Shun this £10,000 Amazon scam

Tony isn't fooled by this £10,000 Amazon scam. Would you be?

If you are anything like me, you probably thought that Amazon and Yahoo were multi-billion multi-national brands which were completely capable of marketing themselves. After all, they had only got to where they are by clever and constant promotion – otherwise they would not have become mega-global companies.

But that's not true, at least according to an email that pops into my inbox with weekly regularity. This tells me that “People all over the UK are making 1,000 to 10,000 every month! More Home Workers needed immediately!

“If you qualify, you will be paid for helping to promote Amazon and Yahoo!

“This system is so simple that anyone with a computer can make money this way – FAST!”

Despite the absence of the pound sign, I could certainly do with what I assume is £10,000 a month – even £1,000 a month (the low end of the scale) would be a huge help.

A simple ecommerce platform?

So I sent off for details. A letter – personalised with a Dear Tony – came back in micro-seconds from “Online Hosting Network” (OHN). There was no mention of Amazon or Yahoo or indeed any other company (Sony is often quoted in this context as well) but it said “many Fortune 500 companies offer programs that have given people just like you the opportunity to work from home. Our system capitalizes on these programs and builds them into a simple ecommerce platform that can easily be used by virtually anyone with a computer.”

Then “Heidi” sent me an email. Just in case I was worried by what I would have to do to make that £10,000 a month, she wrote:

“Our passion here at Online Hosting Network Corporation (OHN) is developing fantastic, user friendly websites and ecommerce technology. And, we've developed a system that can help any motivated person generate an unlimited income using an easy to operate online business.

With our system, you'll never need to sell anything nor recruit family and friends, because that's what our online business is designed to do for you – even while you sleep! And because of that, you'll never have to take orders, ship merchandise or handle any customer service because our system will ensure that is all done for you.

All you'll need to do is follow a few simple steps and we'll even guarantee that you'll make money with our affordable online home-income system! We can do that because our system is based upon proven business methods and advanced internet marketing techniques.”

Wow! All that money coming in and absolutely no effort on my part. What else could I ask for?

What’s the catch?

So what did I have to do to ensure that thousands flowed into my bank account? My next move was to call an 0808 international freephone number for a nine minute audio presentation.

But after ten minutes of staying on hold - “your call is very important” “thank you for your patience” and “all of our business consultants are busy helping other clients” - I put the phone down and looked elsewhere for details of the OHN route to riches.

OHN hangs out in Phoenix Arizona and promotes websites where, it says big companies will pay 10% of all sales made through your site plus $300. Joining this costs a starter $377. So how does anyone know to go to your website instead of Amazon or Sony? OHN has the solution to that in the shape of an advertising campaign which costs from $2,500 to $4,999.

Had I taken it this far, I would be thousands of pounds down and there would still be no cash coming in. And, anyway, this sounds like effort – not sitting down or sleeping while the money flows to my account.

Just say No to this

Well, the site says that there is a 60 day money back guarantee. The only problem, say those disappointed with OHN, is that the firm says the guarantee only applies if you have tried every single additional item it sells. You soon run out of money doing this – and even if you could see it through to the bitter end, you still have to deal with a company several thousand miles away which may not refund your money – let alone, if my example is anything to go by, even answer the phone.

OHN is owned by Forrest Webb of Cave Creek Arizona. He used to run World Marketing System which worked an almost carbon copy method.

As one victim said: “Just say No to this.”

Amazon, Sony and Yahoo neither have or ever have had any links whatsoever to OHN.

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Award-winning scams expert Tony Levene explains why he's writing a blog about scams and why he is The Scam Magnet!