is this legit

[LtPage1]

ok, so my friend sent me this message:

i am trying to get a digi camera, and i need your help!, its easy, here ill quote mr. pip

"for x mas i want a digi camra, [my other friend] got a free ipod from this web sight by signing up for offers and having friends do it to, the ideah is ull by stuff and they make money,

But it is completly free to sign up for the offers and if seven people do i get my digi cam.

If you love me or want me to have a happy xmas please sign up by clicking this link


[link was here, i shouldnt have included it in the first place, wasnt thinking. i apologize.]

they ask for a credit card number which seems shady but [my other friend] didnt get charged for anything and none of the people who signd up for her did. The safest offer is eFax it dosent cost anything to sign up and if u dont use it theres no charge just cancle it before 30 days are over.

I know its lame to ask for this but hey its xmas and im broke so please make me happy"

heres how you do this and not get charged, when u get to the select your offer page, choose the e-fax one, it has 30 days free. after about 6-7 days cancel you service with it, that way you wont get charged at all, sounds shady but it isnt...please help ill love you for life

id really like to help him out, but really? can anyone verify if this is a scam?

i swear to you guys, im not making this up, or scamming at all (look to my postcount)- my friend really posted this on his livejournal. :-/ i trust this guy completely- any chance that my other friend really did get a free ipod? i was under the impression that these things are always scams, and never work.

 

[Xionide]

1. if you see gratis it isnt
2. delete the link or you WILL be banned

 

[Shooters]

Any URL containing the string "4free" is an automatic red flag.

And the info in the message is called a pyramid scheme. Yes, it's a scam not to mention illegal.

 

[CrackRabbit]

Originally posted by: Xionide
1. if you see gratis it isnt
2. delete the link or you WILL be banned

 

[Xionide]

Originally posted by: Shooters
Any URL containing the string "4free" is an automatic red flag.

And the info in message is called a pyramid scheme. Yes, it's a scam not to mention illegal.

I am not sure about the legitness of this but it isnt a pyramid scheme nor is it illeagal as you dont have to pay to get high on the pyramid.

 

[Injury]

Any friend that would ask you to do this for him is an ass, and him guilting you into it (do this if you want me to have a good christmas) is not your friend. You should sucker punch him and spit in his face for sending you that.

Technically, yes... they work. But you gotta jump through hoops and follow the fine details or they will shaft you. They look for you to screw up so they can say you broke the rules and oftentimes you have to sign up for some service unrelated to them that will charge you if you aren't fast enough to cancel or give you a hassle themselves.


It's not that it's "Too good to be true" it is that it not worth the effort involved.

 

[jagec]

it's a pyramid scheme. And, seriously, if you join a pyramid scheme AT ALL...don't join one that asks for CC # :roll:

 

[LtPage1]

alright, thanks guys.

 

[DaveSimmons]

It's also petty fraud against the companies paying the ipod scammers to attract real customers, not people signing up with no intention of giving the product or service an honest look.

People in the pyramid don't care much about ethics though.

 

[Xionide]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
It's also petty fraud against the companies paying the ipod scammers to attract real customers, not people signing up with no intention of giving the product or service an honest look.

People in the pyramid don't care much about ethics though.

Ya I feel sooooooooo sorry for AOL.

 

[AntaresVI]

The point of these is yes, the Gratis offers work (i got an ipod and a tv), BUT most people will think you're an asshole for doing it. Ideally, the way to go about it is to pay people for referrals and DONT GIVE THEM HOPE OF GETTING IT THEMSELVES. The moment you say "OMG GET A FR33 Ip0D!!!oneone" is when you become a spamming jackass.

Paying people $3-5 for their time in giving you a referral, however, is another story. Works best takign out ads on google/FARK. THat's how i did it, and I didn't offend any of my friends or give anyone false hope of getting something they wouldn't.

 

[Gurck]

This type of scam makes money for two basic reasons - the vast majority of those who sign up don't get enough referrals, and the companies they deal with are unethical. AOL, for example, almost always charges your credit card for a month or two after you cancel an account. Many of the other companies they deal with just send you freaking terabytes of spam (granted anyone on AT would at least have enough of a brain to use a spam account when signing up, but most people are idiots). The vast majority of those who sign up for these scams don't get what they wanted and become hated by the few people who were pitiful enough in the first place to call their sorry, greedy, pimple-farming asses "friends". In addition, the scams create spam in forums and other venues.

 

[AntaresVI]

Originally posted by: Gurck
This type of scam makes money for two basic reasons - the vast majority of those who sign up don't get enough referrals, and the companies they deal with are unethical. AOL, for example, almost always charges your credit card for a month or two after you cancel an account. Many of the other companies they deal with just send you freaking terabytes of spam (granted anyone on AT would at least have enough of a brain to use a spam account when signing up, but most people are idiots). The vast majority of those who sign up for these scams don't get what they wanted and become hated by the few people who were pitiful enough in the first place to call their sorry, greedy, pimple-farming asses "friends". In addition, the scams create spam in forums and other venues.

