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Archive for the ‘Security’ Category
Hey everyone, I hope your week is going well. Sorry I didn’t blog last night. I switched my Thursday with a Wednesday off this week. I want to congratulate JessicaB; she is the winner of my contest. Apparently 3 times was a charm. Thanks for entering everyone. I will have more contests all Spring and maybe Summer long. If you want a chance to win, check back here often. If you don’t want to wait, just purchase one of my e-books. You will get the same three months of tutoring as well.
I heard about a close friend of mine that got here facebook username and password stolen. It was a phishing scam that stole her information. It’s very important to protect yourself from phishing scams. Phishing scams are the newest way to steal someone’s identity and bank account information.
Phishing scams can be very misleading since they are designed to look like trusted websites. Phishing scams through ebay and paypal have been popular for years. But, now the crooks look to social networks. Once they access most peoples personal profile; they have all they need to steal that person’s identity. The crooks can find personal information they need, like your name, phone number, and address. That’s all they need these days to steal your identity. Your social security number can even be stolen from this information.
It was reported this year that 90% of the time that someone’s identity was stolen online, was from facebook, myspace, or a similar social network. Social networks have become a breeding ground for scam artists. Be careful who you let be your friend on social networks. Make your profile private to protect your identity.
It has also been reported these types of phishing scams involve some getting to know you until you trust them. Then the victim is hit with a friendly link or message that contains malware. Malware(virus) is a very bad program that can do everything from ruin your computer to stealing your identity. The scammer may also send you a website link or program without you realizing it. Some scammers are reported to leave these links in their profile, so innocent victims click on to them while looking at profiles. They never know their identity was just stolen.
These phishing links are also known to steal your social network username and password. Once the thief has this information, there are no limits to what they can find out about you. Stealing identities is a very serious business. The thieves are very good at what they do. Don’t underestimate them.
Take extreme measures to protect yourself from con-artists. Don’t use the same password you use for other websites as you do on social networks. Make your social network passwords totally different. Believe it or not, some people even use the same bank username and password as their social network. It is reported that this is how thieves are logging into bank accounts online and stealing money from their victims.
I know it’s a pain in the neck to remember another new username and password. But, protecting your identity is well worth the hassle. If you have ever had your identity stolen, you know how important it can be in the long run. Add some initials to the beginning or end of your usual password. Keep the same username but change the password. Anything to throw the thieves off the trail.
Don’t ever click on links sent through your email. Try and go directly to the sites you are registered. Clicking links in emails are a big way phishing scams have ripped people off. People click the link and it brings them to a website that looks just like a website they are a member to already. The person logs in and BAM, your username and password is stolen. The website just brought you to the scammer’s webpage and stole your username and password when you logged in to the site. Ebay and Paypal have been hit with this email phishing scam big-time in the past few years.
Be careful and protect yourself at all costs everyone. If you have any questionable content let me know. I can help.
Thanks for reading!
Hi everyone and happy Friday. This week went by so slow for me. Someone asked me why I don’t post on Thursdays anymore. I have been teaching someone locally how to start a business on Thursdays. So, I have been taking them off. When things aren’t so hectic for me on Thursdays, I will start posting again.
Today, I am going to give you some pointers on how to protect yourself against job scams. I heard about one of my local friends getting scammed this week. I didn’t get a chance to warn her because she never told me about it. She fell for a popular job scam. The sad thing is; these scams are everywhere, even your local paper. Nobody seems to care if they advertise a scam in their paper or website anymore, as long as the scammer pays for the ad.
Anyway, here is how this job scam works. You see an ad in the paper or online that says you can make big money if you work for them. You contact them and find out they want money up front to teach you a specific trade or skill ($100 or more). In return they will hire you “if you qualify” and you will make lots of money.
Sounds okay, doesn’t it? Not really, read between the lines on this one. Yes, they grab you with the part; you will make lots of money. Heck, you to pay to go to college right? You make lots of money when you get out of college. This must be the same. It’s not the same. This is what is really happening.
They know you’re hard up for money. They take full advantage of the situation by throwing big sums of money at you. The possibility that anyone can make more money than they already do can make them blind to the obvious.
So, you pay the fee to get into the employment with the new company. The new company then sends you a course through the mail. You need to get a certain grade on the course to qualify. The questions are very hard or in some case can be very easy. You send your course/test back into the company.
They send you a return letter or phone call informing you that you do not qualify for the job. Even if you get 100% of the questions right, you won’t get a job. But if you spend more money, they tell you they can guarantee you a job. It’s an on-going scam. Don’t fall for this one.
In some cases the workplace (scammer) doesn’t even give you a test or course. They take your money and call it an application fee. Then they go on to tell you they can guarantee you a job if you take a course……For more money. There are other types of jobs scams also.
Here are some tips to help you stay away from these and other popular job scams.
1. Exaggerated claims, you will make lots of money, retire early, be a millionaire overnight. Any of these things are the first warning that it’s a scam. The truth is, you have to work hard be rich. Someday you won’t have to work as hard. But, nothing will make you rich overnight, unless you won the lottery.
2. Never pay money to apply for a job. The only kinds of jobs that ask for money up-front are scams. A real job place wouldn’t need to charge you money to work for them. This one is a no-brainer. A real workplace would probably give you a sign-on bonus if anything. Never give money up-front for a job. Even if it is a work-at-home job.
3. Always ask questions first. This is the one people seem to skip. Ask as many questions as you can about the job. Make a list of all the questions you have and ask them. If they can’t answer your questions with a straight answer they aren’t the right place for you. Make sure they can answer all your questions and you are satisfied they are for real.
4. Watch out for professional websites. I am not saying, that all professional websites are scams. I am saying, scam artists are really good at putting up professional looking websites. Just because the website looks professional doesn’t always mean it’s a safe place. Scam artists are good at what they do. Don’t underestimate them.
