While every major company in the world attempts to bang into your head that they will never ask for your account information sometimes people don't listen.

Unfortunately a scam, which appears to have been around for some time, promises free Microsoft points when you log into your .net Passport account. This site, and any site that promises the same, is 100% fake and will only lead to a headache like the reader who sent this in who had 5000 MS points purchased with his credit card.

We know this isn't the first, nor will it be the last, site to attempt to scam you but we hope to echo what you all should already know.

We won't link the site itself, for fear of spreading the scam, but we would like to remind you of a few key things.

1. Microsoft will only give points away during official contests that ALWAYS link directly back to a Microsoft site and those contests are always widely reported on X3F, Joystiq and other gaming sites
   
2. Never, no matter what you're promised, log into your account unless on officially sanctioned Xbox sites (Xbox.com, Bungie.net, ForzaMotorsport.net, etc.)
3. Never give away your user name and password to anyone and remember Microsoft will never ask for this information
4. Never give away your account details, including credit card information and mailing address

Do not get caught in a scam, who knows how deep the rabbit hole goes if you do.

Check out our visual guide to spotting fake Microsoft sites used in similar scams. This guide isn't foolproof however, so just steer clear from anything that promises anything!

[Update 1: Our apologies; we had simply assumed the service was free. Thanks to our trusty commenters, we found a better one! For free! WiiSearcher.com!]

All right, well, maybe not us. We're too busy having way too much fun slamming our parents into the ground in Wii Tennis (except for Nikki, of course). The internet is a vast place, however, and the local denizens are sure to help you find your way if you ask nicely enough.

Welcome to NintendoFinder.com WiiSearcher.com, a wonderful place that uses voodoo and sorcery to immediately discern availability of the Wii at pretty much every retailer ever. As soon as a store restocks, torrents of E-mail are sent to any and all subscribers to the system, letting them know to get their click on. It's a great tool for those of you worried about getting a system before Christmas, and we recommend you tell your parents (nudge nudge) to check it out. You know. So they can let Santa know, too.

(Santa is a universally understood figure used for the purposes of a substandard joke. Please, no religious quarreling.)

[Thanks, Matt, for shamelessly plugging your own site! ^^]