I had often heard about internet marketing but wondering what it was all about. Being a stay at home mom with a limited family income, it has always been my desire to make money online. I've found out that in internet marketing, affiliate programs are very popular. These programs allow you to sell other people's products and get commission from what you sell.

Since I was an absolute internet marketing newbie and have no product of my own to sell, so my best option to make money online is to join affiliate program(s).

At the early part of my internet marketing experience I had a little knowledge about surfing the internet and never felt threatened about the security of my personal identity.

One day I had applied to several affiliate programs. Most of these programs will pay you through Paypal when you earn a commission. Therefore the applicants are required to have a Paypal account and to supply their Paypal email address.

The following day after applying to several affiliate programs, I received an email notification which appeared coming from Paypal service. The notification was directing me to update my account by clicking the link provided in the email. Failure to do so, they will assume my account as fraudulent, and my account will be deleted.

After clicking the link I was directed to a page that asked my personal info including my complete credit card number with the security code, and Social Security number. It also asked my ATM PIN but I didn't have one. So I just went ahead and clicked the SUBMIT button, then a message in red letters popped up and told me that I needed to type in my ATM PIN.

Somehow I felt the urge to call Paypal. When I contacted the customer service I found out that they hadn't sent me an email for updating my account. I was told that I got a "spoof email" (also known as "phishing"). It's an email that appears to be coming from your financial institution (such as banks, credit card companies, etc.) and directs you to supply your personal info. This email looks real and official. It comes with the company's logo.

When I called Paypal I was told to go through a process in verifying my identity and my physical location. They were very good in helping me out of this mess.

Let's all beware of this kind of scam. Financial institutions won't call you by phone or send you email to solicit your personal info for account update purposes.

To the internet marketing beginners: when you apply for any affiliate program, make sure you are in a secured area. At the bottom right corner of the webpage there will be a picture of a closed padlock if the site is secure.

To protect yourself from fraud you can visit these following sites: http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft/ and https://onguardonline.gov/phishing.html

If you think your identity has been stolen; place a fraud alert on your credit report(s). You only need to contact the fraud departments of any one of these consumer reporting companies to place an alert. The company you have contacted is required to contact the other two:

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com;

P.O. Box 740241,

Atlanta, GA 30374-0241

TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289;

www.transunion.com

Fraud Victim Assistance Division,

P.O. Box 6790, Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742);

www.experian.com

P.O. Box 9532, Allen, TX 75013

I used Experian. Here is a tip: Click CONTACT US. Find box: Fraud, Identity Theft & Your Credit. Click: Visit our Credit Fraud Center. Choose what protection is applicable for you.

Once you place the fraud alert in your file, you'll get a free credit report. Read your credit report carefully and look for suspicious information.

The sites that I've listed above for you to visit, provide you information on how to report if you are a victim of Identity Theft. Or you can contact EXPERIAN or EQUIFAX or TRANSUNION for assistance.

When I told my husband about the mess I had made, he said: "You fool around to much on the internet and you almost lost our household."

My suggestion: If you have a Paypal or any online merchant account, have a separate bank account for these purposes only.

I just thank the Lord for saving my household.

Have a safe Internet Marketing venture.