5. New companies that haven’t been around long. This are another thing that makes it an obvious scam. Scam artists stay with a company for an average of 2-4 months. It’s just enough time for them to steal from hundreds or thousands of people and get away. They move their location and start another scam. This cycle keeps repeating until they are caught or retire with your money.
6. Always look at http://welcome.bbb.org/ to do a background check on the company. The Better Business Bureau is the best source to do any background research on a company. It will tell you how long they have been around and their reputation. If the business is even registered at all.
These are some straight forward tips to help everyone stay away from these new job scams. They are popping up everywhere and they need to be stopped. If everyone stays aware and stops responding to these types of job ads; maybe the scammers will give up and leave.
Let me know if you have any questions. I would hate to see any of my readers to fall for this type of scam.
Thanks for reading, see you tomorrow!
Hey everyone, I hope all is well. A family member of mine lost her job from a lay-off today. I am going to teach her how to make money from home. It’s a sad day in American history when someone working at a company for 26 years just gets laid-off without warning. Not even a day notice to prepare for the decision. It was finish your day if you want, but we can’t use you here anymore. Might as well say, “don’t let the door hit you on the way out”. Where I come from, you give seniority some respect. At least throw them a party after 26 years, right?
Well, the recession in America, is definitely here without question. Our money is worth didly-squat to other major countries around the world right now. The exchange rate if you leave the country is terrible now. I remember going to Canada or other parts of the world and my money be worth around double or more. Things have changed drastically in the past 5 years for the worse. Seems like the only way to hold a job these days; is to work for a gas or oil company.
* Cut down on your extravagant lifestyle. Stop spending money on things you want. Start spending money on things you absolutely need. Save the rest. I know this sounds easy, but it isn’t. That means, everything from the extra pay channels on cable, to that morning coffee you buy. Start watching less T.V. and make your own coffee in the morning. Bag a lunch. That alone, could save you a few hundred dollars every month. Two dollars for that coffee in the morning times 30 days in a month. That is $60.00 for coffee you could save every month. Think about all the things you don’t’ need and can cut out. Make some adjustments to your daily life. Times are getting tough.
* Don’t use those credit cards! Stop wasting your money. The interest rates on almost everyone’s credit cards are ridiculous. Why pay interest on your own money? I never got it. I had credit cards in the past. I find no need for them anymore. For years I have stayed away from credit cards. I use my bank debit/card. It is a gold visa card and the money comes right from my band account. I can use it like a credit card all around the world. I never pay interest. If I don’t have the money, I can’t spend it. The temptation is so much less if it’s your own money and not borrowed money from the credit card companies. That’s all a credit card company is to me; A high priced loan shark.
Some people pay off the same credit card debt their whole lives. The credit card hole is awful. Get out as soon as you can. If you do have credit cards, stop using them. Pay them off and KEEP THEM. It’s important not to shut down your credit card account down if you have had it for a long time. That long term credit card is good for your credit score. Don’t use it at all and keep it. If you pay it off and get rid of it; the long term plus towards your credit score will be erased, in turn lowering your credit scores. I speak from experience.
It’s a whole other story if you know you are spending your money and not the credit card company’s money. Your spending habits will immediately change for the better, I guarantee it.
* Take on another job or money maker. If you work a regular job, take on a part time job. Even if you sell an item or two a night on ebay. Start something on the side to help out. Get a laid back part time job somewhere. Think about things you are good at doing. I bet you could make some money with your talents if you really think. Give it a try. The least that could happen is; you get an extra hobby that makes money.
* Invest some money in different places if you can. I’m not saying to gamble your money away. There are tons of ways you could safely invest small amounts of money. IRA’s are a great way to save some money and get back a lot. I recommend a Roth IRA if you go with an IRA. Roth IRA’s are tax free when you take your money out. Regular IRA’s tax you on money you withdraw. Start putting extra money in to your 401k plan. Or start a 401k plan if you don’t have one already. I am sure your bank, could give you some really good Credit of Deposit rates. You can put a small amount of money into these types of programs. You don’t need to be a millionaire. I don’t recommend getting into the stock market, unless you know all about it already.
Save all that money you don’t spend. In some cases I have saved people thousands of dollars every month by these same tips. You never know when you will need this money. Refer to this money as your back-up/emergency fund. Don’t spend it on anything except necessities. Bills, loans, rent/mortgage, car funds etc. And only use the fund when you can’t pay those things normally. Like a real emergency. Don’t look at that money as extra. Put it to the side and ignore. Keep saving it and it will grow. Someday you may need it for something major. If you own a house and make $2000.00 a month; a good cushion would be $24,000.00 on top of that. Expensive problems seem to happen at the worst times.
Thanks for reading everyone. See you tomorrow.
Hi everyone, I hope everything is going good. I recently had someone ask me why their paypal funds were being held. As you may or may not know, paypal started holding funds back in January on certain accounts. They only hold onto a small percentage of money. But, this has a lot of ebayers up in arms. The truth is, paypal (owned by ebay) made a great decision. It’s probably the best collective decision ebay or paypal has made in years.
Paypal had to change their ways about security. There were a lot of new paypal members signing up with someone elses identity. They would make purchases. By the time paypal caught it, the scammer was gone. So there were a lot of credit card transactions being reversed and sellers were getting ripped off. I am very happy paypal made these changes.
If you are an avid user of paypal you have probably been scammed this same way. Someone buys a high priced item and pay through paypal. Then you ship the item because paypal put the funds into your account. All is well, until your paypal account is negative money. Now you have to file a complaint to get your money back. We all know how fun this can be. The only way to get your money back is to have a premier or business paypal account. Thankfully, if you have a paypal business account, you get reimbursed because you are protected from fraud if you ship to a confirmed address.
