Given the current state and outlook of our economy it is not surprising that more and more people are seeking to supplement their income through work at home opportunities. Many of us already have a full time day job, and therefore, the last thing we want to do is to get a second outside job that requires more commuting and more wardrobe spending. As a result, many individuals looking for relatively easy and convenient ways of generating revenues have turned to the Internet for this purpose.

As the need to make additional income is growing amongst average families, so are the home programs that are becoming available to people. The legitimacy of many of these programs comes into doubt at just a first or second glance. However, there are many opportunities and programs online that appear to be genuine on the surface. Therefore, this makes it even more difficult to distinguish between credible and legitimate money making programs and plain scams.

They are a few tips, however, that a person can follow in order to avoid being scammed:

1) Put the name of the company in a search engine and add the word "scam" next to it and see what results you get. You'd be surprised as to the amount of money and time that I have saved myself by doing this.

2) Put the name of the company in a search engine and add the word "forum" next to it. People who have tried the program and had a negative or positive experience with it will tell you all about it.

3) Check for positive references to the company in independent consumer review guides. Look for non-profit organizations run by consumers. Many times these organizations will have tried the products or services and can give you a better idea of they are worth, saving you money and time.

4) Look for companies that have clear refund and privacy policies documented on their website.

5) Avoid companies that ask you for an extravagant admission fee but do not give you the time to think about enrolling in their program. Legitimate companies will not and do not need to play with your emotions!