Although there are thousands of legitimate work-at-home jobs available, identifying and finding the honest work-at-home jobs can be difficult. The tips and advice below will give you the best methods to use to identify the honest jobs from the scams.
Job Search Sites
The first advice is to visit legitimate job sites such as Careerbuilder.com, SimplyHired.com and Indeed.com. There are also job sites such as HEA-Employment.com, WAHM.com and iFreelance.com that post jobs specifically for freelancers and telecommuters. When searching for work-at-home jobs on these sites, make sure the job site is reputable. This can be done by checking with the Better Business Bureau (BBB.org) to make sure there are no complaints.
Job Requesting Fees
Jobs requesting fees is the biggest red flag for a job seeker. No company should request a fee or money for a job. The employer is paying you to work from them, you should not be paying them. If you need to purchase software or equipment, you can get this on your own or have the employer provide the items for you. No money should exchange hands unless it is the employer paying the job seeker a salary.
Job Postings
Work-at-home jobs posted in the database can be misleading, the jobs are posted under attention grabbing names with job descriptions that seem legitimate. However when you receive the job instructions, it is nothing like the job posting. The jobs usually require you to sell information or post information online in order to get paid. The gimmick is to get you to view the job, apply for the job and then tell you in the end the real job description. These jobs can usually be spotted by the amount of times the position is posted on the job board. Many of the work-at-home jobs are posted over and over again in every city or under different names. Most legitimate jobs are posted once in a specific city with a detailed description of the job which includes the company’s information.
Company Details
Most legitimate work-at-home jobs provide the company’s details in the job description such as a web site or e-mail address so potential job seekers can check out the company on the Internet to view their location and how long they have been in business. This is one of the easiest ways to make sure the job is legitimate. A majority of the companies in the world are on the Internet in some shape, form or fashion so there is no excuse for companies to only have a free e-mail account or 800 number and this should be a red flag to any job seeker.
Payment Methods
Payment for regular jobs are usually direct deposit or check. However for telecommuting jobs, online payment services like PayPal are becoming more and more popular. The best payment method for work-at-home jobs is by check or PayPal. Do not provide any of your bank details until you have worked for the company for a couple of months and fee the company is authentic.
One of the best ways to stay safe is to use common sense . If the jobs seems too good to be true, it most likely isn’t true and if something doesn’t sound right, it most likely isn’t right.