The reason paypal is changing the way they send money is to protect sellers. There are a few reasons paypal will hold your funds for 21 days. They will not hold your funds if:
1. You have been an eBay member for 6 months or more, and:
2. Your total Feedback score is 100 or greater, and
3. Your buyer dis-satisfaction percentage is less than 5%.
OR
1.Your average DSR is 4.5 or greater and
2. You have received 20 or more DSRs in the last 12 months
I hope this helps everyone. If you have any questions feel free to ask me.
A small cell of the notorious fake check scamming ring from Nigeria were caught this week. I am sure some of you have been victims or almost victims to this popular scam ring. The scam would involve a seller and a buyer. The seller is the victim and buyer is the scammer. The buyer sends you a check as payment for an item you sold. You deposit the check in your bank. You think “all is well” because the money clears. Until about 30 days later when your bank finds the error. Then your bank accuses you of depositing or cashing a fake check.
That’s right, what a terrible thing to do to someone. There have been cases of people selling cars or property and falling for this scam. I read about someone who lost fifty thousand dollars from this scam. Listen to this;
This land lord put a property up for rent in a classified ad. The buyer(scammer) wanted to supposedly rent property. They told the landlord they were moving from the UK to the USA. They told them that their company was paying them fifty thousand dollars to relocate(this is normal for re-locations). So nothing out of the ordinary the land lord goes along with it. The landlord was told they would receive a relocation check for fifty thousand dollars. When the check came they were asked to cash it and send twenty five thousand dollars to their decorator(so they could decorate the apartment before they flew in). They were also told to take the other twenty five thousand dollars to keep as the first years rent upfront. So the landlord goes to the bank. The bank excepts the check and he takes out twenty five thousand for himself and the other twenty five thousand to the decorator. Guess what? The decorator is the scammer also. You send the money to the decorator and think all is well. About thirty days later you get a phone call from the bank telling you that you have 24 hours to pay back fifty thousand dollars or they report you to the FBI for fake check scamming.
Believe it or not, people fall for this scam everyday. Just remember, nobody is going to give you more money than you have coming to you. That should bring up red flag number one. The second problem is; they want you to send a quantity of money to some you don’t know, that isn’t even involved in the trade. These are the 2 signs of someone trying to scam you.
The second way this scam could go is the most popular one. It goes like this: You put an item up for sale and get a replay like;
Hi my name is so and so from (another country) and was interested in your item. Is it still for sale? I want to buy something for my friend in your country. He also needs extra money for (an excuse). If I send you (amount of money) more than the item is worth; can you send it to my friend in your country along with the item? You think okay, I can send it along with the item anyway. You deposit or cash the check and send the person your item and extra money. The bank picks up on the error about 30 days later when nothing can be done. Now the person gets away with your money and the item. You owe the bank money for the fake check also. You lose three times. Your item, extra money, and full amount of check.
Another popular Nigerian scam goes like this. Its a little different and doesn’t involve a check.
Hi my name is so and so from (another country) I have a large quantity of money(usually in tens of millions) that I can’t touch unless we pay (another large quantity of money, usually in the hundreds of thousands) for lawyers fees. If you help we will send you (another large quantity of money, usually millions). Don’t ever fall for this scam. I can’t believe people have fallen for it. The government say over 100 million dollars has been stolen from this scam in the USA alone. So, someone is falling for it.
Nobody can be sure this ring has been stopped with this bust in New Hampshire. It is believed that there are thousands of people involved all around the world. One thing is for sure. The ring has scammed billions of dollars from people all around the world. There seems to be this same exact check scam going on all around the world right now. Its sad when people have to resort to this kind of thing. This ring in New Hampshire that was caught is a small part of this enormous scam ring from Nigeria. But they were responsible for an estimated 5-10 million dollars scammed from people. And there were only two people involved in this small cell of the ring. To think there are thousands of people involved in this scam and what huge amount of damage only two people caused. I can’t even fathom what the rest of the ring is pulling in.
Just remember the 2 warning signs of the Nigerian check scam.
1. Nobody sends you more money than the item costs.
2. Nobody is going to ask you to send money to someone you don’t even know. Especially if they aren’t even involved in the transaction.
If anyone has questions let me know. I would hate to see anyone fall for this.
Hi everyone, Spring is finally here and you can actually feel the difference outside. Not too hot, not too cold. As you know ebay changed their feedback system in February. Ebay’s new feedback system had a lot of people worrying about their good feedback ratings. So far, nothing major has changed. But I have noticed a lot of easier transactions lately. I am not really that worried about the rule that; sellers won’t be able to leave negative feedback for the buyers. All though this rule won’t go into effect until May.
If you are a good seller, don’t let this new rule bother you. After all, the buyer is the one taking the big chance. As ebay puts it, the buyer is sending money to a stranger. I back this up totally. The idea that buyers can leave negative and neutrals, but the sellers can’t is a great idea. It will really let the great sellers shine.
There are a lot of bogus sellers out there that leave retaliatory negatives. There are less buyers that do so. Sellers will reap the benefits of buyers that are suspended for bad behavior or trading practices. All negative and neutral feedback that suspended ebay members left for other users will be automatically removed. I love this idea. Too bad it won’t take place until May/June. But it’s worth the wait.
Everything I preach about having great customer service will really help you in the new ebay feedback system. Sellers that have great customer service and drive repeat customers are now rewarded. Instead of only receiving 1 total transaction on your score rating for repeat customers; you will be rewarded with each transaction from the same person. So your feedback is greatly affected in a good way when you drive repeat customers to your auctions/store. I love this new change also. Good sellers are usually the ones that drive repeat customers. There is a reason for it. Now we are rewarded for it.
