Conducting a job search has been made easy, thanks to digitization and the introduction of active job portals all over the Internet. However, Faisal Abidishares how fraudsters reap the opportunities offered by vulnerable job seekers and use them to their advantage.
As much as there are advantages to various job portals on the Internet, employment-related scams are on the rise. These scams cost you:
* Money
* Reputation
*Identity
Not only job seekers but also recruiters are at risk. Keep in mind that recruiters are particularly valuable to scammers due to two specific reasons:
* As a target to extract money
* A resource for their access to open communication with job seekers and multiple organizations.
Faisal Abidi’s Two Cents For Job Seekers
As the established founder of Resources, which provides dedicated IT staffing solutions, he advises researching a particular company before applying for a job. If there is no concrete information about the company anywhere, it’s best to steer clear.
Additionally, when you send an application and receive a mail-in reply, check whether the sender has a legitimate email address. Remember that having Gmail or yahoo in the email address might be a red flag because a well-established company utilizes its own domain name.
Because some considerations are necessary now, conduct thorough research on the position and its working type. Confirm whether it is work from home or office. Some companies today follow a hybrid model. Therefore, ensure that the company clearly states the model your position is best suited for.
Working Of This Scam: How This Scam Takes Place
First Step
The fraudster utilizes the company’s name and logo to solicit applications from job seekers for fake jobs. Most of the time, some companies are long-established, providing the scam with a sense of legitimacy. As the majority of the phishing scams, the scammer’s email address is similar to, but not exactly the same as the original company’s email address. Therefore, always double-check the initials as it helps you differentiate between a scam and an authentic.
Second Step
Job seekers who respond to those fake emails are followed up with counterfeit job offers. Scammers begin by asking for their personal information, followed by their Social Security number along with bank account information. In some cases, the scammers ask for direct money in the name of application processing fees. Therefore, always ensure not to provide personal information other than your name and ensure you do not fall into the trap of money requests.
Beware Of Job Offers That Sound Too Good To Be True
Scammers will make their job offers as appealing as possible. This is purposely done to encourage vulnerable candidates to fall into their trap. Keep in mind the below-mentioned rule:
While the majority of the credible job descriptions will highlight the benefits of a role, fake descriptions can be differentiated with the help of their abnormally long list. Terms like “No Experience Necessary” “Shorter Hours” are often used, representing a potential scam. Fake job offers also include unrealistically high salaries. For example, a starting job salary with the requirement mentioning “No Experience Required” with 50 to 100% above the average rate is unlikely to be real.
Asking For Full Social Security Number Early: A Full-Fledged Scam
Remember that no recruiter, however large the organization is, can ask for your social security number early in the process. In some cases, they might need the last 4-5 digits of your SS number, but not the full number. Faisal Abidi from Resorcifi advises you not to submit your full social security number before you have had a successful interview with the company.
Take Care Of The LinkedIn Aspect: Make sure when you aren’t looking up for new opportunities, you must change your visibility settings to private. Not doing so will make you visible to various recruiters, including fraudsters offering you a reasonable offer, making it hard to resist not contacting them. Therefore, beware of all such scenarios.
Breakdown Of Considerations For Jobseekers: In A Nutshell
* Unsolicited and unexpected communications from any individual or website you are unfamiliar with should always be prevented. Inconsistent domain names are the first thread of warning you should be looking out for.
* Correspondences from free email accounts like Yahoo, Hotmail, and Gmail are a direct resemblance to scammers, the majority of the time. For example, any recruiting company online will reply to a job application or send mail from their official company mail, which is a general practice. Recognized organizations do not use Gmail and Yahoo to conduct interviews.
* Refuse every type of request from a hiring agency that asks you for upfront money to participate in the hiring process. Though certain recruiting agencies ask for money, they also provide a certificate of recruitment in order to make sure that both parties can be trusted with each other.
* As discussed above, early communications about your social security number, national insurance number, date of birth, bank account information, and other sensitive personal data is a definite warning of a potential scam.
What You Can Personally Do About It
You should directly report these profiles on recognized websites that rate employers and their companies like Glassdoor. If the recruiter connected with you via LinkedIn, don’t forget to report fake recruiter profiles to LinkedIn and other job portals.
Additionally, upon being selected by a particular organization, switch off your visibility from every type of job offering portal so that you do not appear to the potential recruiters and scammers disguised as recruiters.
The world has become digital, and job portals have eased our job search hassle. However, digitization also has posed a great opportunity for people who thrive on scams and frauds. Therefore the candidate has to be alert and active to save itself from such recruitment scams happening in today’s world.
Conclusion
A job hunt can be extremely frustrating and tiring at times, full of ups and downs. Therefore, Faisal Abidi advises not to be in a hurry and stay patient in such a process as patience and alertness are the keys.
