Looking for a side hustle should help you make money. It should not cost you your savings, expose your identity, or leave you owing money to your bank.
Unfortunately, side hustle scams are becoming harder to recognize.
They do not always look like the old-fashioned scams many of us were taught to avoid. The message may look professional. The person contacting you may claim to represent a company you recognize. There may be a website, an app, a job title, testimonials, and even people in a group chat talking about how much money they have made.
Some scams even pay you a small amount of money at first.
That is what makes them dangerous.
According to the Federal Trade Commission, reports involving job scams and fake employment agencies nearly tripled between 2020 and 2024. Reported losses grew from approximately $90 million in 2020 to $501 million in 2024.
And scammers know exactly who they are targeting: people who are trying to improve their financial situation.
Maybe you need extra money after retirement. Maybe groceries and utilities have gotten harder to cover. Maybe you want something flexible you can do from home. Maybe you’re trying to pay down debt or build some savings.
If your goal is eventually to create income for yourself instead of depending on questionable online opportunities, you can also read my guide on how to start a business without going into debt
There is nothing wrong with looking for additional income.
But before you say yes to an opportunity, you need to know what the person on the other side of that message may actually be trying to get from you.
Why Side Hustle Scams Can Look So Real
Scammers have gotten much better at presentation.
A scam does not necessarily arrive in an email full of misspelled words from someone claiming you inherited millions of dollars.
Today, you might receive a text saying:
“We saw your résumé and think you would be a great fit for a remote position. Flexible schedule. Earn $300-$500 per day. Reply YES for details.”
The FTC has also warned about fake recruiters sending unexpected texts for remote jobs, sometimes using the names of legitimate companies
That may sound believable, particularly if you have recently been searching for work.
In April 2026, the FTC warned about fake recruiters sending messages like these. Some claim to represent legitimate companies and offer vague positions such as an “online assessor” or simply a “remote position.” The messages may mention attractive daily or weekly pay without clearly explaining what the job actually involves.
Sometimes they do not even send a link.
They simply ask you to reply YES or INTERESTED.
That little reply opens the conversation.
And that is often when the real scam begins.
Online scams are becoming more convincing, which is why I also put together these [AI and money safety tips for older adults] to help you recognize other ways technology can be used to mislead you.
Red Flag #1: You Never Applied for the Job
Not every unexpected job opportunity is automatically fraudulent. Recruiters sometimes contact qualified candidates.
But an unexpected offer deserves extra scrutiny.
Be particularly cautious when someone suddenly contacts you through:
- Text message
- Telegram
- Facebook or another social-media platform
- An unfamiliar email address
The FTC specifically warns consumers about generic and unexpected messages offering online work.
Before continuing the conversation, stop and investigate.
Search for the company’s official website yourself rather than using the link provided in the message.
Then ask:
Does this position actually exist on the company’s career page?
If the message says it came from Walmart, Amazon, Microsoft, a hospital, a bank, or another recognizable company, do not assume the name makes the offer legitimate.
Scammers can use real company names too.
Red Flag #2: The Pay Sounds Amazing, but the Job Description Says Almost Nothing
This is one of the easiest red flags to miss.
You see:
$300 per day.
Your attention immediately goes to the money.
But what exactly are you being paid $300 to do?
A legitimate employer should be able to explain:
- What your responsibilities are
- Who you will work for
- How compensation works
- Whether you are an employee or independent contractor
- How often you are paid
- What qualifications are required
- Who supervises the work
The FTC warns consumers to be skeptical of offers promising large amounts of money for very little effort.
If someone can explain the income better than they can explain the work, investigate before going any further.
Red Flag #3: You Have to Pay Before You Can Make Money
This one needs to become a rule:
You should not have to pay someone in order to receive your paycheck.
A scammer may call the payment something else.
It could be a:
- Training fee
- Registration fee
- Activation fee
- Equipment fee
- Certification fee
- Software fee
- Account upgrade
- Security deposit
- Starter package
The explanation can sound completely reasonable.
Before paying for training, registration, equipment, or access to a job, read the FTC’s guidance on how to avoid a side hustle scam
But the FTC’s current guidance is clear: legitimate gigs do not require you to pay expenses, training costs, or other upfront fees simply to get the job.
There is a difference between starting your own business, where you may choose to purchase supplies or equipment, and someone claiming to hire you but demanding money before you can work.
Know which situation you are actually entering.
If you use AI while building your business, my guide on How to Create an AI Business Profile can help you give AI the right information so you get more useful and consistent results.
Red Flag #4: They Pay You First and Then Ask for Money Back
This one can be extremely convincing.
A company tells you that you are hired.
Wonderful.