Buyers will have a chance to leave honest opinions about their experience with the transaction. In the past buyers were scared to leave an honest opinion about the transaction in fear of receiving the all mighty retaliatory negative feedback. Now the sellers can’t leave a negative or neutral feedback at all. All buyers will be able to tell the good sellers from the bad. And the great sellers will reap all the benefits, as the buyer will more often buy from a seller with a better feedback rating. I know my customer service is good enough to go up against this new rule, so I am not going to worry about it. This rule won’t take effect until May. In the long run, buyers will more likely buy more, so the sellers will make more.
Plus, the big change of buyers not being able to leave a feedback until at least three days have gone by. This is another great rule change. New buyers not familiar with the ebay system; are notorious for leaving a negative feedback if you don’t reply to them in the first hour. I love this new rule.
I like all the new feedback changes. It is already affecting my ebay business in a positive way. Anyone not happy with the new ebay feedback system should step back and take another look at your customer service. That’s what it is all about. Be nice to your customers. Always answer their questions and emails. Above all, always be courteous as; the customer is always right.
Let me know if you have any questions.
There is too much bogus information about home business on the internet from people that just copy and paste BS on their blog or website. They have no experience and just believe anything somebody says on a web page. So i figured, in my free time I can blog and help people.
But mainly, my goal with this blog is to steer people away from scams and bogus content. And at the same time I want to answer questions and help people. I hate get rich quick scams around the internet. Lots of people fall prey to them everyday and I am really sick of it. The thing I really hate about scams online are the ebooks that come along and say you can be rich overnight. That will never happen.
I have written a couple of ebooks to help people, just because of all the scams with ebooks out there. My ebooks do well, as they are special. I do not just sell an ebook to you. I back it up with my experience by helping along the way. That’s something nobody else is doing. Most people have never even used the information they sell as ebooks. It is usually just information they found online somewhere. I do charge money for my ebooks, as my customers get VIP service and work I can’t do for free. I do go the extra mile for people that buy my ebooks. When someone purchases an ebook they get 3(more if needed) months of tutoring from me. I offer unconditional help with things like researching and finding wholesalers you want, to showing you step by step anything you can’t figure out. I won’t advertise my ebooks on this post, as they do well already.
Who knows, maybe I can start a trend and experienced people will start writing ebooks and sell them along with experienced tutoring. Offer a money back guarantee and all the scam artists will be forced to do something else for a living. If you can’t help someone with questions about your ebook or how to do the subject in your ebook, you shouldn’t be allowed to sell it.
I do have a couple on blogs. Two blogs are for fun. I do use one blog to make money. I have advertisements and took some advice from the great John Chow among others. I don’t make much with the blog but that’s fine. It’s a learning experience and I am not in it for the money anyway. I want to help people learn how to make money at home. Even part time, anything extra helps. I know how it is to be scratching your head at home saying “how can I make money at home or online?” I was that person ten years ago.
I have been using ebay for about ten years. I met this great guy in 1998 who was always telling me how much money he made on ebay. He was nice enough to show me the ropes and get started on ebay. Maybe I got wanting to help people from him. Ebay was how I started making money from home online. I have expanded to many other marketplaces as auction marketplaces are my specialty. As you know, I do not list my auction marketplace ID’s anymore for sabatage reasons. Sad to say but, almost as soon as I started showing my auction id’s on my blogs(especially ebay) I noticed frantic fraud bidding and an avalanche of scam artists. So I don’t advertise my auctions or stores on my blogs anymore. They get enough exposure already on those marketplaces anyway. As you can tell, from the tips and information I give people on my blog; it’s not like I need the help when it comes to making money online.
For the past six months I have been teaching myself affiliate marketing. My goal is to get away from selling and live off of affiliate marketing instead (Don’t worry, I will always have my home business blogs. I think teaching people correct ways to bring in a little extra money at home is very important). I am finding out there is less work and stress involved with affiliate marketing. All you do is list a company link on one of your websites and when customers click that link you get paid in different ways; depending what that person does on that companies website. There are all kinds of tricks and tips to learn to be an affiliate marketing master. But that’s just like anything else. Practice makes perfect.
I would like to thank my friends around the net who have been kind enough to give me advice on how to market and advertise my websites. I get lots of great advice on young entreprenuer, a forum I visit to get and give home business advice. You see, I am using this kind of A&M knowledge to build experience of making and bringing traffic to my dream business website someday. Marketing and advertising is the most important part of having a website. If nobody knows you have a website, how can they visit it? Over the past six months I have become an advertising and marketing genius.
I think overall I will probaby stick with ebay through thick and thin until something else comes along better. Right now ebay has all marketplaces cornered. Ebay is pretty much the monopoly of auction marketplaces right now. There is too much money to be lost by taking ebay out of the equasion. History always repeats though. Someday something will come along bigger and better than ebay.
But I will always be here for my readers, I love to help people. I have developed quite a following with this blog and I thank you. Now I have found a new love for blogging. Helping people go hand and hand on my blogs. Anyone with questions about making money at home will not be ignored on my blog. In my years of helping people only one person has not been successful. And to tell you the truth, I don’t think they tried.
I do my best to post on my blogs everyday for you, although sometimes it’s just not possible. When I do post, it is usually answering someones question or giving information they asked about. I find answering my readers questions is most useful to everyone. I have been answering questions along with any tips or tricks I can give in a blog post. So, if you have any questions about making money at home, feel free to ask me. It doesn’t cost anything to ask me questions, don’t be shy:) I really am just someone who cares and wants to help you. Times are tough enough without trying to avoid scams too. I would hate to see anyone make a costly mistake they could have avoided. I have helped people from all around the world make money at home.
Thanks for reading my blog everyone. Have a great day!
Hi everyone, I hope you’re doing good. Someone recently asked if they could get in trouble for selling counterfeit or fake goods. This is a tricky question, because there are a few answers. And it depends where you live also. Most countries have strict rules against making or selling counterfeit goods. Other countries could care less. The funny thing is; most countries make counterfeit goods illegal to sell, but it’s okay to have it in your possession in small quantity. I don’t think I will ever understand federal laws, I just obey them.
