Alms and the web

Ed needs a Hummer ... if everyone who reads this sends him $1, he will be able to purchase his dream vehicle/ I bought a Vandals shirt on eBay, and I need $3 more than I have. Can you pitch in?/ The VA doesn’t cover dental care for veterans, and as you can see, I have a bad tooth. I need to raise $2,200, because it will need to be surgically extracted under general anaesthesia. Spam? Poor guess. No, really. According to IBeggar.com, the estimated global monthly searches related to cyberbegging or people asking for money online is 68 million. “We take begging on the street online—for money, help, or any need,” says R.J. Camposagrado, founder of Chicago-headquartered IBeggar. He says the only authentication needed is a working e-mail ID and a PayPal e-mail ID to receive money. A verification e-mail is sent to the user to make sure they are not auto-generated. “You have to use your best judgement on whether a beggar or donor is authentic, honest, sincere, and genuine,” adds Camposagrado. “We also offer begging tips.” Apart from charging a fee to post ‘begs’, IBeggar also sells ad space to generate revenue.