Exactly. The lessons learned, therfore:

1) USE A SPARE EMAIL ADDRESS
2) Don't ask friends to do it
3) Don't spam forums
4) Use a single-use CC number
5) Don't give up - it only makes money for them.

 

[DaWhim]

I occasionally argue with friends who claim freeipod is not a scam.

your friend is looking for suckers who will sign up for him.

 

[AntaresVI]

Originally posted by: DaWhim
I occasionally argue with friends who claim freeipod is not a scam.

your friend is looking for suckers who will sign up for him.

I know it doesnt really prove anything, but it was still fun... and yes, it was free.

 

[Snapster]

If it's too good to be true, it generally is.

 

[Gurck]

Originally posted by: AntaresVI

Originally posted by: Gurck
This type of scam makes money for two basic reasons - the vast majority of those who sign up don't get enough referrals, and the companies they deal with are unethical. AOL, for example, almost always charges your credit card for a month or two after you cancel an account. Many of the other companies they deal with just send you freaking terabytes of spam (granted anyone on AT would at least have enough of a brain to use a spam account when signing up, but most people are idiots). The vast majority of those who sign up for these scams don't get what they wanted and become hated by the few people who were pitiful enough in the first place to call their sorry, greedy, pimple-farming asses "friends". In addition, the scams create spam in forums and other venues.

Exactly. The lessons learned, therfore:

1) USE A SPARE EMAIL ADDRESS
2) Don't ask friends to do it
3) Don't spam forums
4) Use a single-use CC number
5) Don't give up - it only makes money for them.

Who are you going to ask if you don't ask friends or spam forums? Why not just buy one? Guaranteed of getting it that way, and you're not scum in the process. In the time it'd take to get it for free you could earn more than the $300 at even a minimum wage job...

 

[AntaresVI]

Originally posted by: Gurck

Originally posted by: AntaresVI

Originally posted by: Gurck
This type of scam makes money for two basic reasons - the vast majority of those who sign up don't get enough referrals, and the companies they deal with are unethical. AOL, for example, almost always charges your credit card for a month or two after you cancel an account. Many of the other companies they deal with just send you freaking terabytes of spam (granted anyone on AT would at least have enough of a brain to use a spam account when signing up, but most people are idiots). The vast majority of those who sign up for these scams don't get what they wanted and become hated by the few people who were pitiful enough in the first place to call their sorry, greedy, pimple-farming asses "friends". In addition, the scams create spam in forums and other venues.

Exactly. The lessons learned, therfore:

1) USE A SPARE EMAIL ADDRESS
2) Don't ask friends to do it
3) Don't spam forums
4) Use a single-use CC number
5) Don't give up - it only makes money for them.

Who are you going to ask if you don't ask friends or spam forums? Why not just buy one? Guaranteed of getting it that way, and you're not scum in the process. In the time it'd take to get it for free you could earn more than the $300 at even a minimum wage job...

Actually I had this discussion with a guy on FARK. Basically, the way it works out (or how it worked out for me anyway) is that I paid for an advertisement on fark, and offered $5 to everyone that would give me a referral. I was very explicit in stating that I was not promising them an iPod, and in fact I did not think they coudl even get one. The money from me was ONLY for their time and effort in giving me a referral. So basically I waited for the referrals to come in and threw $5 by paypal to each of them. Total cost: $15 ad + $5x5 (25) = 40. $40 for an iPod ain't bad, especially considerign that in total I spent about an hour "working" on it. Yes, I could have easily wokred a week or more at a job to earn the cash to buy it, but instead I invested $40, worked at my job, and came away from that week with a free ipod AND money to cover my textbooks for that semester. pretty good deal, if you ask me.

I wouldn't consider myself to be "scum" at all. I made sure that the people helping me knew that they were ONLY helping me, not working towards an iPod.

The guy I had this discussion with on fark told me that because I got it for free, i was scum, and i need to "work for what i want." I do, however taking advantage of a situation that you know you can make a profit on is not scummy behavior - just the smart and calculated taking of risk in hopes of gaining a reward. I might have eaten the $40 if the deal didnt pan out, and I would have been pretty annoyed to - but I decided that the possible benefit outweighed the risk. THat calculation is different for everyone.

 

[kermalou]

did i read free ipod?

where do i sign up?

 

[DaWhim]

Originally posted by: AntaresVI

Originally posted by: DaWhim
I occasionally argue with friends who claim freeipod is not a scam.

your friend is looking for suckers who will sign up for him.

I know it doesnt really prove anything, but it was still fun... and yes, it was free.

I can probably get one if I want to. my family is big and it is easy to just ask my sister to sign up for me. but the trouble is not worth my time for it.

what are you trying to prove here? you got an ipod from freeipod.com? yes, it is a scam. yes, you have gotten your ipod, that doesn't mean it is not a scam. social security program is a scam as well.