If you do a lot of browsing on the internet, particularly in the arenas of business opportunities and internet marketing, you cannot have failed to have noticed all the so called "Doublers" springing up every few hours. Just invest a bit of your hard earned money, and it will keep doubling for ever and ever and you will be rich in no time. Have you seen them?

Many of them reflect the hazards and vulnerability of the internet, to those who are unsuspecting and vulnerable to the "Get Rich Quick" lure. Yet another doubler popped up on my screen recently. Usually I just pass them by, but this time I just went in to do what everyone should do, looked for who was behind it, how to contact them, what experience and track record they had. The answer was as I expected. The only contact was a form in which you gave them your email address. So they had captured you as a lead. But what about them? Who were "they"?

"They" did not exist, at least as far as that particular website was concerned. No names, no address, no telephone number, no fax number, not even an email address. The website could have been set up by a crook in an open prison in England, a nursery school student in the US, a nun in the African jungle, my 12 month old daughter while I wasn't looking, or, most likely, a scam artist just about anywhere in the world.

Of course, there was a table showing you how much you would earn if you threw your innocent cash at the scam. Put in $200, and soon you'd get $400; put in $10,000 and soon you'd get $20,000. Well, they were educated enough to work out what double was; that's a big plus I suppose, in a world where substance is thin on the ground. So, how did they pay out these rewards? Well, no indication of that, or anything else important. It was a simple web, woven to tempt an innocent.

Before putting your money, even your precious time, into any business, online or offline, it is best to put in some due diligence. Large companies do it on a grand scale when mounting a takeover bid, but it's just as important for an individual looking into a small business to work from home.

Please, always check out at least the following before committing to an online business or program:

1. The Contact and About Us information. There should be a physical address, and telephone number, plus at least the name of the main person behind the program, as well as an email address of course.

2. If there is a name of an individual, try to check out their track record when it comes to running an online business. They could be very experienced and you may be in at the beginning of their latest success story. Or they may have no business experience at all. A simple search may reveal some interesting facts, or lack of them.

There are many things you can check on, of course, which will improve your chances of hitting on the right business. However, before you do any market, product or price research, use the two above checks to set the first hurdle. If the program falls at those hurdles, it's best to look elsewhere. After all, there are lots of good programs and businesses out there which have behind them all the experience, credibility, and accessibility you could wish for.