Those too-good-to-be-true, make-money-in-your-sleep job scams have been around for ages.
With the advent of the internet and job boards, the opportunity for job scammers to spread their fake jobs far and wide only became more opportune.
While big job boards work against job scammers and employment schemes, keeping track of it all is almost impossible. Like all good scammers, those running job scams know how to finesse their schemes to pass through any security in place.
As a job seeker, it's crucial to make yourself aware of some ongoing schemes, and to trust your gut when something seems off with the "too good to be true" job opportunity.
Table of Contents
- Types of Scams: How They Get You
- The Warning Signs of a Job Scam
- 10 Types of Job Scams
- How to Avoid Job Scams
- Resources for Job Seekers
Here are some scary stats:
- The number of reported job and employment agency-related scams nearly tripled between 2020 and 2021.
- A 2020 study by the Better Business Bureau (BBB) found an uptick in job scams once the pandemic hit. Their prime target tends to be those aged 25 to 34, who reported 28% of overall job scams.
- The BBB estimates 14 million people are exposed to employment scams each year, costing workers $2 billion in direct losses annually.
- During the first quarter of 2022, Americans were scammed out of $68 million due to fake business and job opportunities, according to the Federal Trade Commission.
Job scams and job scammers thrive in times of economic uncertainty and turbulent job markets. Since 2020, job scams have been alive and well. Just like a virus, job scams shift and mold to look like real opportunities.
They prey on workers’ vulnerability or outright desperation for viable income. They know how to promise quick money, how to impersonate a well-known company, and how to prey on job seekers who are tired of reading job post after job post.
Today, we're looking into some of the most common job scams, the shadier way you “could” make money, and the characteristics to look for in a potential scam.
You Might Also Like: How to Actually Read a Job Posting
Types of Job Scams: How They Get You
If you think you’re too sophisticated to fall for a job scam, you’re more vulnerable than you may believe. Some job scammers even mimic authentic job posters. When you’re finally contacted by the recruiter at a major tech company, make sure it’s actually that person.
Beyond that, job scammers are lurking everywhere. In fact, the BBB found that 32% of reported job scams came from Indeed.com. Some job posters post their resumes online, hoping to attract potential employers. While all job platforms have warnings about job scammers on their platforms, scammers can be quite sophisticated at mimicry.
Pro Tip: If you suspect a job scam might be imitating a real company, take a good look at their email address. For example, it's not likely that the real Jane at JetBlue is reaching out to you if her email address is jane@jet-blue.com. Make sure the domain names match. Job scammers are adept at creating fake emails, fake profiles, fake social media accounts, and even fake company websites!
Here are a few common job scams, with step-by-step details on how the scam works. These fraudulent jobs can be molded and changed to fit a variety of scams, so pay attention to these common elements in each job scam.
The Warning Signs of a Job Scam
- Exchange of money
- Fake checks
- Urgency
- Contact information isn't using a company email address
- You can't find the company online
- Need to purchase goods/services up front
- Personal and sensitive information is asked for early on in the interview process
- The job claims to pay a lot of money for very little work
- The job shares stories of drastic income changes overnight
Warning Signs in an Interview
- The interview request comes from a generic email address.
- A recruiter uses a social media platform to communicate with you instead of emailing directly.
- You're offered a job at the end of the interview—and you only have one short interview.
- Your interview process never includes a real person.
- You're asked to provide personal information during the recruitment process, like a social security number, date of birth, or bank account information.
- The recruiter tries to charge you an application fee or job training fee.
- The recruiter won't tell you the name of the company until after you accept the job, share sensitive information, etc.
Warning Signs on Social Media
- Comments that are unrelated to the content that was posted. We see this a lot on all channels because if comments are enabled, the scammers and bots can post. A scammer's post is most likely on something random and unrelated to the posted content that encourages you to message them directly via a link. Also, the person posting this scammy comment probably had their social handle hacked or is being impersonated. These comments usually include how much money a person made or how a person helped them turn their life around—whatever the amazing opportunity they're offering, avoid it.
