2009 was quite a profitable year for online scammers. With people in debt and/or out of work, the online scam industry really saw a boon in total money "earned" via empty claims, shady products, and outrageous shipping charges or membership fees.

Internet scams works incredibly well, given the nature of the online ordering process. While you could send a check through the mail for a scam product, you are far more likely to use your credit card. Once online scam sites have your credit card information, they are given free reign to do what they like and when they like. A $79.99 shipping fee for a small book? Check. A $59.99 recurring membership fee for simply ordering a bottle of vitamins? You bet. And trying to reach the site for a refund or for help will be next to impossible. While consumers have ganged up and gotten the BBB involved, and have even had the FCC come in and shut down some operations (e.g., Google Money Tree), online scams continue to pop up like weeds. The best thing you can do? Avoid getting involved altogether.

Still, there are several online scams that are worth mentioning:

The Teeth Whitener Scam

Purely White, LLC., is just one company that has been named as a guilty party in terms of its online product "sales". Customers sign up for a free trial of teeth whitener, paying a few dollars for shipping. However, what the company does not say is that, by signing up for the free trial, one is simultaneously enrolled in a recurring product shipment program. The product and product shipment charges can be hefty; consumers might be charged anywhere from $50-$100 for additional product and shipping.

Canceling the membership and obtaining a refund on the products is tricky because the company’s customer service line is either busy or not staffed.

The Debt Consolidation Scam

AmeriDebt Inc. and Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. are just two companies that have come under severe criticism for their debt consolidation services. These companies were found engaging in several questionable practices, such as charging customer service fees that were then funneled to other for-profit agencies. Also, the director of Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. was receiving over $600,000 in annual salary, as compared to most director salaries of about $60,000.

Debt consolidation scams are particularly harmful to consumers because in many cases the consumer entrusts the agency to make payments to the creditors. In essence, the consumer sends the money owed to the creditors to the debt consolidation service, which is then assumed to channel the money to the creditors. This often does not happen, resulting in the consumer having his or her credit score ruined.

The Government Stimulus Scam

When Obama authorized a government stimulus plan of some $700 billion last year, government stimulus scam sites also sprung up. Scam sites started posting pictures of the President and Vice President in order to look legitimate. They also stated that anyone could obtain a stimulus grant for just $1.99 and by answering a few questions. The few questions consisted of personal information like a telephone number, bank account number, and home address. With this information in hand, the scammers then did two things: they started making large withdrawals from the victim’s bank account, and they used the personal information to commit identity theft. The scammers were long gone by the time the consumer caught on and started making calls and inquiries.

The Acai Berry Scam

Many scams try to look legitimate by associating themselves with a celebrity. In the case of the Acai Berry supplement scam, it was Oprah Winfrey. Oprah touted the acai berry as a great weight loss agent. However, Oprah Winfrey was endorsing the berry itself, not the supplement. Scam sites immediately popped up showing Winfrey’s profile and suggesting that she was endorsing acai berry supplement products. Oprah Winfrey and her parent company sued many of these scam sites, including Advanced Wellness Research, Crush LLC, and Amirouche & Norton, LLC.

The Acai berry supplement scam ran very much like other scams. After the initial supplement product was ordered, the unsuspecting consumer would be charged an additional amount of money. The additional charge was never authorized by the customer. The charge would recur on a monthly basis, and cancelling out of the program was difficult because Customer Service lines would often be unavilable or busy.

The Work-at-Home Scam

Work at home scams have always been around, but profilferated incredibly in the last year thanks to the recession. With people out of work, and looking to make money, many folks easily succumbed to work-at-home scams.

Most work-at-home scams offered the same hook, line, and sinker: by depositing checks, money orders, or by accepting wire transfers, one could make a commission as an income. Other scam sites asked consumers to perform tasks such as stuffing envelopes.

Some scams asked that consumers put up thousands of dollars in order to invest in a "business opportunity". One such company was Global Resources, which scammed investors out of more than $4 million. Global asked that its investors put up $15,000 to purchase a Global distributorship. Those that bought into this scam were told that they would make back their initial investment in about 6 months. No one did.

Yep, it’s been a great year for scammers and scam sites. If you’ve been taken by any of these sites, don’t sit back quietly. Work with your local BBB and the FCC and report online scams to the authorities. Help protect yourself and others.