How You Might Get Scammed Every Day -- And How AlterNet Helps You Fight Back

The world is awash in scams. Everywhere you turn, someone is trying to rip you off, peddling inferior, overpriced goods and services to squeeze you for every penny.

It's tough to get value for your dollar; being a smart, knowledgeable consumer of quality goods and services can be a full-time job. From the wildly inflated price of eye glasses, to the shocking ways your cable company is likely fleecing you, AlterNet has helped you navigate a marketplace filled with companies that only care about the bottom line.

You can trust us to find out what is going on, and what the alternatives are to the products pushed with huge marketing budgets.

We believe in saving you money, protecting you from inferior products and holding big corporations accountable.

We've gone after: the cell phone industry, cable TV, and bank industry pick pockets. We've exposed how the purchase of essential goods -- beds, health products, make-up, even funerals -- are often opportunities for inflated prices and  cons.

But we need support to keep our coverage of these scams going full force.

Can you help?

Here are some recent AlterNet stories: *  

• The Eyewear Industry is an Incredible Rip off, But There Are Alternatives

• The Cable Companies' $46+ Billion Robbery

• The Cosmetics Racket -- Why the Beauty Industry Can Get Away with Charging a Fortune for Makeup

• The Mattress Racket -- Why You End up Paying a Lot More for a Bed Than You Should

• How the Phone Companies Are Screwing America: The $320 Billion Broadband Rip-Off

We have a great team of consumer investigators in pursuit of these scam artists, doing original reporting and writing for AlterNet -- Anneli Rufus, Scott Thill, Zach Carter, Habiba Alcindor, Frankie Colmane, David Rosen, Bruce Kushnick, and many more.

AlterNet is aggressively pursuing the crooks, and finding alternatives that are better for the earth and for your pocketbook.  I trust you agree that there are far too many "rackets" and "scams." With the overflow of information it's hard to keep up with what is true and what is fabricated.

• Are Probiotics Really the Secret to Good Health (Or Just the Latest Crackpot Supplement Fad?)

• The Shaving Racket -- How Are Gillette and Schick Getting Away with Ripoff Razors?

• Dollar Stores: The Last, and Not So Healthy Eating Choice, Before the Food Lines

• If You Knew How Dangerous Green Cleaning Products Were, You'd Probably Go Back to Soap and Water

• Funerals for Less: 7 Ways to Save Money and Help Mother Nature and Humankind on Your Way Out

Here is a testimonial from one reader:

"Just wanted to pass along thanks to AlterNet and Anneli Rufus for her article "Wow -- the Eyewear Industry Is an Incredible Ripoff, But There Are Alternatives." I read the article just  before I broke my 10-year old glasses. I had already known I would have to see an optometrist "some day soon" because my aging glasses weren't keeping up with my aging eyes. So I used Angie's List to find a local, affordable, optometrist, had my eyes examined, and got my written prescription to shop on the internet. I ended up buying two pairs of glasses, one each from Goggles4u and Zenni Optical. I saved 75% and 82%, respectively, off what the optometrist wanted to charge me."

I hope I have convinced you that AlterNet's consumer protection coverage is a worthy investment. Millions of people have read these articles and saved money, time, and aggravation.

Our end of the year fundraising campaign is in full force. But we have a ways to go to reach our goal of $80k by Christmas. Can we depend on you? Please make a contribution if you can afford it.

• The Eyewear Industry is an Incredible Rip off, But There Are Alternatives