General rule of thumb, if your country has federal laws, chances are it is VERY ILLEGAL to make or sell counterfeit/fake goods of any kind. If you’re country does not have a federal laws, chances are your country could care less if you make or sell counterfeit or fake goods.
But there are ways around it also. If it is a look-a-like without the company logo or name is is not considered a fake or counterfeit. You can sell this legally as long as you don’t promote it as the brand name in question. But, if the item has either the company brand logo or name on it anywhere it is considered a fake/counterfeit and it is VERY ILLEGAL to buy or sell. “If it has the brand name or logo on it, it doesn’t even have to resemble the product to be illegal to sell”.
Counterfeiting a brand name is a major federal crime. Trademark and copyright infringment are a huge problem in the USA right now and can come with jail time and/or big fines. There are over one hundred thousand counterfeiting rings that were busted last year.
Some people say you are okay if you don’t advertise the brand name. This is only okay if your product doesn’t have a company name or logo on it anywhere. Look-a-likes with out a company name or logo are tolerated if they are not advertised as the brand name product.
Look-a-like items are items that look like a brand name item without any company name or logo on it. You may have noticed some people who sell look-a-like items and they advertise it as “Compare to Oakley” or “Just like Oakley”. Even though it looks the same, it’s not illegal to sell because it doesn’t have a logo or brand name on it and they are not promoting it as a brand name product. Federal laws have really weird rules. I don’t see the difference, but apparently they do.
I always hear stories of people getting in trouble for buying fake goods from China. This is very popular. Don’t fall for cheap prices in China. Most wholesalers from China make counterfeit and fake merchandise. They make a living off of it. The problem is, it’s against the law to most of the world. But China is not a democracy, they do not have any federal laws or regulations. Therefore, they don’t need to follow rules set by other countries that have to follow the federal laws. That’s why China can sell counterfeit or fake goods and not get in trouble.
Most people that have been getting in trouble, have been getting caught on receipt of the goods. China or another counterfeiter will ship the goods to it’s customer. When the customer receives the goods, a team of officials arrest the customer. Most of the people caught for selling counterfeit goods have been doing it a long time. There has probably been a sting operation going on for quite sometime if you are caught selling counterfeit goods.
Big name brand companies that have been the victim of counterfeiting have created sting teams to constantly do research and catch counterfeiters. When you sell the goods, the sting team will purchase it. Then they inspect the item to find out if it is a fake. If the team can confirm the item is fake and you are selling fake goods under their brand name, you will be investigated. The investigation will go on until they can catch all the people involved so they can catch the entire counterfeiting ring.
Just because you have seen people selling counterfeit or fake goods and they didn’t get in trouble, doesn’t mean it’s okay for you to sell it. Don’t worry, someday those counterfeiters will be caught. Big countries like China thrive on counterfeit goods. The truth is, people don’t mind buying-to-own counterfeit goods. Even if they know it’s fake, most people don’t mind. Some of it is made better than the real stuff. So they get a better product for a fraction of the price. But it doesn’t make it right. It is still against the law for most of us. And for those that are selling counterfeit goods and shouldn’t be; they will be caught someday.
If you are selling counterfeit or fake goods for a long time, you will probably be investigated soon if you aren’t being investigated right now. My advice to you is to stop right away and don’t contact the counterfeiters again. The sting teams can’t bust countries like China because of the laws. But instead, they bust the recipients of the goods coming from China and other known counterfeiting locations. If you are buying counterfeit goods from someone, you are considered being part of a counterfeiting ring.
It’s not a very good idea to sell counterfeit goods. I know, it doesn’t seem like you are hurting anyone by selling counterfeit goods. I don’t see the big deal either. But big brand name companies have really put some weight on law enforcement to stop counterfeiting. Law enforcement takes counterfeiting as serious as robbing a bank. You get a big fat federal charge to sit on your record for the rest of your life.
Play it safe people. If you think the deal is to good to be true, or if the price is way to cheap something is wrong. Counterfeit and fake items are very easy to spot as they sell for a fraction of the price the real thing would sell for. Don’t make the same mistake thousands of people just like you have already made. Don’t sell fake or counterfeit goods thinking you are not breaking the law. Because you are!
I hope this helps the person that asked me about selling counterfeit or fake goods. If anyone has any questions, I would be happy to help you.
First off, bad credit doesn’t mean you can’t start your own business. You will have more challenges than the average person, but you can still do it. Don’t let bad credit prevent you from reaching your goals. There are ways around everything. In the long run, you should try and fix your credit, as you will need it as you get older. You need good credit to buy cars and houses among just a few things we buy as adults.
Okay, the first question asked about bad credit with wholesalers. All you need is a credit card with wholesalers. You can even use your debit card, as long as it is a Mastercard or Visa. Most wholesalers will have you fill out a few forms that are required to activate your account with them. One of those forms is a collateral or credit form. Since you are a home business, wholesalers do not require you to fill out anything about collateral or credit. This form is for bigger companies. Companies that want to get products up front and pay later from the wholesaler need to fill this type of form out. Since you are a home business, you only need to list a credit/debit card to pay for your goods. Just list your credit card information and skip the collateral section. You do not have to worry if you have bad credit. You can still set up an account with wholesale distributors.
When you put a credit card on file with the wholesale distributor, they will keep that card and use it when you make a purchase. Every time you call them with an order, they will automatically bill the credit card on file with them. You don’t even have to continuously give them your credit card number every time you order something. The credit card you leave on file with the wholesaler can be a personal or business credit/debit card. Just make sure you always have money on the card as you make purchases. If your credit card on file ever declines with the wholesaler, they may cancel your account with them.
