For my friends who were interested:

Yes- I sec. shop.... As long as you have access to a computer, and in most cases, a digital camera or scanner to get a pic of the receipt/business card from your job, you can do this.

I struggled with the same issue of wondering whether a company is legit or not- so I can totally understand. I found the Myst Shop Providers Assoc online, and ended up getting certified with them (it's not mandatory to get good jobs though). They have two parts of their website, one is for shoppers, one is for companies. I actually went to the company pages and found companies there- since I figured if they paid to be members of this legitimate association, then they're for real.

http://www.jobslinger.com/ is a kind of monster.com-like website that posts job openings. I can't verify the legitimacy of the companies though- so you might want to see if they're MSPA members, or if they're listed below before you sign up. (not all legit companies are members of the MSPA- but I just started there for safety then signed up with more as I heard about them in the MS Meetup or other places online.)

Since there are so MANY companies out there- if you'd like to know which companies shop specific industries, just ask and I'll lead you toward those specific industries... I'd be happy to answer any questions you have- since it's such a huge industry with many facets. All companies do require that you sign an confidentiality agreement though... so some things will remain hush hush... :)

There are jobs for oil changes, groceries, movies, clothing/retail, restaurants, hotels, etc... Some have reimbursements or payments, some offer both...

If any of these sites ask who referred you- ask me and I'll give you the email address I use for that so i can get a possible referral bonus if you live in an area that they desperately need people...

This is not going to be terribly profitable overall. It is definitely a good way to eat out and then get reimbursed for it, or get small (or sometimes big) items for free because the company reimburses for part of your purchase... I average about 20 jobs a month, and usually get about $200 in payments and about $250 in reimbursement.

Some companies pay really quickly (like a week after the job), others pay like 2 months after the end of the month that you do the job. So- read the info on their site before you accept a job, so that you know how long you'll be waiting to be paid, and/or reimbursed. Some pay by direct deposit, others by paypal, others by check. It should say on their 'agreement' form that you sign how they pay and how often.

Some jobs are super easy, 5 minutes in the store, 5 minutes reporting online. Other jobs take an hour in a store, and an hour to report online. When you sign up with a company, they'll start sending you email job postings, and you can read the posting, click on the link to read a little more info about it, and then you'll have the opportunity to accept it or just ignore/delete the email. You could sign up with 30 companies as an independent contractor, but then never accept a job if the jobs don't look like something you'd want to do... (Independent Contractor means they don't commit to hire you for anything, and you don't commit to work unless you accept a specific job. They also don't take any taxes out- so you'll be responsible for reporting it on your income taxes. You basically report everything you get paid as self employment income, then subtract out the 'required purchases/reimbursed things' as a business expense, and what you're left with is the actual 'income' you get taxed on. Talk to a CPA if you can't do all that yourself though...)

Also, shops get posted in waves, so if you check and there's nothing in Tulsa (or your city) right now, it's likely that within a few weeks, something might be posted, and you'll get an email. Some jobs are self-assign (the first person to accept it gets to do it). Others are by application, and then the scheduler picks who they want to do it, based upon experience and demographics.

Hope this helps- and doesn't overwhelm you too much. :)

Ok friends- I had a really hard time emailing this- but maybe I can get it to post here... Here are the links for you:
Mystery Shoppers Providers Association (MPSA)http://www.mysteryshop.org/index-na.php
Mystery Shopping and Merchandising Resource and Message Boards links
Volition Job Board http://forum.volition.com/
Volition Main Board http://www.volition.com/mystery.html
Mystery Shop Resources http://www.mysteryshopresources.com/home.html
Mystery Shop Forum http://www.mysteryshopforum.com/list/3
Lila's Lounge http://finance.groups.yahoo.com/group/LilasLounge/join
Shopping with Debby http://www.shoppingwithdebby.com/
Cathy's Corner http://forums.delphiforums.com/cathyscorner2/start
MSFreedom http://www.msfreedom.org/
Free access to mystery shopping company lists http://www.krowtensatellite.com/shop.html
Mystery Shopping Wallboosters http://walletboosters.com/mysteryshopping.html
Company Name - - - - - - - -