- An individual sending you a direct message or posting something that seems very out of character. After a scammer has hacked into someone's social account, they'll send a direct message in hopes that you click on the link since it's from someone you follow. If you get a message from someone you follow asking you to click on a link—especially when they have never done that before—report the post and don't engage.
10 Types of Job Scams
Work-from-Home Scams
Job scammers are aware that a large number of employees would like to work from home. This is precisely why work-from-home job scams are increasingly common.
These types of scams will seek to take money from you through a variety of methods. They might ask for registration fees, financial information, or ask you to pay for certifications or materials.
These work-from-home jobs will typically require no experience and can involve tasks like reselling merchandise, data entry, clerical work, or assembling products. Many of these positions require a fee paid upfront. Once the fee is paid, you might receive work to do, but it will ultimately be rejected—that is, unless the job scammer hasn’t already wholly ghosted you.
Secret Shopper Scams
For someone who loves to shop, a secret shopping gig is a dream come true. Secret shopping scams have been around for a while, but they have a few new twists.
When you receive an offer to become a secret shopper—whether or not they solicited you or you applied for a role—the scam is intricate, and here’s how it works:
- The company sends you a generous check, which is often worth more than the goods you need to “secret shop” for. This extra money is your initial “bonus.” Score!
- This is where the urgency comes in. While you wait for the check to clear (typically, checks take 2-3 days to clear in a checking account), they urge you to buy prepaid debit cards to send their way.
- A few days later, you realize that the check is not going to clear and that you are on the hook for the prepaid cards you purchased.
Other secret shopper scams ask for an excessive amount of personal and financial information upfront, which often leads to identity theft.
Car Wrap Scams
How would you like to pay off your car by wrapping it in a Red Bull ad for $200 a month? This passive income opportunity is pretty appealing to a younger demographic. In fact, they are so prevalent that Red Bull has worked with law enforcement and the FBI to combat this job scam.
While some companies do legitimately pay drivers to wrap their cars, the Red Bull wrap is a common fraud. In fact, the energy drink company does not ask third parties to brand their cars for advertising purposes. Here is how the scam version of car wraps works:
- Victims are sent a counterfeit check, which they are told to deposit in their bank account.
- Victims are then asked to send money through Western Union, MoneyGram, or via gift cards back to the company.
- When the bank identifies the fake check, the victim is already responsible for the wired money.
According to Greg Starr, owner of carvertise.com, legitimate car advertisers never send checks. Instead, they send drivers to the locations where they can have their cars wrapped in the ad. Carvertise directly pays the company that wraps the cars.
Nanny or Caregiver Scams
Nanny and caregiver scams typically use the “buy equipment upfront” scam method. These fraudsters advertise their “jobs” for nannies, babysitters, or caretakers on job platforms.
Here’s how these scams work:
- Victims are told they need to buy something for the job. For caretaking jobs, this item might be a wheelchair.
- The “company” sends a fraudulent check and directs the victim to buy the equipment from a particular (fake) third party, often through a wire.
- Once the victim realizes the initial check was fake, they have already sent the money to the fake third party.
Reshipping Job Scams
Reshipping scams are some of the most common scams. Every year, hundreds of millions of credit card and debit card numbers are stolen. When scammers get their hands on stolen credit cards and bank information, they use them to buy high-value items.
Since most retailers will only ship those goods domestically, these fraudsters hire unknowing people to receive, package, and reship these items abroad.
How reshipping schemes look to a job seeker:
- Victims find job listings for work-from-home shipping jobs.
- Victims receive, repackage, and reship packages, often to somewhere abroad.
- Victims are never paid for their “work”—and can face identity theft or law enforcement scrutiny. Technically, they are engaging in illegal knowledge without even knowing it.
The final word here? According to the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, “There are no legitimate jobs sending or receiving packages.”
