Is this a scam ......?

• On craigslist there was an add for A Diet Product research trial. It said you would get paid $500 to try a diet pill. I figured it would be a scam, but I sent my email anyway to see what was up. I got an email from them that said this: Your password to login and join is: ****** You've been selected to participate in the Anti-Aging Product trial being offered by Paid Cash Reviews , Paid Cash Reviews.com I hope you feel special as we are limiting this free trial to the first 30 respondents only! In order to qualify for the $510.00 reward for participating, you must also submit a 300 to 500 word written testimonial briefly describing your experience with the product – “good or bad”. $20.00 is paid via a check that you will get with your supplies. The Final Payment of $435 is paid when you turn in your before and after pictures and review! *That's it! **Take the product, Tells us How It Works, get paid $455 - it's as simple as that!* To get started, go here: Join this Current Study "Click here" Or Copy And Paste this http://www.paidcashreviews.com/study988/ I look forward to seeing your testimonial! --------------------------------------… It seems fishy, but even on the website there's no fine print or anything. It says that you have to pay $1.95 for shipping, but that they will not charge you again. Could I call my bank and tell them that I am using my credit card to buy this one thing, but that fi any other charges show up that they should count it as fraud? Would that work? It says on the website that they send you two packages, one with the dietary supplement, and one with a $50 check and the survey form. Then it says once you complete the survey form they will send you another $450 check. The thing is I am desperate for money, and I know the likelihood of this being a scam is very great .... but isn't there some chance it's for real? What do you think I should do?

• Answer:

  Yes it's a scam. As a rule If you feel something is a scam, you're probably right. People won't give you free money. They just wont. This type of scam is usually a bait-and-switch. They get you involved by making it very easy and cheap for you to get in. Then they start asking for money and you feel that you've already invested yourself in this, so you go along, thinking of the big payback at the end. You won't get the payback. So let's look at this scam closer: #1: You reply to a diet product, they send you a message on anti-aging. Different product. First clue something is not right #2: "we are limiting this free trial to the first 30 respondents only": do you believe that? you received what is basically a spam email, sent to thousands if not millions of people. Millions of people who, like you, would love to receive free money. Do you really believe you made it as one of the 30 first? Not a chance in hell #3: "In order to qualify for the $510 reward for participating" Ok, so let's get this straight. You will receive $510 right? But later they say $20.00 is paid when you receive your supplies, and then a final check of $435.00. $20 + $435=$455; that's not $510. Another clue something is wrong. So is it $510 or $455? Can't they even keep their lies straight? This is what will most likely happen: first you pay nothing, but you don't have any pills to complete the "test". So they'll ask you to buy the next set of pills, to complete the test (maybe $20). They'll say don't worry, there will be another $20 check in the box and anyway you'll get paid $455 at the end, so we'll just charge your credit card $20.00, or something. And then of course, when the box arrives, there is not $20 check, or it bounces. And of course, you'll never get the $455. You'll call, be put on hold, send from one person to the next, or end up on some answering machine, never getting your $20 back, and of course never getting your $455. After a while you'll give up on the $20, because it's not worth the trouble, and they'll have made $20 on your back. They find enough suckers to do that, they make a nice living.