a website. Colorful graphics and online testimonials are not credible proof. You should be analytical before subscribing to any online investment opportunities.

Fast internet access might have opened a cornucopia of opportunities, but it also unbolted a Pandora box of bogus and misleading claims. It is now relatively easy to make attractive web designs. Hence, the credibility of an online investment is not dependent on how a website is expertly designed.

One type of investment scam is the Ponzi scheme. This is a type of pyramiding where the money from new investors is use to pay the old investors. It is made to appear that the money that an old investor receives is indeed derived from the profit of the business. This scheme always collapses because there is no real business, only recruitment of new investors. Another type of investment scam is the pump and dump. This scam operates by manipulating the prices of stocks. Usually a small group of investors with privileged or inside information buy stocks before recommending it to thousands of investors.

Modern technology offers convenience in terms of speed, mobility, and reliability. Mobility and speed are demonstrated in cellular phones and DSL Internet connections. Reliability, on the other hand, is best demonstrated by the online marketing. Business enterprises can reach a wider audience with little effort and less expense. Online marketing also offers interactive transactions with the clients minus the hassle of dealing with salesmen. Many middlemen are eliminated by using online marketing. This translates to cost optimization. There are less people needed to be paid commissions or salary because of online marketing. The prices therefore of items are also minimized.

Online marketing might be efficient and convenient but it can also be used to perpetuate online scams. There are many trusting consumers and investors who are victimized by fake products and unreliable services. At worst, they either end up being bankrupted or hospitalized. Online advertisements offering fantastic claims such as “cure-all” products are doubtful. Investments opportunities that may seem very profitable with very low investment input should be thoroughly verified. Investors and consumers can protect their interests by verifying the claims of these online advertisements.

Investment opportunities such as franchise business opportunities can either make you wealthy or totally broke. Choosing the right investment opportunity is not just a matter of choosing the most lucrative offers, but also considering wisely other vital information about the investment opportunity. An investment opportunity may initially appear credible and profitable, but may turn out to be bogus. Many investors may realize too late that they have been victims of investment scams. The modern technological innovation of online business transactions has allowed fast and efficient economic activities. However, efficiency is not always equal to credibility or reliability. Reliability is a total different issue.

Most investors may be overwhelmed by the great numbers of investment opportunities being offered online. These opportunities may range from stock investments to direct partnerships. Attractive websites may easily entice unwary investors in spending money in their business ventures. The information that are contained in these websites may appear credible at first glance.

However, the promises of high and fast investment returns with very minimal capitalization are already telltale signs of frauds. To avoid being fooled, you must not solely rely on the information presented in the investment websites. You must get hard facts from other independent sources. The SEC is one of the most credible sources of information about companies. You may also directly investigate the credibility of a company by demanding financial statement from the company. You may also call customers and suppliers of the company to make some verification about the claims of the company.

I'm not sure if this has already happened to you but it did to me. My friends and I were planning to go out Friday night at a nearby bar when one of our friends invited us to his apartment for a little drinking party. We just had to accompany him pick up a friend at his office.

We went with him because we couldn't resist the invitation to free beer. Apparently, there were no person to pick up. The office building we went to was a place where they hold seminars for those who want to join a networking or pyramiding business. I don't know how my other friends talked me into being diplomatic. Since we were already there, they tugged me into giving it a try.

The speaker was this fat, young man who was bragging how he was able to buy a Jaguar through what he earned in this scheme. He was trying to be funny. The more he tried, the more I wanted to strangle him. The scheme, as he explained, goes like this -- you invite more and more people to join in the networking business, the more people you get to join, the bigger you earn. And the more people those you have invited gets to join in the scheme, the bigger you earn. Sound like a pyramid scam to me, I thought. The joining fee is worth thousands of dollars. No wonder that butt hole has a Jaguar.

I know I won't be talked into joining this scams. What pissed me off is that I didn't get the free beers my friend promised.

