Many people are spending a great deal of time online these days, and since they are why not make a little money at the same time? Despite the fact that some view the internet as a bit of a dangerous place, it can actually be quite safe and reliable for money making. Several jobs that are available on the internet are legitimate and well paying for the effort that you put forth.

There are several advantage to having an online job versus a real world job. One obvious advantage is the convenience of working from home, with no need to spend money on expensive business clothing or gassing up your car for the commute. Much of the time these jobs are simple and flexible, you can work as much or as little as you want, you are your own boss.

Online stores or auction sites are a popular way to earn money online. Through these sites, you are able to sell items you already have, or you can search through garage sales, thrift shops or markets for bargains you can resell. If you do it properly, you can earn a good profit through online sales. However, it can also take up a lot of time, especially if you sell large numbers of items, and there is a fair bit of offline work involved.

There are a number of online jobs that involve the Web 2.0 phenomenon known as "crowd sourcing". With these jobs, you will earn small amounts of money for carrying out small tasks. Although the individual sums may seem small, before too long they can really add up. Other Internet jobs may pay more, but small tasks such as these offer greater flexibility and there is only very small amount of offline work involved.

The third type of money-making position involves affiliating with advertising sites. These positions all start in the same fashion: start a website, link it to one of many advertising programs, and await visitors. After that, you may either collect money for each person that sees your site (pay-per-view ads) or clicks on the advertising banner that you place (pay-per-click ads). If the advertising site is legitimate, you should get paid either way. If you can attract traffic to your website, the possibility of great profits awaits.

You need to be careful anytime you deal with other companies over the Internet. Be especially wary of any site that asks upfront for your social security number, credit card number, or other unique identifier; such sites are known to take this information, run up bills in your name, and disappear. Also, taxes on income you earn over the Internet are your responsibility, so make sure that you know the rules on declaring income, deductions, and credits that apply to you.

Many people would be pleasantly surprised at what Internet jobs can offer these days. You can earn substantial sums of money from the convenience of your own home. Online jobs also offer flexibility and in many cases a steady income stream. Thanks to the Internet's growing presence in people's lives all over the world, you will have little trouble finding your own making money online business opportunity.