Guide to Avoiding Online Job Scams

By Susan P. Joyce

Job search scams look very appealing, and even smart people "fall" for them.

The best strategy is to keep your guard up at all times, whether viewing a job posting on a job board, reading an email message, or checking out a social media post.

If you aren't careful, you will be scammed.

The result can be loss of money, trouble with the IRS or other law enforcement agency, and/or identity theft when your SSN and other very sensitive personal informatIon (like your bank account number) is provided to the fake "employer."

Obviously, not every job is fake, but before you apply, reply, or respond --

Trust AFTER you verify!

How to Avoid Job Scams

When you are approached with a job opportunity, the best defense against job scams is conducting research before you respond with your resume or provide any personal information.

If the employer or the staffing agency name is not in the job posting or email, ask for it before you apply. You don't want to waste your time applying for a fake job. Then...

•   Verify the employer's name or the recruiter's name  

  Be EXTREMELY careful of applying for a job when the employer is not named (often on sites like craigslist). Sometimes recruiters post jobs without specifying the employer. Before supplying any personal information (like a resume), ask for the name of the employer.

•   Verify that the employer or recruiter is legitimate  

  Verify that the employer or recruiter is legitimate by Googling the name you are given.
  
  Look for a website, LinkedIn Profile (personal for the recruiter, Company Profile for the employer), and public contact information. Also, Google the name to find reviews and for other signs that the employer/recruiter are legitimate (or not).
  
  Before submitting your name to their client/employer, recruiters should tell you the name of the employer.

•   Verify that the job is really for the named employer  

  Many fake jobs purport to be for legitimate employers like Google, Apple, or a local accountant, etc.
  
  IF you have been able to verify that the employer is legitimate, verify that the job is really for the legitimate employer, and not for a scammer pretending to be the legitimate employer. Contact the employer directly.

Read the Job Scams Self-Defense Sniff Test for a thorough process to verify that a job opportunity is real.

Typical Job Scams

Unfortunately, safe online job hunting requires attention and care. The scam jobs are everywhere. When someone emails you these opportunities or sends them through social media, hit the delete key.

  1. Work from Home Jobs  

Many legitimate work-from-home jobs definitely exist, but you won't usually find them in email sent to you by a stranger or a message from a stranger through Facebook, LinkedIn, or other social network.

The work may involve stuffing envelopes, doing data entry on your home computer, taking surveys, or thousands of other variations, but they come to you, eager to hire you to work for them. And, they provide very little information about their company, which may be in another country.

The purpose, typically, is to collect information and/or money from you.

[MORE: Driver's License Job Scam.]

  2. Money Transfer/Payment Rep Jobs  

For some unknown reason, this employer cannot effectively use the world banking system. They need access to your personal bank account to manage the issue, and they will pay you handsomely for that access. Unfortunately, the only direction the money goes is out of your account and into their account where you cannot recover it.

If someone you don't really know wants you to "wire transfer" money to or for them, KNOW that this is a scam, and DO NOT PARTICIPATE!

Again, very little information about their company, which may be in another country, is provided.

  3. Re-Shipment Jobs  

Again, an employer which cannot use the world's package processing system without your help. They need you to accept shipments which you re-package and re-ship to their customers, typically in another country.

Unfortunately, the goods in the shipment to you are usually purchased with stolen credit cards. So, when law enforcement tracks down those "stolen goods," guess who they find? YOU!

[MORE: Reshipper and Payment Rep Scam Jobs.]

  4. Pay-to-Play Jobs  

It's a great job, but you must first invest in inventory (to assemble or to sell), training in their process, and/or equipment needed to do the job. No!

If they want your credit card information or access to your bank account, avoid the "opportunity."

  5. Pay Them for Access to Undisclosed Jobs  

In the USA, these undisclosed jobs are purportedly for the US Federal Government or the US Post Office, and -- for a fee -- these people will give you access to those jobs. NO!

Federal and Postal Services jobs are posted on their websites where you can find them, for free.

Purpose of the Scams

The main goals of these scams are to collect information from you which the scammers will use and/or sell.

They will:

• Take money from your bank accounts.
• Run up bills on your credit cards.
• Steal your identity so they can scam banks, merchants, and others while ruining your credit rating.
• Send spam email to you and your contacts.
• Sell the information they collect from you to spammers and identity thieves.
• Gain your cooperation in an illegal activity for their benefit, like receiving and then re-shipping stolen property.

These are the general categories of scams. New scams do pop up all the time, so this is not, unfortunately, a complete list.

Bottom Line

Unfortunately, best practice is to be skeptical of anyone you don't know (and probably some people you do know). As the wise old police sergeant from Hill Street Blues warned at the start of each shift, "Be careful out there!"

For More Information

• 9 Characteristics of Job Search Scams for details on what the scams look like.
• Take the Job Scams Self-Defense Sniff Test to identify scams
• Learn the 5 Major Types of Job Scams so you can avoid them easily.
• Take the 7-question Quiz to find out how scam proof you are (the solution is provided, too).

Good, reliable information about job search scams is also available here:

• FTC: Job Scams - current information about job scams
• FTC: Government Job Scams
• FTC: FTC Complaint Assistant - to report a scam
• Report scams to the FBI: Internet Crime Complaint Center