All of us are born with so much potential. The moment we that we took our first breath, the doors of many possibilities opened to us. We are all endowed with unique talents and intelligence. However, only few of us are able to fully realize their potentials. Only few of us are able to fully develop the talents that we have. Our circumstance and attitudes determine the extent of our achieving success. One measure of success is gaining wealth. Some people are desperate of getting rich that they may grab any seemingly credible business opportunity that comes along. Some people really think that there is shortcut at getting rich. Some people may think that wealth can be easily gained without proper financial planning. People play lottery and other beating games with the hope of hitting the jackpot. They are somehow misled that wealth can be easily gained through chance.

Some people are also attracted by the prospect of high profit with minimum investment. These people are sometimes victimized by investment scams. The common factor of people who got fooled is their innate tendency to trust other people, while some are fooled just because they are misinformed. Investment scams are also perpetrated in the Internet through email spams, online newsletters and online bulletin boards. Investors maybe misled by pump-up information from these online sources. The most common type of investment scam is pyramiding. Fraudsters may even euphemistically call their pyramid scams as multi-level marketing. Pyramid scams rely heavily on the recruitment of new members who will pay certain amount of fee. Some online pyramiding may bogusly claim that your $5 may exponentially increase to $60,000 in just a matter of weeks.

The world is full of opportunities. You just need to have the right attitude and talent to achieve great things. Most of us are inspired by the life stories of some of our self-made millionaires. We mirror our situation to their former state before they made it big. We think that with enough courage, we can follow their footsteps. Indeed, it is true that the US has more millionaires per capita than most countries in the world. All of us are potential millionaires.

The United States of America has the most powerful military force in the world. The US is also the most stable and richest economy. The US is truly a land of great business opportunities. All of us have the chance to have a share of the big economic pie. The economic vitality and military power of the US are the main reasons why it is the most fertile ground for investment. Many big corporations thrive because of public investment.

However, simply having the money and courage are not enough for successful investment. You should first investigate if the investment opportunity is indeed credible. There are scams and hoaxes perpetrated by unscrupulous con men that you should be wary about. One indication of an invest scam is that the promise of return may be too good to be true. You should also avoid pyramiding schemes that merely rely on the recruitment of people and not on products.

It's a tough and sinister ocean out there. The Internet is teeming with fraudsters eager to make a fast (and potentially big) buck out of you, and they will stop at nothing until you yield with your Yes. Online newsletters, bulletin boards, e-mails, and spams, the whole works—all aim at inveigling and manipulating the unwary investor. And they’ve become all the more devious and chameleonic over the years.

But you’re not one to stay helpless. Arm yourself with information. Do background research on the company, examine its financial statements, and verify with suppliers and customers if they’ve really had dealings with the company before. The keyword is legitimacy.

Only when you’ve fully tested the waters should you jump in.

There's a catch-22 behind every investor's desire to shirk the country's heavy tax laws. First, he would try to invest offshore, where he thinks he could profit without having to pay gargantuan tax fees, in countries like the Bahamas, Panama, Belize, Aruba or Liechtenstein. Then, when he finds out that he has been scammed, he will be too embarrassed to report the fraudulent bad guys to the authority, lest his own desire to commit a tax fraud be exposed.

Although offshore investment scams are nothing like the Nigerian email scams (which to tell you the truth, are abysmally ludicrous) they are still serious mistakes that any investor can make. It only goes to show that we should rather pay the tax assigned to us than be taxed on our own avaricious desire to get ahead financially. The moment you send your money out of the country, the national laws that will protect your money are thrown out of the window just as well.

Investment in any form, is a good option for you if you are looking for an extra source of income in order to boost your finances. The danger however of this business lies on the possibility of frauds. This is true especially with the increased popularity of online investments. Business is always a risk. Nevertheless, there are investments, which are not worth taking from the very beginning. If you are planning of investing your money in business, you can read the following tips, which can be useful:

First is have a complete and detailed knowledge of the business venture you are going to make. Do your research well and know all the rules, strategies, and tricks of the business you want to do.

