What do you do if you find yourself in debt that you simply have no way of paying off? Suicide is never an answer, nor is running away, so why not get other people to pay it off for you, courtesy of the Internet?
This new phenomenon has raised its head recently on the Web, and it has become so prevalent that Internet experts have even coined a phrase for it: "cyberbegging".
It seems that many Web surfers are either na"ive, gullible or they just have too much money in their pockets, because many of these cyberbegging sites have been making plenty of cash.
Rodney Weidemann, journalist, ITWeb
It seems weird to me that people would consider sending money to a total stranger, particularly when their reasons for wanting it are something trivial like paying off a massive credit card debt or a student loan.
However, it seems that many Web surfers are either na"ive, gullible or they just have too much money in their pockets, because many of these cyberbegging sites have been making plenty of cash.
Much like the story of the man who made a fortune simply by putting an advert in the newspaper which said: "Last chance to send in your dollar!" along with an address to send it to, it seems that people can be convinced to part with their hard-earned loot if it is just made to sound worthwhile.
At the forefront of the cyberbegging wave was the Web site SaveKaryn.com, which was set up by a 29-year-old New Yorker named Karyn Bosnak, in order to raise money to pay off a $20 000 credit card debt.
In spite of her honesty, or perhaps because of it (she told visitors immediately that her reason for wanting the money was to pay off the debt that she`d foolishly run up thanks to buying designer clothes), within months she managed to raise enough to pay off the debt.
The key to her success, it seems, was to create a site that visitors found visually appealing, was updated regularly and made for light, fun reading. Apparently desperate sob stories don`t work, as it puts people off.
'Downright scary`
Christine Kent, who has a cyberbegging site of her own, SaveBuster.com, which raises money for a non-profit organisation that helps people with Aids and other illnesses keep their pets, says that donating money to such sites is like spending money on a magazine, or paying a cover charge to see a band.
She believes that as long as the site is fun to read, updated regularly and gives readers a few laughs, people feel it is worthwhile donating some money as a way of saying thank you.
Of course, as would be the case with any such idea, there are the detractors.
Bosnak recently said that of the 2 000-plus e-mails she received regarding her Web site, at least half of them were mean to downright scary.
Her Web site has even spawned its own online detractors, in the form of a satirical rival site called DontSaveKaryn.com.
She is by no means the only one to be making money this way, nor is her Web site the strangest of the cyberbegging bunch.
Penny Hawkins, a nursing student and mother from Washington State, caused a stir when she began a site with the address HelpMeLeaveMyHusband.com.
The idea was to raise money for tuition so that she could further her education to be able to afford both the divorce and to provide day care for her children. Possibly the strangest part of this story is that her husband is aware of the plan and agrees with it.
She was so amazed that there were so many kind people willing to help her out that she decided that her next objective is to do something with the site that would "pay it forward".
According to her site, she is now promoting a charitable organisation called DirectAid, which donates 100% of its proceeds to individuals in need, such as survivors of serious car accidents and so forth.
This is an admirable-sounding promotion and it may be that the cyberbegging craze will spawn a new wave of sites to raise funds for charitable causes, especially if those who began the sites feel they must now put something back after being helped out themselves.
However, despite the potential good that could come from this new phenomenon, I think the idea of sending money to strangers who can`t look after their own finances in the first place is not only ridiculous, but also brainless.
I, for one, will keep my cash in my wallet and my credit card number firmly to myself when it comes to what is mad enough to truly be called the latest Internet craze.
Share