I received the email quoted below from my local PD. I guess I could contact them and explain that there is a legitimate company called Field Agent and it is possible to make money thru mystery shopping. On the other hand the warning is still valid and would probably discourage my future competition from starting to mystery shop. Am I being selfish? What would you do?
Nature of Incident: Work at Home Scams
Narrative:
Are you looking for an easy way to make money at home? Did you post a resume on Craigslist? Did you get a job offer via text or email without ever having a face to face interview? If this sounds familiar you may have been the victim of a work at home scam.
The most common work at home scams are envelope stuffers, mystery shopper, or home shippers. Recently, the Xxxxx Police Department became aware of a mystery shopper scam. The victim received a message via email regarding earning extra income. The victim then received a check from “Field Agent Inc.” for a significant amount of money, was told to deposit the check in his account, and was asked to purchase two iPhones. The victim purchased the phones, shipped them to Texas, and was told to keep the extra money for himself. The next day the victim was notified by his bank that the check was bogus, and the victim was out the full amount of the check.
The xxxxx Police Department would like to offer the following tips so you don’t become a victim:
1) Do not give out personal information to someone you don’t know
2) Be wary of someone asking you to deposit a check into your account as payment for a job and telling to you to keep the extra money for yourself
3) Do not pay any upfront fees
4) Research the company involved through the Better Business Bureau @ [
www.bbb.org], the Attorney General @ [
oag.ca.gov] , or the Federal Trade Commission @ [
www.ftc.gov]
Remember that there is no easy way to make money working from your home. If it sounds t oo good to be true, it probably is.