Then they send you a check.
Maybe they tell you the money is for a computer, printer, software, supplies, or home-office equipment.
You deposit the check.
Your banking app shows that the money is available.
So you follow the instructions and send part of the money to a “vendor.”
A few days later, your bank discovers that the original check was fraudulent.
The money disappears from your account.
But the money you sent out was real.
That means you may now owe the bank.
The FTC specifically warns that fake recruiters may send fraudulent checks and then instruct victims to send some of the money elsewhere.
Do not assume a check is legitimate just because your bank temporarily makes the funds available.
Red Flag #5: Your “Job” Is Clicking, Rating, Liking or Boosting Things
This is one of the newer scams I especially want people to understand.
It is often called a task scam.
You might be told your job is to:
- Like videos
- Rate products
- Review images
- Optimize apps
- Boost products
- Complete online orders
- Click through sets of tasks
At first, everything may look legitimate.
You log into an app or website.
You complete your tasks.
Your account shows earnings.
You might even receive a small payment.
And that small payment is important because it makes you think:
“See? This is real. They paid me.”
Then comes the trap.
The system tells you that you need to deposit some of your own money to unlock another level, complete a group of tasks, fix a negative balance, or withdraw your earnings.
The FTC explains exactly how these task scams create fake earnings and sometimes use small initial payouts to build trust
The FTC says task scams commonly create an illusion that a person is accumulating commissions. Victims may even receive small payouts early in the process to build trust. Eventually, they are told to deposit their own money to continue or withdraw what they supposedly earned. Those displayed earnings are not real.
In the first half of 2024 alone, the FTC estimated about 20,000 reports of task scams, compared with about 5,000 during all of 2023.
Here is the rule I want you to remember:
A job pays you. You do not pay for the job.
Red Flag #6: They Want Cryptocurrency
Stop.
Do not let anyone convince you that cryptocurrency is simply the company’s normal payroll system.
The FTC found that cryptocurrency became a major payment method connected with task scams. Reported cryptocurrency losses associated with job scams reached about $41 million during the first half of 2024 alone, compared with roughly $21 million during all of 2023.
If your new “employer” tells you to purchase cryptocurrency so you can complete your work, unlock earnings, replenish an account, or qualify for commissions, do not send the money.
Red Flag #7: They Pressure You to Decide Immediately
“You have to register today.”
“There are only three positions left.”
“If you don’t complete the deposit now, you’ll lose your earnings.”
“This opportunity closes tonight.”
Scammers do not want you thinking.
They especially do not want you calling your daughter, son, spouse, friend, bank, or someone else who might look at the situation and say:
“Wait a minute. Something isn’t right.”
The FTC advises people to be suspicious when someone pressures them to accept a side gig immediately. Legitimate employers allow people time to consider an offer.
If an opportunity cannot survive 24 hours of research, it is not an opportunity you need.
Red Flag #8: Your New Job Is Receiving and Reshipping Packages
The job title may sound impressive.
“Quality Control Manager.”
“Package Processing Specialist.”
“Delivery Operations Specialist.”
You receive merchandise at your home, inspect it, put another shipping label on it, and send it somewhere else.
Simple.
Except the merchandise may have been purchased using stolen credit cards or obtained through another fraudulent transaction.
The FTC continues to warn consumers about work-from-home reshipping scams, including offers where someone’s supposed job is simply to receive merchandise, repackage it, and send it to another address.
Do not allow your home to become part of someone else’s fraud operation.
Red Flag #9: They Want You to Receive or Transfer Money
Another fake side hustle can turn you into what is called a money mule.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau explains that a money mule can unknowingly receive and transfer money that came from fraud victims.
You may be asked to receive money into your bank account and then:
- Send it somewhere else
- Wire it to another person
- Purchase cryptocurrency
- Buy gift cards
- Transfer it between accounts
- Keep a percentage as your “commission”
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau warns that scammers recruit money mules through online jobs, advertisements, and social-media posts promising easy money for little effort.
Never allow a stranger or supposed employer to use your personal bank account to move money for them.
The Five-Minute Side Hustle Check
Before accepting an opportunity, spend five minutes checking it.
1. Search the company yourself
Do not start with the link the recruiter gave you.
Search for the official company website.
2. Search the company name plus:
- Scam
- Complaints
- Reviews
- Job scam
The FTC recommends researching companies this way before accepting unexpected side-hustle offers.
3. Find the job on the company’s official website
If they claim Amazon is hiring you, go directly to Amazon’s official career website.
Do not ask the recruiter to send another link.
Find it independently.
4. Verify the person
If someone claims to be a recruiter, search the person’s name and company.
