Jobs Scams Are More Than A Double Since Late 2019

[RAMROD 117,257]

 

Last fall, Aaron Perkowitz applied for a job as a technical writer. The hirer asked him to compose a paid test article—and when he finished, requested his banking information, to pay him.

Perkowitz asked why so much information was needed—couldn’t they just mail a check? No response. “The article took me three hours,” he says, “but I’m glad I didn’t fall for their scam.”

Perkowitz got off easy. Today’s scam ads are often indiscernible from legitimate listings, and can appear on reputable job sites like LinkedIn and Indeed, as well as in your inbox as phishing attacks. Other scammers extract money from applicants under the guise of background checks, security clearance, uniforms or training.

It’s a lucrative line of crime: of the 22,325 job scams reported to The Federal Trade Commission in the third quarter of 2022, the median loss was $2,000.

“Employers usually have an easy enough time getting applicants’ addresses, phone numbers and even social security numbers,” says Ben Michael, an attorney at Michael & Associates. “Throw in a bank account or credit card number, ostensibly for direct deposit, and that’s everything you need to commit identity theft.”

If it seems like job scams are surging, it's not your imagination: they’ve more than doubled since late 2019, FTC data show. Right now, job-hungry populations are being targeted, such as people laid off by tech companies, immigrants seeking jobs (especially for visa requirements) and recent college grads. The boom in remote jobs allows scammers to advertise positions or companies that don’t necessarily exist. 

Job hoaxes are getting harder to avoid. Just two years ago, reasonably savvy people could spot most scams with common sense. Most were click-and-go crimes, involving the minimum interaction to procure identity information or install malware. Today’s scams are surprisingly elaborate, with fake company websites and phone or video interviews.

“We’re seeing a willingness of cyber criminals to invest more time in an ongoing relationship with the victim,” says Steve Grobman, chief technology officer at McAfee. “It’s more difficult for scammers to scale, but if they think they’ll get a reasonable payout, they’ll do it.”

We asked experts how to avoid becoming a victim. They say that ten minutes of due diligence is mandatory: locate the company’s website, find the street address on Google Maps, and then scan for articles and press releases that mention the company. Can you find actual employees and message them? Or if it’s a well-known company, call its offices and ask to speak to the person set to do your interview. Beyond that, here’s how to navigate savvier scams:

- Don’t be fooled by very individualized recruiting. Previously, a personalized, in-depth recruitment letter meant safety. But today, anyone with access to your LinkedIn profile can ask an AI tool like ChatGPT to create a recruitment letter that name-checks your alma mater and employers.

- Tech downloads are a no-no. Unfortunately, video interviews no longer correlate with legitimacy. A common scam is to send an online video link that enables criminals to access valuable information on the computer, or for a hirer to say, “This is a remote position, but we need to do a scan on your equipment to make sure it meets our minimum requirements.” Just say no.

- Do not pay for anything. Really. Even if it seems like a plausible charge, such as an application fee, training program or “job placement” service. “Legitimate employers will not ask for any money up front,” says Darren Shafae, founder of software provider ResumeBlaze, who frequently sees his customers fall prey to scams.

- Ask a lot of questions about daily job tasks. Boston career coach Amy Reeves recently had a client who was hired for a “professional marketing position” with “on-the-job training”—and when he arrived, was handed a sandwich board and asked to stand on the street.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-02-14/4-job-scam-warning-signs-and-how-to-avoid-them-on-linkedin-indeed

[Shipper 13,114]

This is good to know. Im on a job hunt right now and hopefully I dont get scammed. Some places really do not have street addresses nor a working website and offer 70$ an hour for full time position. 

[RAMROD 117,257]

1 hour ago, Shipper said:

This is good to know. Im on a job hunt right now and hopefully I dont get scammed. Some places really do not have street addresses nor a working website and offer 70$ an hour for full time position. 

Best of luck, and stay vigilant, Bestie!

[Economy 52,901]

On 2/16/2023 at 12:01 PM, Shipper said:

This is good to know. Im on a job hunt right now and hopefully I dont get scammed. Some places really do not have street addresses nor a working website and offer 70$ an hour for full time position. 

Since I've only ever done blue collar type in person jobs in physical locations, fraud like this is virtually impossible to pull off

 

Never occured to me how some industries especially online industries, fake online applications for job seekers could be a way to fraud ppl. But makes sense

 

Can't trust anything anymore

[Oriane 22,797]

On 2/16/2023 at 4:22 PM, RAMROD said:

The hirer asked him to compose a paid test article—and when he finished, requested his banking information, to pay him.

Ok I get that for regular jobs it's weird, but that's normal at least for freelancers, how else are you supposed to get paid otherwise?

Anyway something like this happened to me last year. The company actually existed but the person I was talking to wasn't. They asked me to do a whole project, at the end they asked for my banking information as usual, and the day after, suddenly, they pretended they had sent too much and I should send them 1500€ blah blah... Of course I never received anything from them. What annoyed me is that they could have just asked something stupid that would have taken an hour or so, but no, the whole thing took me 15 hours for nothing, all of this for a scam that took 2sec to debunk (who the hell is going to believe that stupid story and send 1500€ back?). Thanks for wasting my time