6 Signs of Employment Scams and How to Avoid Them
Employment scams are on the rise. Scammers take advantage of serious job seekers who are in need of income for their basic needs and future. If you are seeking a job or you know someone who is seeking a job, this blog is perfect for you.
See these guidelines to prevent a potential scam.
Red flags of job scams:
- You never applied for them. They contacted you.
A “recruiter” contacts you and says he saw your resume online saying you are a perfect fit for the position. He calls you up and offers a guaranteed job. Before questioning yourself about how lucky you are, do your research. It’s likely a scam.
2. Too good to be true
If the job offer seems too good to be true, then it probably is. One of the most common offers is a job that is easy to do but pays very well. Never be fooled by something that is too good to be true.
3. Unclear Job Description
Usually, scams don’t have clear job descriptions. The qualification and requirements seem very simple that almost everyone will qualify. When you read it repeatedly, you’ll analyze that there’s something wrong with the description or the job doesn’t make sense.
The job offer is easy to do but pays very well. And if you ask questions, they will either ignore your questions or answer you something like, “Don’t worry, we’ll train you”.
4. Grammatical mistakes
Most legitimate companies hire professionals who create professional emails. Professional emails are well-written. So re-read the email as this could be a potential phishing attack. If there are grammatical errors, it is most likely a scam.
5. No contact information included
Scammers impersonate legitimate companies to trick victims in many ways such as domain impersonation.
Having no company address or a street address is a red flag. They can hide their identity this way. A legitimate email includes email address, company address, phone number, website, and their different social media platforms. Legitimate companies will allow you to contact them in any convenient ways.
6. Asking for payment or sensitive information
Some scammers give you instructions for setting up the “job interview”. The next thing you know, they’ll be asking for your sensitive information such as bank account information. Some of them may tell you to purchase something for their service.
Watch out for the immediate job offers! They want you to share your info or pay something before anything else.
Things You Can Do:
Do online search
Look for their company website and check their social media platforms. If you didn’t find anything or haven’t seen enough information about them, don’t bother to entertain them.
Search by typing “company name review/scam/compliant” and you might find out if they have scammed other people before.
Do not pay and give your information
Legitimate companies don’t ask for your bank account information. Legitimate recruiters won’t charge you anything to hire you. Companies always pay the fee.
Be smart
If you suspect it’s a scam, you can be sure it is. Listen to your instincts. Never fall for anything that is too good to be true.
If you believe that you or someone has been scammed, we encourage you to report the incident.
