Scams.  Some are clearly illegal (the Nigerian money one and its derivatives) and others are only marginally legal.  Today we talk about the marginally legal ones.

There are 2 types.  One promises a free 30 day sample (Enzyte), but you have to buy a 30 day sample.  And as they are selling you sugar pills, they make money from day one.  hell, they can send you a year free!  If you pay for a year, and they still make money!  And they share one thing in common with the other 'legal' scam.  More later.

The second is "we will send you a free 30 day supply!  Just pay {small amount} for shipping and Handling, and it is yours!".  If they are so sure you will love the product, why charge such a paltry sum for shipping and handling?  After all, if they hook you with the first free sample, they can gouge you for the costs in later shipments!  So why that paltry sum?

The answer, and both scams are doing it for the same reason, is they get your credit card information!  So when you get their product, and you dont like it, guess what?  It keeps on coming and coming and coming!  And your card keeps getting dunned and dunned and dunned!  In the second category, put Focus Factor and Hoodia.  I have never bought any of them, but my wife did try Hoodia, and we had to finally cancel the card to get them to stop charging us for merchandise, at first unordered, and then unsent!

And calling them? "We will have to get someone to call you back...".  That was 5 months ago, and i am still waiting.

Internet Scams are not always Nigerians promising you millions.  More likely they are snake oil salesmen selling you sugar pills and hitting your credit card  for outrageous prices!  The effect is almost the same for the unattentive.  The difference is one is legal, the other clearly not.  Actually, both should be drawn and quartered!