Web Site (click on links)
Sign up with each company that uses KOIOS for online reporting individually.All Shop Group http://www.allshopgroup.com/ (No online reporting at this time)
Reflections Mystery Shopping http://www.reflectionsms.com/
Sign up with each company that uses Sassie for online reporting individually. Ann Michaels & Associates http://sassieshop.com/2annmichaels/index.norm.php
AQ Services International https://www.sassieshop.com/sassie/SassieShopperSignup/Signup.php?EmsID=3MrwqqIl%2FRA%3D
Ath Power/Courtesy Counts http://www.sassieshop.com/2ap123/index.norm.php
Bank Atlantic (Florida Shoppers Only) http://sassieshop.com/2bankatlantic/index.norm.php
Bare Associates http://www.sassieshop.com/2bareusa/index.norm.php
Benchmark Collaborative http://www.sassieshop.com/2benchmark
Beyond Hello http://www.sassieshop.com/2beyondhello/index.norm.php
California Marketing Specialists http://www.sassieshop.com/2californiamarketing/index.norm.php
Capstone Research http://sassieshop.com/2capstoneresearch/index.norm.php
Cirrus Marketing http://www.sassieshop.com/2cirrus/index.norm.php
Confero Inc. http://www.sassieshop.com/2confero/index.norm.php
Corporate Risk Solutions http://www.sassieshop.com/2crs/index.norm.php
Customer Service Experts http://www.sassieshop.com/2csexperts/index.norm.php
Customerize http://www.sassieshop.com/2customerize/index.norm.php
David Sparks and Associates https://www.sassieshop.com/sassie/SassieShopperSignup/Signup.php?EmsID=QT90iJJJ2c4%3D
Draude marketing Service http://www.sassieshop.com/2draude/
Franchise Compliance http://www.sassieshop.com/2franchisecompliance/index.norm.php
Harris Teeter (BAI) http://www.sassieshop.com/2harristeeter/index.norm.php
Intellishop http://sassieshop.com/2intellishop/index.norm.php
Ipsos-Insight http://www.sassieshop.com/2ipsos/index.norm.php
Kern Scheduling http://www.sassieshop.com/2kern/index.norm.php
Market Trends Pacific http://www.sassieshop.com/2markettrends/index.norm.php
Marketing Endeavors http://www.sassieshop.com/2me/index.norm.php
Mercantile Systems http://www.sassieshop.com/2mercsurveys/index.norm.php
Mystery Shoppers http://www.sassieshop.com/2mysteryshoppers/index.norm.php
Mystery Shoppers Inc. http://sassieshop.com/2mysteryshopinc/index.norm.php
Mystique Shopper, LLC http://www.sassieshop.com/2mystique/index.norm.php
Nationwide Service Group http://www.sassieshop.com/2nis/index.norm.php
Phanton Shoppers http://www.sassieshop.com/2phantom/
Professional Review http://sassieshop.com/2proreview/index.norm.php
Quinn Marketing and Communications http://www.sassieshop.com/2quinn/
Reality Check http://www.sassieshop.com/2rcms/
Restaurant Evaluators http://www.sassieshop.com/2resteval/index.norm.php
Secret Shopping Services http://www.sassieshop.com/2sss
Service Alliance http://www.sassieshop.com/2servicealliance
Service Check http://www.sassieshop.com/2servicecheck/index.norm.php
Service Excellence Group http://www.sassieshop.com/2serviceexcellence/index.norm.php
Service Impressions http://www.sassieshop.com/2serviceimpressions/index.norm.php
Service Performance Group http://www.sassieshop.com/2serviceperformance/index.norm.php
Service Savvy http://www.sassieshop.com/2servicesavvy/index.norm.php
Service Sleuths http://sassieshop.com/2servicesleuths/index.norm.php
SG Marketing http://www.sassieshop.com/2sgmarketing/index.norm.php
Sparks & Associates http://www.sassieshop.com/2dsa/index.norm.php
Speedmark http://www.sassieshop.com/2green/index.norm.php
TNS Intersearch http://www.sassieshop.com/2tns/index.norm.php
The Zellman Group http://www.sassieshop.com/2zellmangroup/index.norm.php

Ok- for some reason, I can't get the others to post normally again and reveal the web address. I'll try again later! As you can see the only ones I listed are the ones that use sassie software for reporting.