If youâre searching for a job, beware of scam job postings/offers!
Even on legit sites, you can never know for sure so be careful. I almost fell for one the other day but got suspicious enough that i asked one of the career counselors at my university and she said it definitely was a scam. I posted about it on facebook and one of my friends said she got a message with the exact same offer, despite the fact that she doesnât live near me. Iâm sure there are many variations but this is the one we got:
- Texted me their email saying they found me on care.com (a babysitting/petsitting site i joined)
- Wanted me to petsit for their two beagles either in their hotel room or by bringing them to my house, while they were working on a contract job âin my area.â $450/week which seemed too good to be true. Never specified where âmy areaâ was, the hotel, or their employer.
- Said they were going to buy pet supplies from a store for me to use. They would send me a check in the mail with my first paycheck upfront plus the cost for the supplies, and I had to wire that portion to the store.
Red flags to watch out for:
- Job description changes when you start talking to them, adds more to it as the convo goes on (in my example, asking for a petsitter first, then once I said yes, saying I would have to wire money), or anything that resembles whatâs known as the foot-in-the-door technique in psychology
- Asking you to make check deposits, wire money, etc., especially before you have even started the job (even if they âpay youâ first via check, that check could bounce and then youâve got problems)
- Asking you to provide your credit card or banking account numbers
- Posting seems to be from a real company, but the email address does not match the domain of their website (@______.com) or phone/fax/email does not seem to be connected to the business in a google search
- Initially sounds like a regular job but with more research seems like an independent contractor position
- Offering a large payment for them to use your bank account (ex: for depositing checks or tranferring money)
- Position requires an initial investment
- Employer responds immediately after you submit your resume (excluding auto-responses)
- Documentation of scam victims when searching â[company name] scamâ on google or ripoffreport.com
- Says they donât have an office in your area and need your help setting one up
Please be careful & donât ignore suspicious things just because youâre excited about a job! Go with your gut. It is better to be safe than sorry - you might need the money really badly but it will only get worse if you end up having the money you do have stolen.
Also even if it doesnât seem like a money scam, also be careful when meeting with people for interviews etc. (especially if youâre a girl or might be misperceived as one). Do a Google Maps search on the address they give you to make sure itâs a real place. Ask to meet in a public spot (like a coffee shop) if itâs an independent thing or if youâre at all suspicious.
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