If you have been out of work for a long period of time and haven't had much luck finding a new position, it can be hard not to feel desperate and willing to take any job you can manage to find. Unfortunately, there are many scammers out there who know this and have no problem exploiting your desperation in order to make a buck. It is sad and pathetic, but it happens all the time. Desperate people who are trying to find any way they can to bring in some income are being exploited and finding themselves in a worse situation after being conned by a would- be employer.
So, how can you spot a job scam and avoid getting taken advantage of? Sometimes, it can be very difficult to tell, even for the most internet savvy of us. There are a few clues you can look for to determine if the job offer is a scam. Here are some things to watch out for:
- Any job that asks you for money- There are some job boards and websites that charge a small membership fee and there are some independent sales jobs where new agents are expected to pay for a start-up kit (for example, Avon, Amway, Mary Kay etc). These are legitimate reason for an employer to ask for money. Be careful of any job offer that requires you to invest a certain amount or pay for testing. Most of the time, these jobs aren't real and only serve to take your money.
- Spelling errors in job advertisements and emails- Most of these types of con men are from foreign countries. Because English isn't their first language, it is typical for them to make errors in spelling and sentence construction. Any legitimate employer will have proofread the job advertisement before posting. Pay close attention to the sentence structure and word choice used in email correspondence. Many languages are more formal than English, not to mention that when someone is learning a foreign language it is more likely that they will be taught the most formal and professional words to use. In addition to the unusually formal word choice, when phrases are translated from a different language, there is a tendency to keep the sentence structure of the original language. This is why you would see phrases like “I would very much like to offer you the position of [job title]. For this, I would want to compensate you for your efforts, in the amount of [alleged salary]” Watch out for these types of emails.
- Job offers for positions you didn't apply for- When you are active on several job boards, sometimes a scammer will get access to your email address. They will send you phony job offers for positions that you didn't apply for, hoping to get just a small percentage of people to fall for it.
- Any job that involved sending money via Western Union or MoneyGram- The same goes for any job that requires you to use your own personal bank account. This type of scam usually works by hiring someone to accept “rental payments” through the mail from all over the country. The new employee, or target, then is required to cash the checks at their personal bank and wire the money to the employer. The benefit to the target being that they will be allowed to keep a large portion of the money for their troubles. The catch is that the checks are fraudulent and once you send the money, your bank will be looking at you to pay them back once they discover that you submitted counterfeit checks.
There will always be people looking to take advantage of you, both in person and online. Con men and scammers are not a new thing; in other eras they were traveling salesmen peddling snake oil. The reason that scams are so prevalent online is that people have a tendency to believe what they read online over their own common sense. It is the whole, “It has to be true. I read it in an email” mindset. Don't let this happen to you. If you are unsure about the validity of a job opening, it is perfectly acceptable for you to contact the company to check their authenticity.
Have you ever fallen victim to a job scam? Have you seen these scammers in your inbox? Let me know in the comments.
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By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer, along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.
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