As for the bank question: They asked if they would run into problems if they try and open a bank account with bad credit. There are a couple of reasons you might run into problems if you try and open a bank account with bad credit.
If you owe any bank money, you will not be able to open a bank account with any bank. All banks have a system in place where: if you owe any bank, any money at all, it will show all banks that you owe money to another bank. Here is an example; if you owe money to Bank of America, you can’t go to Enterprise bank and open an account. If you went to Enterprise and tried to open a bank account, their computer system will tell them you owe money to another bank. And they won’t let you open an account until you pay that bank back.
It doesn’t matter if the banks are connected through business or not. Even though the banks are not connected with each through business, the banks computers are all linked for fraud protection. So they will see all debts you owe to other banks. Then the bank will look at you like a bad investment. So clear up your debt with the bank you owe money to, or you will run in to problems.
The bank doesn’t care what other debts you owe. As long as you don’t owe another bank money, they will overlook all your other debts or bad credit. Banks are very lenient to open an account with them. I would say that’s a pretty good deal, to overlook all my debts and bad credit(other than money owed to another bank) to open an account with any bank. They want your money in their bank.
Okay, remember how I said you only need a credit/debit card to start an account with a wholesaler? How do you keep a credit card on file if you can’t get one? Obviously if you have bad credit, you probably don’t own a credit/debit card. This is what you can do…Go to any bank that gives Visa or Mastercard as a debit card. Open a checking account and ask for the debit card with your account also.
Now that debit card can be used as a credit card with any wholesale distributor. Make sure the credit/debit card from the bank is a Visa or Mastercard. Now any purchases you make with that credit card will be pulled out of your checking account. This credit/debit card you get for your checking account is interest free, so it’s better than a regular credit card. And you can only spend the money you have in your checking account, so you are less likely to overspend.
This is the tricky part: What if you owe the bank money? If you owe any bank any money at all, you won’t be able to start an account with that bank or any other bank. That means you can’t open a checking account and get your Visa or Mastercard. The only way around this is to pay the bank you owe money to. If it is a lot of money start saving now. The only way to get you out of this mess is to be responsible and pay that bank back. You will always need a bank account in your life, so it’s well worth it. Having a bank account will make life so much easier on yourself.
I wouldn’t recommend a secure credit card. Secure credit cards are probably the worst out there. They charge you interest on your own money. So don’t even think about a secure credit card. You will just make things worse for yourself. Go pay back that bank you owe money to. If you don’t owe money to any bank; go open that checking account and acquire your credit/debit card. Remember, make sure the bank offers a credit/debit card that is a Visa or Mastercard, so you can use it anywhere like a credit card.
Thanks for reading my blog everyone! Email me if you have any questions.
Loaning money to a friend or family member. You all know what I am talking about on this one. You have that friend or family member that wants to borrow a sum of money and pay it back later with extra. Later never comes. You might as well throw your money away and disown your friends and family before you loan them a large quantity of money. Five dollars here or there is fine. Most big money loans from family or friends end up being enemies or meet each other in court. Unless you can really trust them, you probably won’t get paid pack. Or if you do get paid back it may be much, much, later. I am not saying you will always get ripped off by family or friends. But for some reason, they are the ones that will rely on you to cut them some slack.
Compared to buying a used car, buying a new car will save me money. Totally false!!! Did you know the average car loan is over $400.00 a month for over 80 months? That’s a lot of money if you throw in car insurance also. New cars depreciate in value as soon as you drive it off the lot. You may think that the new car won’t break down as much as a used car. You may think you could buy someones lemon if you buy a used car. That’s false too. New cars made these days break down just as much as used cars do. You won’t save money with this way of thinking. Save some money; buy a good used car with a small loan. Or buy a good used car outright to own.
Do you think you can save money with debt consolidation? I hope you don’t think you will save money. Debt consolidation is a hidden legal scam. Sure you can put all your bills into one convenient loan with a smaller payment each month. But guess what? Instead of a 10 year loan, you just gave yourself a 40 year loan. That 40 year loan will make the debt consolidator thousands, maybe even hundreds of thousands of dollars. When you use a debt consolidator, they will tell you the world to make you think you are making the right decision. But you are not saving anything. In fact you will be paying out the wahzoo. They want your money for 40 years instead of just 10 years. They know you are bound to make late payments or fault your loan the longer you have it. They get late payment fees and money when someone faults a loan. Plus all that money you paid them in interest through 40 years. In the long run, it means more money for the debt consolidator, none for you.
After my divorce he/she will pay for everything because they owe me alimony/payments. That couldn’t be further from the truth. I know you may not think divorce is a way to save money. But people actually think that their credit cards and bills in their name will be paid by the other party if they have alimony coming to them. Anything in your name is your responsibility. If your name is on that credit card, bank account, or bill, you are required to pay the balance. The judge that assigned money to whomever, has nothing to do with things you personally owe. Pay off everything in your name before, during, and after a divorce.
If I declare bankruptcy I will clear my bad credit in a few years, instead of always having bad credit. Wrong! Don’t ever declare bankruptcy if you plan on ever having good credit with a bank. If you have bad credit, you can fix it without declaring bankruptcy. If you declare bankruptcy; sure you may have a cleared credit record in a few years; but you will always have to tell the loaner that you declared bankruptcy for the rest of your life. That’s right, every time you apply for a loan, for the rest of your life, you have to check that “Have you ever declared bankruptcy” box on the loan application. Then the person loaning you the money will be more likely to turn you down anyway. You are better off with bad credit and a chance of still fixing it. Fix your bad credit everyone. Bankruptcy is not the easy way out.
Thanks for reading my blog. See you tomorrow.