Second is that you can also ask the advice of a trusted person who already specialize in the investment you want to make. His first hand experience would surely count as a rich source of information.

Third and last is make sure that you are dealing with trusted and credible companies. Remember that you will be investing a large sum of money. You can always check the background of the company or find out through certain government agencies whether they are registered and they operate legally or not.

It's true; you can make tons through Multi Level Marketing or MLM. This is a form of business wherein the company hires people to sell their products directly to customers. It seems like an easy way to earn money, right?

The MLM is a legitimate business. But there are a lot of scammers that use this money to rip off money from people. As such, you need to follow a few guidelines to assure the company's authenticity.

When it states that you can earn certain money, it should back it up with other sellers’ incomes. Also, this information should be in written form. Before you get involved in this business, it is better to consult an attorney. He or She can guide you to the right path in this business.

Penny stocks get their name from their very low price, often amounting to $5 or less a share. While the price might be attractive, the potential for loss is just too high for any serious investor.

The problem is, some unscrupulous individuals tend to take gullible people (who probably don't know enough about stocks to know better) for a ride with penny stocks. They encourage investors to pump more and more cash as investment in the company, and then turn tail and run, taking the cash with them when the company goes belly up on Wall Street.

Sigh. Some people never learn, do they? A rule of thumb regarding investments is this: If it sounds and looks too good to be true, it probably is.

People are, by nature, just a bunch of lazy pigs. They're unwilling to work their way to a better future, always depending on someone or something to rescue them from a mess they probably got themselves into by being lazy in the first place.

This is why so many people fall victim to many get-rich-quick schemes. Playing on people's greed and laziness, the perpetrators of these scams are the only ones who get rich quick, leaving the victims holding the bag while they make off with the cash.

In my opinion, the only way to get rich quick is by winning the lottery, robbing a bank or marrying a rich widow for the money.

No doubt you've heard of pyramid scams. Perhaps you've even been part of one, but are too ashamed to tell, for fear of ridicule and admission of being duped. It's okay. All of us have been victims at one time or another; it's just the method of victimization that's hard to accept.

Pyramid scams work out like this: One person attempts to sell something to two people, and promises those two people that they too can make money by joining his "group" and selling his product, and by recruiting more people to sell his product. That person will require an "investment" from the new recruit to become part of his group. The new recruits will also ask for "investments" from their new recruits and will remit to the person one step above them an amount, and keep the rest for themselves. This goes on and on until the "pyramid" collapses because there are no new recruits, with a large amount of the new "recruits" left in the lurch, not making any profit. All the big money goes to the top, which by then has already skipped town with the cash.

Now, how to avoid being a victim of this insidious scheme?

First, beware of any plan that requires an investment from you to recruit more members.
Next, if a plan focuses too much on recruiting people instead of selling a product, think twice.
Lastly, if you're promised a profit the more you recruit, be suspicious of it.

Hopefully, this advice will end your days of being taken for a ride by these jokers!

People are generally greedy, lazy and impatient. They will, more often than not, try to get something for nothing. And try to speed up the process.

That's why investment scams are so popular. There are unscrupulous induviduals and groups out there that prey upon unsuspecting people, taking advantage of their greed and laziness.

But not all who become victims are of the lazy and greedy type. Some honestly want to earn a bit more than what they usually get in order to help themselves and their loved ones have a better life.

To avoid being taken for a ride by a scammer, it's wise to follow a few general guidelines:
Make sure that the induvidual or group is duly registered with the SEC.
Learn about what the Police say about the investments.
Often, a sound investment will be audited by a well-known accounting firm.
Avoid investments that promise unrealistic revenues.
Most of all: If it's too good to be true, it probably is.

Take these to heart, and remember that a fool and his money are soon parted!