Job scammers are increasingly targeting specific groups: This includes veterans, parents and caregivers returning to work, and cybersecurity professionals.
Watch for red flags: Things like unsolicited job offers, personal email addresses, requests for sensitive information, and demands for money during the hiring process.
Know what to do if you suspect a scam: Job seekers should stop communicating, preserve evidence, protect their finances, and report the incident to the appropriate agencies and websites.
Job hunting can be stressful enough without having to wonder whether the job posting in front of you is even real. But scammers are increasingly taking advantage of people who may be especially eager to find work, tailoring fake job opportunities to specific groups and their circumstances.
Veterans leaving the military, parents and caregivers returning to the workforce, and even cybersecurity professionals are among those being targeted. With cyber-enabled crime continuing to rise, cybersecurity experts say job seekers should be especially careful about who they trust during the hiring process.
ConsumerAffairs spoke with Serena Sullivan, Cybersecurity Professor at National University, to learn more about how these groups are being targeted and what they can do to protect themselves.
How scammers are targeting job seekers
Sullivan explained that these scams can be presented in many different forms, and oftentimes, the job ads are written to appeal to certain types of candidates, taking advantage of generalizations about certain types of candidates.
“A candidate may encounter fake job postings on all the job-seeking platforms,” Sullivan said. “No job-related website is immune from these types of postings. Attackers who are trying to scam people through job ads are typically going to use language and job descriptions that will appeal to different types of workers.
“For example, a veteran with a clearance would likely be searching for a contracting position that requires clearance, whereas returning parents might be looking for a position that allows them to work around their child’s school schedule.”
Know the red flags to look for
Sullivan shared some of the top red flags that all job seekers should be aware of:
A company reaching out through an unsolicited phone call, text message or email with a too-good-to-refuse offer.
Emails that do not originate with professional domains, instead relying on Gmail, Yahoo, and other freely available email services.
A company asking the candidate to share hiring information, such as home address, social security number, banking information for direct deposit, or other personal details prior to an interview, or directly after a job interview.
“In nearly all types of scams, including this one, attackers often rely on a sense of urgency, guiding the candidate through a fast process from initial contact to hiring,” Sullivan explained. “A massive red flag is if a company solicits money from a candidate. The scammers could request the candidate pay for training, buy equipment, or pay a fee to have an application processed.
“Most legitimate companies will not ask for personal information via email, so if the company asks the candidate to fill out a Word document and send it via email, which would be an indicator of nefarious activity. Most larger companies use a hiring portal, such as Workday to manage recruits, so if they attacker is claiming to be from a large company, then sends the candidate a Word document, or even a link to fill out a JotForm or Google form, for example, then it would be a warning sign to the candidate that something unusual is happening.”
Protecting your personal information in the job search
If you’re on the job hunt, it’s important not to share all of your personal details right off the bat – especially if you’re uncertain about the legitimacy of a job posting.
“A best practice for candidates is to visit the company’s website by searching for it in a web browser, not using a website address that the scammer provided,” Sullivan said. “The job description should be listed on the company’s official careers website. If the job is not listed, it could indicate the job is a scam.”
What to do if you’ve fallen victim to a job scam
Job candidates who think they may have been targeted with a fake job opportunity can follow some steps to protect themselves.
Here are Sullivan’s best tips:
If you immediately recognize the contact as fake, stop communicating with the scammer.
Save the emails, text messages, or other documentation.
Take screenshots of fake websites, write down the timeline of how the situation progressed, and preserve the evidence in a safe place.
If the attacker obtained banking or other financial information, take immediate steps to notify your bank or credit card companies to report the fraud.
If the attacker was able to obtain your SSN, contact the three credit reporting agencies and put a hold on your social security number. The IRS will mail you a PIN, effectively stopping attackers from using the SSN.
Contact the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and report the fake ad to the job-seeking website where the candidate encountered the ad.
If the attacker was impersonating a legitimate company, you can contact the company to provide the details of the attack to their security team.