There are dozens of schemes out there with tips on how to get rich quick in a recession.
RCMP is now warning us on some of those scams that can tempt you to make a bad decision in a bad economy.
Matt Alert is without job and on the hunt.
He went online to find work and applied for a job he had found there.
"They wanted me to look after their client to drive them around as a chauffeur for three weeks," explains Alert.
He got an email the next day saying he had gotten the job.
The email advised him he would get an $8,800 cheque to pay his salary and the car rental.
He was told to deposit the cheque, pay himself and wire the rest of the money to an international company to pay for the rental.
Right away he knew something was wrong.
"It's a legitimate cheque; it's got a hologram everything else is on there," he says.
Alert did not deposit the cheque; instead he plans to call police.
He says 300 people responded to the job posting.
He worries in this type of economy some people wanting to make fast money may have fallen for the scam.
"That would be a big red flag where that trust comes in place because how many employers would be issuing a cheque right off the bat?" asks Cst. Ben Doiron of the RCMP Commercial Crime Section.
Cst. Ben Doiron says the employment scam is just one of many get-rich-quick schemes out there.
There is the lottery scam where you are told you have won a lot of money.
There is also the overpayment scam where you try to sell something online and a potential buyer sends you a cheque for more than what you were asking for.
They then request a refund for the difference; of course the first cheque is no good.
There is the Ponze or Pyramid scheme.
That is where people think they are putting money in a prudent investment for a high return and little risk.
Just like the case involving Bernie Madoff's Ponze scheme, the investors find out later their money is gone.
"Of course it doesn't exist. They're just recycling money over and over again," says Cst. Doiron.
RCMP says these schemes are nothing new.
They have been around in one shape or another for years yet people still fall for them.
Investigators expect more people will too because there is a lack of trust in the stock market.
"Because of uncertainty there may be a confidence issue with the regular investment market; they may become a little more inventive on how they want to invest their money," says Cpl. Chris Lambert of the RCMP Commercial Crime Section.
Police suggest you ask questions and do your research because if you do not you could lose money instead of making it.
Mounties say they get an average of 80 to 100 fraud complaints a month in Manitoba.
If you are concerned you may have been approached by an illegitimate financial advisor about a Ponze scheme you can call the Manitoba Securities Commission to find out whether the advisor is legitimate.
With a report from CTV's Rachel Lagac�
