SolveYourProblem
Article Series: Freebies
How To Get Stuff For Free
Is
That Free Stuff Offer Legit?
Everyone
loves the chance to cash in on some great free stuff, but
navigating the world of freebie offers, especially online,
can be like navigating a minefield. Unfortunately, a lot of
people out there use the love others have for taking advantage
of free deals to scam them out of money or personal details
that can be used in identity theft scams. All of this gloom
and doom doesn’t mean that you have to give up on free things
altogether, however. The good news is that there are some simple,
common sense steps you can take to protect yourself from online
freebie scammers. These tips will help give you the confidence
so that you can enjoy taking advantage of free offers without
the fear of ending up facing some negative consequences.
First
and foremost, when you are checking out a free
offer on the Internet, take a closer look at the website,
beyond
just reading the words and figuring out what you have to do
to get the free goods. Does the website look like it was made
by a professional, with some consideration, or does it look
like a five minute amateur job? Are typos and clip art the
order of the day, or does it look like a website any business
would be proud to call its own? What about the web address
– is it a domain name that matches the business the website
claims to represent, or is a “free” domain address that
includes the
name of the domain company in the address? All of these factors
can be red flags that determine the difference between a scam
and a legitimate free offer. If the website looks half hearted
or doesn’t seem to exactly “match” the company it purports
to represent, then don’t even think about trying to get anything
from it.
When
you’re reasonably sure that the website is actually the front
for a legitimate business, it’s time to turn your attention
to the privacy policy on the website. The
best privacy policies guarantee you that the email address
you use to sign up for
this offer will not be shared with any other companies – but
when it comes to free stuff, those kinds of privacy policies
are few and far between. Many companies cover the costs of
the free things you get by selling your email address to other
companies that may have offers you they think you might be
interested in. If you can’t find a privacy policy that lets
you opt out of getting unwanted solicitations, at least make
sure the site is secure and that any personal information can’t
be obtained by hackers.
Other
things to look out for when you’re looking for
freebies are these:
- products
that are free but that require you to pay a shipping
charge that seems beyond the pale for what it should
cost to ship
- freebie
offers that seem to ask for way too much information
than is needed for what the product actually is. Twenty
pages
of personal information for a travel size bottle of
shampoo? That doesn’t make sense, and it should set off
warning
bells in your head.
All of these red flags aside, giving out some amount of personal
information comes part and parcel with freebie offers. There
are a few things you can do to make life easier on yourself.
Set up an email account that you will use specifically for
freebie offers so all of the inevitable spam doesn’t clog up
your main account. Use a phony phone number (preferably one
that can’t be anyone else’s, like one that starts with 555).
Last but not least, if you’re unsure about an offer, keep on
moving. Better safe than sorry.
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SolveYourProblem.com : 2009
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