Hi everyone, I hope your weekend was good. Someone asked me why they would use a private auction. They thought the seller was a con artist for listing private auctions. The seller is most likely not a con artist just because they use private auctions. There are a few very good reasons a seller or buyer might want a private auction instead of a regular auction.
I am going to tell you the advantages of buying or selling a private auction on ebay. If you are a buyer, you might want to buy an item from a private auction for some items. If you are a seller it might be important to sell your item with a private auction. Not just for feedback reasons, but for personal reasons as well.
Lets say you wanted to sell a very expensive car. The car was book valued at one hundred thousand dollars. You wanted to sell it for eighty thousand dollars. So you list it on ebay as a private auction. Most people don’t want other ebay users to know they sold such an expensive item. On the other hand, a buyer might not want other ebay members to know they could afford such a high priced item. This is where a private auction would come in handy. After the auction ends and transaction is completed, the feedback for this item will show as private. Other ebay members will never know what the item sold was.
Let’s say you wanted to buy some adult items. If you bought your adult items on ebay, you might try and find a private auction. The private auction will prevent other ebay members from noticing you bought adult items. Private auctions will help the seller in this circumstance also. Most sellers don’t only sell adult items. But other ebay members might get offended if they see adult items while trying to buy a children’s book from that same seller. So the private auction will prevent ebay members from looking through personal items bought.
I don’t agree with this last reason you would use a private auction. But people do use private auctions so the competition won’t know what they are selling. That’s right, sellers like me; like to look at my competitions feedback to see what they are selling. It really helps to know what sells best or what isn’t selling. By using the private auction to sell their listings, it will prevent competition like me from finding out what items are hot.
I hope this explains why people would use a private auction to buy or sell on ebay. Just because it is a private listing doesn’t mean it’s a scam or the seller is trying to pull a fast one. Actually the seller is trying to help out the buyer by keeping their information private.
Thanks for reading my blog everyone. Email me if you have any questions.
Don’t use technology for bad business practices. There is a lot of technology out there to use for your advantage. Don’t over do it. Some companies go as far as; using a computer program to profile guests. If a guest is good or bad. This way the company will know who they are dealing with up front. In my opinion, this is taking technology a bit too far.
As I have said before, use mobile technology. Especially if you don’t have the time to spend in front of your computer all day. Most business people can’t afford to be at the office all day. Their job requires them to always be on the run. Some people work two or more jobs. You need to have a mobile device, whether it be laptop, PDA, cell phone or whatever you are comfortable with using. You will be able to send and receive email, faxes, files, and important messages. There should be no excuse for you telling a customer you need to get back to the office and you get back to them. Although, even I have done this recently. We have to break the bad habit of not being mobile. Today’s technology thrives on our businesses being mobile.
Use web 2.0, it’s very beneficial. Use social media networks to improve your businesses database of customers. Myspace, facebook, delicious, digg, so many more social networks to make you and your business well known. You can post comments, messages, vidoes, and blogs. Web 2.0 is all about making friends. You make friends and your friends trust you more. Then they are more likely to buy your products or service. People tend to buy from who they trust. Then it’s all about word of mouth through the social community. It works great!
Make sure you have an easily navigated website. Don’t use anything on your website that will contradict what you are selling. Make sure all the information; including ad space is something you would use and recommend. Make sure you have good, quality content on your website. You need to have something to draw people in. Try and offer them a reason to visit your website.
A blog about you and your business will really help shape your business. A blog can make your page rank higher. A Blog will also be more likely to raise your rank in search engines. Search engines find new content. So the more you blog, the more likely people will find your website. Create a newsletter you send out by email. Your customer base will be more likely to return if you have a newsletter.
Spend money on technology to upgrade, not waste. You spend money on all kinds of important things to keep your business going. Don’t upgrade with technology only when it is necessary. Upgrade with technology whenever you can. A business just starting out should be overwhelmed with technology. People seem to have the attitude that they don’t need anything new. The truth is, everyday new products come out to make our lives easier.
When you spend money on your business, don’t think of it as losing money. Every bit of money you spend on new technology is money well spent. The more technology your business has, the faster it will grow. The more likely your business will succeed and keep up with the competition. When McDonald’s came out with the Happy Meal; Burger King didn’t sit around twiddling their thumbs, they invented the kids meal.
Be smart about where you spend your money. Some technology is an obvious ripoff. Spend your money on technology that will help you in the future as well as right now. Technology is here to save us money and time. Don’t overwork yourself. Work Smarter, Not Harder. You can get more work accomplished thanks to technology. Most businesses can more than double the workload because of technological gadgets.
Take advantage of the technology available to us. Thanks for reading my blog everyone. See you tomorrow.
Hi everyone, it’s cold out there today. We are supposed to be getting an ice storm tonight(that’s always fun). I recently had someone tell me they weren’t going to pay their ebay fees. He said “since some of my auctions didn’t sell, I am not going to pay my auction fees”. I told him he was being ridiculous. Ebay will suspend you for not paying your seller fees. Make sure you pay them.
Ebay charges you once a month for the full amount you owe them for your auction fees. If you think you deserve a refund there are ways to go about it. But, by not paying your auction fees, you are asking for trouble. If you do not pay your auction fees, they will suspend your account until you pay them.
When you agree to be a seller on ebay; you also agree that ebay can take the money for sellers fees out of your bank account or credit card. If a period of time goes by without your fees being paid. Ebay will send it to a collection agency. This will show up on your credit report. And you get a bad mark on your credit for an unnecessary action. You agreed to ebay’s terms, pay up.
If you don’t pay your seller fees, your powerseller status will be affected. You may not be able to become a powerseller again when you pay your outstanding balance. On top of that, your regular customers will see that you have been suspended and may never come back. As soon as someone sees “not a registered user”, they usually think that seller is gone forever. We all know that if you see “not a registered member” next to someones name, it means they have been suspended.