DO NOT involve yourself in a scam like this. While you're not giving away money upfront, these job scams can lead to substantial legal ramifications.
Phishing Scams
Phishing scams are prevalent. They can appear in emails, text messages, phone calls, direct messages, and more. They work by asking you to click on a link, usually with an urgent message. Once you click on the link, they'll start asking for personal information.
Here's more information on how these scams work:
- They look like they are from a trusted person, a well-known brand or a company
- They ask you to click on a link
- That link doesn't include their company website
Protect yourself by only responding to people via their official website.
Chat Software Scams
Chat software scams happen when a scammer uses a messaging platform, like WhatsApp, to conduct a fake job interview or job recruitment. Consider the last time you had a job interview—did they ever host it via a chat or social media platform? While it might seem like a convenient choice, watch out!
Things to look out for with chat software scams:
- You're approached via a chat service for a job interview—and they can make it happen right then and there.
- A fake recruiter sends you a link for an interview via a chat service.
Pyramid Marketing
In a pyramid marketing scheme, no product is involved—just an exchange of money. It's also important to note that pyramid marketing is illegal. Here's how they work:
- You invest in the scammer's "product" or "investment" with the belief you will get a return.
- Any returns are paid out using new people who join the scheme.
For job seekers, this might be you investing in a product, company, training, etc., but you will never get the item and instead just lose money.
Unsolicited Job Offers
An unsolicited job offer is another type of online job scam email. In the email, you'll get an immediate job offer or opportunity to interview for a job. The email might also come from someone who claims to work on behalf of a reputable job sites like LinkedIn or Indeed. Here's how it works:
- Scammers will use a reputable site to reach out. They pretend to be a recruiter at a legitimate company.
- After they connect with you on the site, they will ask you to download something in order to have the interview.
- Those download links lead to scams.
Rebate Processor
This type of scam will promise you a lot of money in exchange for processing rebates at home. Remember: If it seems too good to be true, it probably is! Here's how this scam works:
- You're asked to pay a non-refundable training fee.
- The job asks you to post ads for various products.
- You can make a commission on those various products, but the majority goes back to the company as a rebate.
>How to Avoid Job Scams
The below tips should act as your own personal gut check when faced with a potential job opportunity that might be an employment scam.
Run any job ad through these red flags to add an extra layer of protection against job scammers.
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Research the job offer, recruiters, hiring managers, interviewers, and company website.
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Be cautious of any job requiring an initial “buy-in” or purchasing of materials. This is likely a scam, pyramid scheme, or MLM (multi-level marketing company.)
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Be careful when a job offer relies on a sense of urgency, or when you’re “hired” from a faceless Zoom interview.
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Be careful of jobs that offer "unlimited earning potential."
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Check BBB.org for businesses offering jobs and/or common scams.
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Conduct your own research online. Type in the business name + “scam” and carefully read the results.
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Create an email address specifically for your job search. This can help detect bogus “offers” from scam employees you never contacted.
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Never offer upfront payment for the promise of a job.
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Be wary of any secret shopper jobs.
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Be wary of jobs that offer part-time hours with full-time pay.
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If they're asking you to purchase start-up equipment or other non-refundable training, avoid it.
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Jobs marketed as work-from-home reshipping opportunities are likely scams.
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Be wary of any job that requires you to receive and forward funds or wire transfers.
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Always be cautious when providing personal information on online applications, including your full address, birth date, and any financial information.
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NEVER give your social security number, credit card number, or bank account numbers to somebody you don't know.
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Do not respond to calls, texts, or emails from suspicious or unknown numbers or accounts.
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Trust your gut. If you suspect something is “off” or too good to be true, it likely is.
Resources for Job Seekers
If you suspect you've fallen prey to a job scam, we have gathered helpful resources for you to fight back or avoid this happening again in the future.
- Federal Trade Commission Consumer Advice
- Better Business Bureau Job Scams Study
- AARP: How to Spot Secret Shopper Scams
- Care.com: Common Job Scams Caregivers Should Know About
