beware
of
online
fraud

scam merchants and FRAUDSTERS DO EXIST

• the Internet is a wonderful opportunity for you to seek to fulfil your ambitions to improve your financial circumstances with the minimum risk and expenditure
• the Internet is also a perfect setting for crooks to dishonestly deprive you of your money
• a practice which may not be illegal but is certainly something you should be aware of

avoid being caught
out

take action to avoid being caught out

• our policy is to present opportunities to you as they are presented to us and in so doing to cater for our visitors' every interest
• these opportunities include everything from those with absolutely no risk attached to those in which the risk factor can be high
• the opportunities also range from those which are universally accepted to those which will only appeal to dedicated supporters
• we neither commend nor condemn any particular type of opportunity as we believe that people should be allowed to decide for themselves what is good and acceptable for them personally
• we do however appreciate that your enthusiasm plus compulsive sales literature can be compelling factors encouraging your participation, sometimes unwisely
• we cannot, and do not even try, to police every opportunity presented in our pages as to do so would be too big a drain on our resources, but we can and do recommend that you always exercise caution before ever parting with your money, therefore
• we strongly suggest that you carry out your own investigations into all opportunities requiring investment before participating

how to recognize fraud

how to recognize scams and fraud programs

• many, indeed most, of the scams on the Internet fall under one of the following categories
• Ponzi Schemes - Pyramid Schemes - Selling Schemes
• Fraudsters are extremely clever in disguising these so that they appear not only legitimate but also potentially very profitable
• as such it can be very difficult for the average surfer to differentiate between the good and the bad
• to assist therefore we have provide links to sites which offer very good advice on recognizing and avoiding these scams and we recommend that you pay them all a visit
• for advice on Ponzi Schemes - Pyramid Schemes - Selling Schemes visit      http://www.sec.gov/answers/ponzi.htm

seek help from the specialists

• the Internet may be home to crooks and fraudsters, but
• the Internet is also home to many organizations determined to stamp out scams and frauds
• these include official government sites
• Anoed has listed a number of these sites below, and unreservedly recommends you pay them a visit and use their FREE resources

site to visit

http://www.ftc.gov - the Federal Trade Commission where you can also report your suspicions

http://www.fraud.org/internet/intinfo.htm - home to the National Fraud Information Center and Internet Fraud Watch

http://www.scambusters.org - the #1 publication on Internet fraud

http://www.worldwidescam.com - companies and programs investigated and results published for you to read

http://www.spamcop.net - use their FREE tracker service to find out who owns the web site you are visiting

http://www.allwhois.com - check out the people behind the domain name 

http://www.fraudbureau.com - a free service to alert on-line consumers of prior complaints to online vendors including auctions

http://www.merchantfraudsquad.com - free expert advice for online businesses on how to combat internet fraud

http://www.consumer.gov/sentinel/ - see how law enforcement all over the world work together to fight fraud

http://hoaxbusters.ciac.org - verify on-line hoaxes and chain letters

http://www.fraud.org - "NCL's National Fraud Information Center/Internet Fraud Watch"Prevent and report fraud

http://www.fbi.gov/majcases/fraud/fraudschemes.htm - Federal Bureau of Investigation - Common Fraud SchemesInformation and links on Internet fraud, telemarketing fraud, mortgage scams, identity theft, and other consumer frauds

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/crime-victims/reducing-crime/fraud/ - Home Office | Fraud The face of fraud changes as technologies alter and develop. It is our task to help the public and businesses take steps to prevent fraud and to make sure ...

http://europa.eu/pol/fraud/index_en.htm - EUROPA - Activities of the European Union - Fight against fraudThis page provides information on the activities of the European Union, in particular in the field of Fraud.

http://www.sfo.gov.uk/ - Serious Fraud Office | Welcome to the SFOThe SFO is the UK body which investigates and prosecutes serious and complex fraud.

http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/scams/index_e.htm - RCMP Scams Frauds, The Canadian Anti-fraud Call Centre (CAFCC).

http://www.fraud.org/internet/intset.htm - IFW - Internet Fraud   You can protect yourself by learning how to recognize the danger signs of fraud. If you are a victim or attempted victim of Internet fraud, it's important ...

http://www.ic3.gov/ - Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3)A partnership between the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C).

http://www.fraudadvisorypanel.org/  - The Fraud Advisory Panel -  This website is designed to provide you with up-to-date information about the Panel and fraud in the United Kingdom.

http://www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/cyberfraud.htm - Internet Fraud: How to avoid Internet investment scams by telling you how to spot different types of Internet fraud.

http://www.cifas.org.uk/ - The UK's Fraud Prevention Service was founded.   CIFAS is a not for profit membership association solely dedicated to the prevention of ...

http://dmoz.org/Society/Issues/Fraud/Internet/ - Open Directory - Society: Issues: Fraud: InternetCarbuyingtips.com - Fraud Guide - Consumer guide to preventing and fighting eBay, escrow, auto, internet, cashiers check, and Nigerian scams. ...

http://www.heads-up.ca/ - Heads Up Fraud Prevention AssociationThe mission of the Heads Up Fraud Prevention Association is to develop and deliver fraud prevention information to the public in order to increase awareness ...

http://www.police.qld.gov.au/programs/crimePrevention/fraud/  - Australian Fraud Information.   With the rapid advancements in technology, frauds are becoming more sophisticated, widespread and complex. As a result, stamping out fraudulent practices ..

beware
of
Forced
Continuity

"Forced Continuity" - it's almost as bad as stealing

• Forced Continuity is a marketing technique whereby a customer is automatically re-billed for a product or service on an "ongoing" basis
• A typical example is for a product to be offered at a "bargain price" with a lot of supporting "sales hype" making the customer "keen to buy" then "Bonus Items" to be added one of which could be a free trial 1 month subscription for a related service, the "Forced Continuity" would be that unless the customer cancels before the end of the free trial then the subscription would automatically be continued in subsequent months at "x" cost.
• This is NOT illegal provided the customer is made aware of it before signing and completing an order and Internet Marketers using this technique are invariably careful to ensure they stay within the strict confines of the law
• What however is very questionable is that some internet marketers attempt to "conceal" the legal disclosure by including it in the "small print" or as a "bonus" or "after-thought" to the main product
• By doing this it is easy for the customer to overlook the "Forced Continuity" aspect and not realise this until they check their credit card.   Cancelling can then sometimes be very difficult to do.
• Our suggestions are that you read all sales literature very carefully to ensure you spot any "Forced Continuity" and only sign if you are happy to accept it.   Bear in mind that cancelling credit card instructions can be difficult whereas cancelling Paypal subscriptions are easy.  
  If you have a PayPal Purchase Option it might be wise to use it.