The buyer doesn’t know it might only a temporary suspension. But they might get a bad vibe and never come back to your store or auctions again. Make sure you always have enough in your bank account or credit card to cover your monthly ebay bill. They send you an email every month with the amount being charged. You can also check this amount in “myebay”.
By not paying your auction fees, you can create so many chain reaction things that may hurt your business. I know it can be hard, but, do everything you can to follow ebay’s rules and terms. Be professional and double check everything you do. But, above all; PAY THOSE EBAY AUCTION FEES.
See you tomorrow. Thanks for reading my blog.
Hi everyone, it’s finally Friday. This week went by so slow for me. As you all know, I like to help people. That’s why I try and answer your questions on this blog. Today someone asked me if it was a good idea to buy from another country, particularly China. You have to remember; if you buy goods from a country like China, they don’t have to follow any laws or rules that your own country enforces. Why risk such a huge amount of money to a company you’ll probably never even see or visit?
I have even seen companies from China offer drop shipping around the world to try and attract victims. Drop shipping will never work from outside your own country. It could be days, weeks, or months, by the time the package makes it past customs. Your customer won’t be too happy unless they live in China.
I am not saying you shouldn’t buy wholesale from another country. But it isn’t a very smart thing to do. Too many people are ripped off everyday from international wholesalers who don’t have to follow the same rules or regulations to keep things fair. You are rolling the dice if you choose to deal with an international wholesale distributor.
China is also known to sell counterfeit and look-a-like items. Some countries have strict rules about selling counterfeit merchandise. Just because you bought it from a company, doesn’t mean the trade was legal. People go to jail all the time for selling counterfeit goods. Countries like China don’t have laws against making counterfeit goods. So they can sell them without getting in to trouble.
International wholesalers have also been known to tell you what you are buying. You pay for the goods. Then they send you different goods that are worth much less. This switch-a-roo has been pulled thousands of times by international wholesalers. International wholesalers like this prey on people from other countries. They know they won’t be caught.
Do things inside your own country. At least you will be covered if anything goes wrong and it won’t be a total loss if something happens. You will keep your economy going. And you will know all your trading is legal.
I’m not saying you can’t make money if you choose to buy wholesale internationally. Some people make really good money. The risk factor is too high for me these days. There was a time when there were honest companies worldwide. These days too many scumbag companies are trying to steal innocent peoples hard earned money.
I bought from a company in China about 4 years ago. It went well for 2 years. I even knew the managers by name and they knew me well. One of my shipments never arrived. I figured they had it in customs. I called the company in China. They told me they shipped it gave me a tracking number. The tracking number was real and said it was in transit. The package never came out of transit. It somehow got lost. The company from China wouldn’t give me my money back. The international insurance was turned down. I lost over seventy eight hundred dollars.
It was enough for me to never do business internationally again. To this day, I won’t even do business internationally. I am not saying everyone internationally is bad or they will rip you off. Most people in this world are very nice people. But the small percentage really ruins it for the rest of us. It’s sad to say, but now-a-days, you have to always look over your shoulder. Technology makes it way to easy for crooks to scam people.
I am just saying, be safe, be covered, do business inside your own country. The low risk factor of doing business inside your own country is rewarding. Doing business inside your own country can make you lots of money without worry of being scammed.
Or you can make really big money and risk losing a huge chunk of change now and then. If that sounds good to you, then give international wholesalers a chance. Most of them do offer way lower prices that you won’t find in your country.
I hope I showed you the pros and cons of dealing with international wholesale companies. If you have any questions, feel free to email me. See you all tomorrow!
Hi everyone, how are you today? I was doing good until I heard about a sad story. The story was about an ebay seller that was arrested for selling counterfeit goods. This person was prosecuted with a huge fine and even spent time in jail. I know this individual and they are generally a good person. That is why it is a sad story. This could have happened to you or me. Listen to what happened.
She bought some Louis Vuitton purses at her local flea market. She asked the person selling the purses if they were real. The person told her they were real and get them while they last. So she bought all the purses that she could. Then listed the purses on ebay. All of them sold in the same night. Wow she made a lot of money in such a short amount of time.
The next weekend this individual went back to the flea market to see if the person selling the purses was there again. What do you know, the seller was there with more purses. This individual bought all she could again. She also asked the seller if they were at the flea market every weekend. She made arrangements so this was her new distributor of LV purses.
Things were going great on ebay for about 3 months. This individual made over thirty five thousand dollars profit in about three months. Until, she received an email from Louis Vuitton, telling her she violated their licensing for selling fake LV goods. She thought it was a joke and blew it off and kept selling the purses. About a week later, she got a letter in the mail to show up in court. Louis Vuitton was bringing her to court for selling fake goods.
Apparently an undercover Louis Vuitton officer bought one of the purses this individual was selling. The item turned out to be fake after the officer inspected the bag. Selling fake LV purses is a big crime. Millions of dollars are lost because of manufacturers of fake goods.
The next day this individual was suspended from ebay. Because as we all know; selling counterfeit or fake items violate ebay’s copyright infringement laws. This powerseller was not only suspended. But she was also being taken to court for which she served 3 months in jail. She also had to pay a ten thousand dollar fine. And this was pleaded down. She would have served 2 years with a two hundred thousand dollar fine, *if she didn’t tell the authorities* where she got the fake goods from.
This individual had no idea she was doing anything against ebay’s rules, much less against the law. But it doesn’t take a brain surgeon to know a deal is too good to be true.
Remember, if it seems to good to be true, it probably is. Be aware that flea markets are flooded with fake and counterfeit merchandise. Try not to buy name brands at a flea market, if you plan to resell them.
I love to shop at flea markets. Lots of times I resell the goods on ebay. So this could have happened to anyone. I just wanted to make everyone aware of the dangers of shopping at a flea market. Be careful and use your head when you buy something.
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