Investment sales pitches prevail through email, fax, and phone.  There seems to be something about the promises of a great opportunity, or even riches, that draw people in.

Be especially careful of an unsolicited communication promoting any type of financial scheme or product. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is.  Before investing in any product, system, or company - investigate.  Time spent upfront will be well worth the money saved in the long run avoiding being the victim of a scam.

Here are four scams the SEC has specifically warned investors about through their website http://www.sec.gov:

The Pump and Dump Scam – This scam starts out with investors being presented a stock, normally a penny stock (very low share price) and sometimes one that has very thin trading volume.  The presenter will give reasons why this stock is about to take off and climb the charts.  Sometimes they will even claim to have some inside information.  The problem is that the promoters already have large positions in the stock.  By trying to get you to buy it, they are simple tying to create a buzz about the stock, which will increase the price temporarily, while people rush in to buy shares.  Once this happens the scammers will quickly sell their large positions in the stock making a fast profit.  But as they exit, the stock price will decline as quickly as it went up.  The investors who bought in on the tip will be left empty handed.

The Pyramid – This scam is as old as time.  But the internet has brought it to a whole new level.  Big riches are promised for little effort.  It sounds promising but it normally isn’t.  In the end it boils down to trying to make money by bringing on new members underneath you into the program.  Not all types of multi-level programs are scams but beware of those promising the moon.

The Risk-Free Fraud – Investment and risk-free seldom ever cross paths in the real world, but that doesn’t stop scammers from promoting new age sounding companies, products and systems as being free from risk.  Again the internet brings these types of advertisements right to your inbox and has increased their prominence.

Off-shore Frauds - This category proposes a huge risk due to its very nature.  Often criminals involved in these scams cannot be fully controlled by law enforcement officials in the United States.  Many times, it’s marketing that these companies are selling, not an investment.

Before making any investment, especially an unsolicited one, take a closer look at the offer.  Try to detach from the emotion that the clever marketing has created.  Ask questions:

Why is this offer being presented to me?

Is this investing or simply speculation?

What do I really know about this offer?

Do I have enough details, or is it simply hype?

Am I being presented facts or marketing?

Can I verify the information they are providing?

The bottom line of course is to do your homework.  You earned your money, and to let it slip fraudulently away into the hands of a criminal isn’t part of your retirement plan.