More people are on the hunt for incredible deals this holiday season than ever before. Discount shopping sites, and coupon and deal blogs have become rapidly growing interests. ShopAtHome is one of those shopping sites that has exploded. They offer discounts at your favorite big-name stores. The problem is, ShopAtHome is stealing from your favorite bloggers!

How Does ShopAtHome Work?

You simply register with ShopAtHome, download their toobar, then search their site for links to stores like Toys R Us, Kohl's, Target, Walmart, the list goes on and on. Then they give a specified percentage back when you make a purchase. For example, when you click a JCPenney banner on this site (at the time of this article being written), and you make a purchase from JCPenney, you will get 9% cash back into your ShopAtHome account from that purchase simply because you went through ShopAtHome.

Sounds Great! What's The Problem?

There are actually two problems with the way this site works. The first one affects you as the consumer directly. ShopAtHome takes over your computer! You download their toolbar, and it's all downhill from there. Even if you don't go over to ShopAtHome first, and then to a store site from there, you will be redirected through ShopAtHome. If you already have their toolbar downloaded, try going directly to a store site (like JCPenney) by typing that site into your address bar. You will notice once you hit "Enter" that the address changes over and you will see that it you are being directed through ShopAtHome.

The biggest problem as a consumer is that there are pop-ups and viruses attached to the toolbar. This has affected me, and countless other online shoppers that have downloaded this toolbar. Many people report that They have either spent hundreds of dollars having their computers cleaned after getting this toolbar, or have just had to get new computers.

ShopAtHome Steals From Hard-Working Bloggers

Most deal and coupon bloggers make a very small commission from links and banners. These blogs are usually free, and the bloggers are passionate about finding hot deals and sharing them with you. Some of the links they share with you are affiliate links, and they do make some money from these links. Many times they share links that they don't make money on, but they simply want to bring you good deals. Very often, these bloggers put in 40, 50, or 60 hours a week to bring you free or super cheap deals. They do this for what may bring them a minimum wage income, maybe even less in some cases.

So let's say you came across a hot online deal from Walmart that "Insert Your Favorite Deal Blog Here" posted. When you have the ShopAtHome toolbar installed, and you click a link from that deal blogger's site, ShopAtHome will redirect you so that THEY make the commission from your purchase. The deal bloggers that bring you these deals will not make their commission off these purchase. It may only be 1% or 2% from a $2 purchase that a blogger is losing, but it still hurts in the long run.

Support Your Favorite Bloggers!

I myself have a balance in my ShopAtHome account, and I am always on the lookout for a good deal. But I will not support a site that works this way. There are so many other sites out there that offer great deals, that do not steal from hard-working people. If you have downloaded it, delete your toolbar and stop ShopAtHome from stealing from your favorite bloggers.