Greetings, Chris Lawell here to talk to you about something that actually hit some of my friends online. As economic times become worse for many individuals and families they are starting to see the benefit of working online. You see the sad thing here is the scammers are already preying on this group of individuals. However as they promise wealth and riches to these people they are draining their bank accounts dry. How are they able to do this, well they do it all legally mainly from help from Washington D.C. of all places. A couple of years ago Washington decided that companies could withdraw funds electronically from your bank account as long as a contract was in place.
Well let's get down to the nitty gritty of this particular scam. Through one way or another people find themselves on a web site claiming they can make a lot of money simply by working online. They will use flashy pictures and text to get your attention and considering most people are desperate when it comes to earning money they jump. Well what you are going to see is usually they are going to offer you a CD that usually sells for $99, however they want to help you so they are giving it to you for free. But you need to act very fast because the offer will only be available for the next half hour.
The only catch is that they are going to have to charge you the small shipping and handling fee. The cost to send this CD usually varies from around $2 to $7. Since there is no charge for this CD they say it is only fair that you pay for shipping and handling. So far nothing so bad right? Seems like it is so far a win-win situation for you doesn't it. Well I know no red flags have popped out yet, but they will and that is what we are going to look at right now.
You see this is actually a trial offer, and if you look over the web site you will find the terms stating that. These free trial offers will usually last around 15 to 30 days. The trick to these trial offers especially when CD's are concerned is they are giving you access to their team of live experts absolutely free. This is just in case your CD doesn't answer all your questions. Now the problem with this service is it is rare that many of these representatives speak English and most aren't experts at all.
No here comes the fun part, most people who sign up for these free trials or just about anything online never, ever read the terms of service. If you were to read the TOS it would have stated that you can use this software for 15-20 days at no charge, if you decide you do not like it return it and you will owe nothing. However if you do not unsubscribe before the end of the trial period you will be billed a set amount every month. Now you may be wondering how the heck does that constitute a contract or agreement of any kind.
Well before you can have your CD shipped out to you, you need to check off a little box that will basically state that you agree to all the terms of service of this web site. By just clicking that small box allows them to withdraw from your credit card for as long as they like. This check constitutes a signature under the electronic signature legislation that we discussed earlier. Once checked that web page becomes a legal document and authorizes that company to bill you for services for the rest of your life or until you are able to cancel.
Well let me ask you another question, how often do you think most people check all the charges on their credit card bills. Most statements are many pages long and it is very easy for a $30 dollar charge to get lost. So many people will be paying these charges for months and never even realize it.
My main piece of advice is to never sign anything electronically, unless you have read all the terms of service and yes even the fine print. Once you have clicked that box and hit send you have entered a fully binding legal contract. There are many ethical and legal ways to make a living online that you shouldn't have to pay for any.
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