Then contact the company through contact information you found independently.
5. Ask one simple question
“Do I have to send money, buy something, deposit money, transfer money, or use my personal bank account as part of this job?”
If the answer is yes, investigate before proceeding.
In many cases, you should simply walk away.
What If You’ve Already Sent Money?
Do not let embarrassment stop you from taking action.
Scammers are professionals at manipulating urgency, trust, fear, financial stress, and hope.
If you believe you’ve been scammed:
Contact your bank or financial institution immediately.
Tell them exactly what happened and ask whether a transaction can be stopped or reversed.
Change compromised passwords.
If you used the same password elsewhere, change those accounts too.
Protect your identity.
If you provide sensitive personal information such as your Social Security number, take identity-theft precautions.
Report the scam.
The Federal Trade Commission accepts fraud reports through ReportFraud.ftc.gov, and internet-enabled crimes can also be reported to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
If you believe you were scammed, you can report the fraud directly to the Federal Trade Commission
If your identity was compromised, federal consumer guidance also recommends taking steps such as closing compromised accounts and considering fraud alerts or credit freezes.
And one more warning:
Be careful of anyone who contacts you afterward promising that they can recover your lost money for a fee.
That can be another scam.
A Side Hustle Is Supposed to Improve Your Finances
There are legitimate ways to earn extra income.
You can freelance.
Sell products.
Provide services.
Tutor.
Consult.
Pet sit.
Clean homes.
Deliver food.
Sell handmade products.
Work legitimate remote positions.
Turn a hobby or skill into income.
But legitimate work still needs to make financial sense.
You should know what you are doing, who you are doing it for, how you will be paid, and what expenses you are responsible for before you agree.
The promise of easy money is powerful when you need money.
That is precisely why you should slow down.
If your goal is to create legitimate extra income of your own, you may also want to read First Ten Steps to Starting a Business.
Liz Note
I am a big believer in finding ways to make extra income, especially when your regular income isn’t stretching as far as it used to.
But I also believe in asking questions.
If someone offers you an opportunity and gets irritated because you’re asking questions, keep asking.
If they tell you not to discuss the opportunity with anyone else, discuss it with someone else.
If they pressure you because you are taking too long, take even longer.
And if you have to send them money before they will allow you to earn money, that side hustle may be making money for somebody.
Just not for you.
Protect the money you already have while you’re working on making more.
Before You Say Yes: Side Hustle Safety Checklist
- I know the legal name of the company.
- I found the company’s official website myself.
- I confirmed that the job or opportunity actually exists.
- I understand exactly what work I will be doing.
- I know how and when I will be paid.
- I researched the company with the words “scam,” “complaint,” and “review.”
- I am not being pressured to make an immediate decision.
- I have not been asked to pay a registration, training, activation, equipment, or processing fee just to get the job.
- I have not been asked to deposit a check and send some of the money elsewhere.
- I have not been asked to send cryptocurrency.
- I have not been asked to use my bank account to receive or transfer company money.
- I have not been asked to receive and reship packages.
- The opportunity involves real work, not simply clicking, liking, rating, or “boosting” products.
- I have talked about the opportunity with someone I trust.
- I feel comfortable walking away if something does not make sense.
If you cannot confidently check these boxes, investigate before sending money or personal information.
If the scam happened online, you can also file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, commonly called IC3
Frequently Asked Questions
Are all work-from-home jobs scams?
No. There are many legitimate remote jobs and businesses. The important difference is that legitimate employers can explain the work, hiring process, company, compensation, and expectations. A legitimate employer should not require you to send money simply to receive a job.
Can a scammer really pretend to work for a legitimate company?
Yes. Scammers may use the names of recognizable businesses or pretend to be recruiters representing them. The FTC warned about this specific tactic in 2026.
What if they already paid me a small amount?
That does not prove the opportunity is legitimate. Task scams sometimes provide small initial payments to build trust before asking the victim to deposit much larger amounts.
Is it normal for an employer to send me money to buy equipment?
Some legitimate employers provide equipment, but you should be extremely cautious if someone sends you a check and instructs you to purchase equipment from a particular vendor or send part of the money elsewhere. Fake-check scams frequently use this setup.
Where can I report a side hustle scam?
Fraud can be reported to the Federal Trade Commission through ReportFraud.ftc.gov. Internet-enabled crime can also be reported to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).
Final Thought
You do not have to be afraid of every opportunity you see online.
You just need to become harder to fool.
Before giving anyone your money, banking information, Social Security number, identification, or access to your financial accounts, verify who you are dealing with.
A few minutes of checking can save you months or even years of trying to recover from a financial loss.
And remember the simplest rule of all: