Yes, lots of people do. However, you do have to have a skill that is worth something directly online, meaning copywriting, testing, programming, or designing websites. Marketing stuff like emailing and calling are never worth it, and are on the edge of legalality (spam). I'm a programmer for instance, and sometimes work for sites like oDesk.com and Guru.com. They will pay you, guaranteed, if you finish the work. There's no prepaid fee, unless you want more exposure for yourself in which case you can upgrade to pro accounts. This is honest work at reasonable rates that you set yourself.
Never ever pay upfront for getting a job online.