I mentioned that many employers are guilty of posting fake jobs for various reasons. You may have applied to one of these jobs recently. And if you have, you have probably been very frustrated at the thought and sight of your ‘dream job’ disappearing before your very eyes. Your dream job still exists hidden among the ever-growing horde of fake jobs that companies are suddenly in love with.
Your chances of finding your ideal job will improve if you learn how to spot fake jobs better. In this article, I will give you some useful pointers for spotting fake jobs online.
Run Far Away If You Spot The Following in A Job Listing
As if you didn’t have enough to worry about when job searching. You’re already under some pressure as it is, and then you have to be mindful of companies posting fake jobs! Well, you know that there are some red flags if you get an iMessage from someone claiming to be a hiring manager or recruiter for a company. The person will tell you that he or she found your resume online and are interested in hiring you.
You may not think that this is not a surefire way to spot fake jobs, but you should be very wary if the person asks you for personal details like your social security or credit card number. Note that legitimate employers don’t ask for your social security number until they have hired you. They will never ask you for your credit card information.
Be Suspicious if the Recruiter Asks to Communicate Via Skype, Zoom, or Microsoft Teams
The list of messaging apps that a ‘recruiter’ for fake jobs or scam jobs goes on and on. Skype, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams are just a few of these apps and platforms. Fake recruiters love to communicate via these apps and platforms because it’s very difficult to track their activity. Run far away if the recruiter reaches out to you on platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn, or Indeed! And then asks you to communicate via Telegram because telegram=scam.
Never Accept a Job Offer Where You Only Do a Video Interview
If an employer is legitimate, their recruiter will want to see you in person and not just through a video interview on Skype or Zoom. That’s not professional. Real recruiters from real companies want to see you in person because they want to see what kind of a professional you are. They also want to make sure you would truly want to work with them once you’ve met them in real time.
An employer who doesn’t even want to interview with you or only wants to chat with you through a messaging app is posting nothing but fake jobs or scam jobs. Block them immediately because they will probably ask you to buy a lot of equipment through gift cards, Zelle, Venmo or another secure payment platform through one of their ‘fake vendors.’ They will ‘reimburse’ you with a fake check that will cause your bank account to be suspended and may even have you arrested or land you in lots of legal hot water.
The Pay is Extremely High
Legitimate companies tend to pay the market price for employees. So, if you see a job for a customer service position that pays $200,000 a year, you know that it’s a scam job. The number of hours you have to work a week is also a red flag. For example, many ‘employers’ post job listings offering payouts of up to $1,500 a day for posting on social media platforms. Workers only have to work for a few hours a day (sometimes only a few hours a week.)
These job postings generally require that the workers have nothing but a pulse, and they claim that all that they need to do the work is a working mobile device. Those are obvious scam jobs and fake jobs.
You Can Literally Work Whenever You Want
While employers are begrudgingly giving into Gen Zers and even Millennials’ demands for a more flexible working schedule and a healthy work-life balance, they still need employees to work in a structured environment. So, consider it to be a red flag if you find a job listing that lets you work whenever and wherever you want. Chances are it’s fake or even a scam job.
The Company Name, Job Title, and Job Description are Vague
It’s one thing for an employer to not mention the salary range in a job description, it’s entirely another for the employer to not mention the company name, job, title, and job description in a listing. Real employers want to make sure that everyone who applies for the position can do the work. So, they will be clear and transparent about the name of their company, the job title, and the duties and responsibilities of the role.
A real employer will also give you a professional email address. Be very wary if the employer wants you to call them, or contact them through WhatsApp or Telegram right off the back. There’s a good chance that the job is not real or is a scam job.
The Job Description Claims that You Can Make Several Thousands in a Day Without Doing Any Real Work or Investing Any of Your Own Money into the Company
If a company posts a job description stating that you can make money, like several thousands of dollars, by watching videos or posting on platforms, it’s a fake or scam job. Remember that no legitimate employer will give you money for doing nothing all day.
They Say that You Have to Pay Money to Release Your Payment, Which is Arrears
That’s ridiculous. Your employer should be paying you to work for them and not the other way around. Here’s how these types of scam jobs work. The ‘company’ has a recruiter who will post the job on Facebook, Instagram, or even LinkedIn. They will then ask you to communicate through Telegram. You’ll get image conversion, copy and paste, typing, and/or translation work.
After you finish the tasks and ask for your payment, they will tell you that you have to pay a small amount, say $50 for US tax purposes, or to release your payment, which is stuck in a bank. That’s nonsense. There are no funds waiting to be released to you. The recruiter will block you once he or she receive the funds.
As a general rule, any image conversion, copy and paste, typing, and/or translation jobs are scam jobs. That’s especially true if they offer $2,500 for their work but never specify the amount or length of employment. The high payment and easy tasks are there to lure and trick you.
Job Seeker Beware!
We are entering into a brave new world when it comes to job searching. If you are seeking employment, you have to be careful and always do your due diligence before applying for a job. You should at least make sure that the company is real and is actually posting the job description that you see on a platform online. You can do that by going straight to the jobs page on the company’s website.
