I wonder is there any foolproof method to identify a scam site. I know one way is for the site which asks for money to give away jobs to us. But this too is not 100% valid as there are sites like elance, etc which charge money to receive jobs. any other way to find it out?

Is it a transparent business? Do they hide their whois info? Do you have a good telephone number and address to contact them, real one, not a UPS Store virtual office not a local registered agent? Are they registered in their state or country? What is their reputation like on the net?

elance charges a fee like ebay, being paid by the person receiving the money, unlike sites that charge you to work for them.

__________________
GIMP open source graphics
Learn to avoid being scammed