Working from home can be a necessity, or a desire. But these days, most people who do work at home earn money through the internet. Online jobs are the choice of housebound people, stay-at-home parents and people who love their pajamas around the world.

Because scammers know that online jobs are popular, there are also a lot of scams out there aiming to take advantage of people looking for them. Learning how to avoid the scams is the first thing someone who wants online work needs to do. Luckily, there are a few key signs to look out for.

Don’t pay anyone for a chance at a job. Any site that requires you to give them money before they give you a job is a scheme, and will give you nothing of value. Don’t let your hard-earned cash slip through your hands and wind up in some morally-questionable person’s hands, even if the ‘jobs’ are tempting.

Just as in the real world, jobs that claim to require little effort and pay well are likely to be scams. Occasionally, a legitimate company will advertise with the maximum amount one of their employees made. These ads should also have disclaimers that those earnings are atypical, if they belong to a legitimate business.

Online jobs come in a couple of different types. There are traditional jobs that supply hourly wages, may or may not have flexible schedules, and usually are done for a specific company, and there are freelancing and piecemeal jobs. Traditional jobs may include salaries or benefits, while freelancing and piecemeal jobs will not, but they will offer much more flexibility.

Finding online jobs isn’t that easy. If you are looking to work a more traditional job that you just want to do online, look at regular job listing sites for ‘telecommuting’ positions. This is often the term used to describe working over the internet. If you are interested in more piecemeal work, you could try a brokering site for freelancers, or searching for job sites that specialize in online jobs.

Putting in the time to find a way to earn income using the internet can be frustrating. Some job seekers give up and go back to the real world. Others don’t have a choice. But the job market online is just as prone to dips and peaks as the real-world market, and some skills are just more sought-after.