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FBI Warns Job Seekers of Job Scams and Fake Job Listings

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FBI Warns of Job Scams

Job Scams – FBI Warns Job Applicants of Scams Involving Fake Job Listings and Spoof Websites

The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FI) issued a warning about job scams targeting job applicants. Cyber criminals target job applicants to steal personally identifiable information and money. Job scams are easier to carry out using technologies including email, web sites, and video calls.

The FBI warning states that, “Since early 2019, victims have reported numerous examples of this scam to the FBI. The average reported loss was nearly $3,000 per victim, in addition to damage to the victims’ credit scores.”

What Are Fake Job or Hiring Scams?

Job scams are attempts by cyber criminals posing as legitimate employers or employment agencies. They post fake job listings on job boards websites like monster.com or set up their own spoof websites. Scammers may conduct fake interviews using video chat apps lie WhatsApp. They convinced the job applicant that they must pay for job placement services or give sensitive personal information and credit card numbers to apply for the job.

Employment Scams on the Internet

Cyber criminals often create a fraudulent website known as a spoof website using a domain name that’s very closely names to a legitimate hiring company. The spoof website is designed to look just like hiring company’s real website. The spoof website may attempt to collect personally identifiable information like name address, birthdate, and Social Security number.

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Cyber criminals may also conduct video chat interviews to make the job scam appear more legitimate. Employment scammers impersonate human resource personnel and recruiters. During or shortly after the video interview, the victim applicant is offered a job. This scammer may send the job applicant an employment contract to make things seem more legitimate. In return, the scammer may request a copy of your driver’s license, passport, and Social Security number. Scammers who are attempting to steal money will request card information to pay for expenses.
Cyber criminals may also attempt to collect money from a job applicant telling them they must pay for background checks, mandatory pre-employment training, or office supplies. Often, they are promised that they will be reimbursed by their future employer.

How Scammers Make Money

The stolen personal information is used to carry out identity theft, to open up new credit cards or lines of credit. Scammers may even file fraudulent tax returns. In identity theft, a scammer uses someone’s stolen personal information to establish an identity for themselves or to sell to others. This may include establishing fake passports, drivers licenses, and an even employment history. With fake income tax fraud, scammers use someone’s stolen name and Social Security number to file a fraudulent tax return before the victim has had a chance to file that year. They scammer claims a high amount of deductions to receive a large return that is direct deposited to a fraudulent bank account established with the victim’s credentials.

Signs of a Job Scam

  • You need to pay a fee to get the job

    Job applicants never need to pay a fee to apply for or get a job. If an employment agency is working at the behest of employer all fees are always paid by the employer who is seeking job applicants

  • You need to supply your credit card or bank account information

    Never pay a fee for job placement agency services. Job placement agencies are a legitimate business governed by state regulations. Fraudulent job placement services may lie about services offered or give guarantees about job placement. They may promote outdated listings or blatant job scams

  • The employment ad is for “previously undisclosed” federal government jobs

    Job scammers often advertised previously undisclosed federal government jobs all federal government jobs including those from the Postal Service, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and all other agencies earn are publicly available for free app usajobs.gov

Your local consumer protection agency, state Attorney General’s Office, and the Better Business Bureau can tell you whether any complaints have been filed about a company. Just keep in mind that a lack of complaints doesn’t mean the business is on the up-and-up.

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How to Protect Yourself Against Job Scams

  1. Research the company that you are applying for a job with. Look for complaints on Glassdoor, Monster, and the Better Business Bureau complaints
  2. Review their company profile on LinkedIn and connect with other employees
  3. Be wary of any company that asks for bank account information, credit card numbers, or your Social Security number before hiring you. Some legitimate companies may conduct a background check before making a job offer. This should be at their expense and the information given to them should be limited to the human resources department or background check agency
  4. Never send money to a hiring company. Scammers often ask for gift cards and prepaid debit cards to make their fraudulent activity untraceable
  5. Never give your personally identifiable information to anyone who doesn’t need it. Even after you’re hired only the human resources Department needs personal information about you and your family
  6. Only give bank account information after you’re hired by a legitimate company. Your new employer may need this to set up direct deposit to pay you, but they should never ask for this before you have accepted a job offer

How to Report a Job Scam

If you suspect a job scam is important to report it to authorities, you may need to file a police report to cover any monetary losses.

  1. Report any suspicious employer of job scam to the Federal Internet Crime Complaint Center at www.ic3.gov or your local FBI office, which can be found online at www.fbi.gov/contact-us/field-offices
  2. Report the job scam activity to the job website in which the job posting was listed. For example, if the fraudulent job posting was on Monster.com, then report the scam job listing to their customer service
  3. If you’ve been the victim of a job scam report it to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) https://www.ftc.gov/complaint
  4. It’s a fraudulent activity happened with a local job placement firm contact the appropriate state licensing board or State Attorney General

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About Geo

Geo Dvorak has experience in the privacy space, with a focus on highlighting the growing market for privacy professionals. He joined the Ask Cyber team to handle the jobs board.