Recognizing Online Job Scams – Microsoft 365 (2024)

Microsoft 365 Life Hacks > > Recognizing Online Job Scams

July 13, 2022

Finding a job can be stressful—especially if you learn that a position you’ve applied for is a scam.

Recognizing Online Job Scams – Microsoft 365 (1)

Identifying Job Scams

A fake job scam is when someone is deceived about applying for or having a job. The job in question may place the hired person in a role in which they themselves are unknowingly committing fraud, or the job may be nonexistent and the application is merely a tool through which the scammer can collect your personal information to use at their own discretion. There are few traits that can help you determine if a job posting is legitimate or not.

Informal Interview or Hiring Process

A legitimate company will want to meet and interview you to determine your skillset and whether you’re a good fit for their organization. If a company doesn’t sound professional and makes an offer of employment after only a very brief communication, they may be after your personal information or want you to participate in another form of fraud. While it can feel like a relief to land a job quickly, if a company isn’t conducting interviews in person or via a secure video conferencing format, this is a huge red flag. Additionally, if you visit their website and it seems overly amateur, or if their digital communications are from unprofessional or unbranded email addresses, think twice.

Recognizing Online Job Scams – Microsoft 365 (2)

Microsoft Defender

Stay safer online with one easy-to-use app¹

¹Microsoft 365 Personal or Family subscription required; app available as separate download

Learn More

Requesting Confidential Information

A new employer will always ask you to fill out forms for taxes, payroll, and a potential background or credit check. However, this step should happen after you’re formally hired and never as part of the interview process. If a company is asking for your social security number or banking information or requests a copy of your ID or driver’s license as part of the interview process, don’t proceed any further. This is a common tactic used by those who commit unemployment fraud and other kinds of identity theft.

Asking for Money

If a potential employer asks you to foot the bill for required training or necessary work product (like items for which you’ll be responsible to sell), take a step back. Even if a training course or piece of equipment is necessary for the position, you should never have to pay your employer for anything like that. A reasonably common scam is an employer hiring a new employee, asking for money for training and supplies, and then disappearing with the money. Buying your own stock to then sell is a hallmark of multi-level marketing—also known as network marketing and pyramid schemes.

Work-from-Home Jobs

Scammers know that many people would love the ability to work from home and make a decent living. That’s why they place ads that claim you can “Make thousands of dollars a month with little time and effort!” These ads claim that you can set your own schedule and be your own boss and this is appealing to many people. Unfortunately, these work from home scams are often a means to commit check fraud.

Fake Jobs & Fake Recruiters

If a job posting appears on a job board but not on a legitimate company website, you should think twice about applying. Similarly, if a recruiter contacts you about a job but asks that you pay for the service, they are not legitimate. An employer will never ask you to pay for the promise of a job and a real recruiter will get paid by the companies for which they’re recruiting, not the recruits.

Recognizing Online Job Scams – Microsoft 365 (4)

What To Do if You’re the Victim of an Employment Scam

Don’t beat yourself up if you’ve fallen for a fake job posting. However, there may be some steps that you need to take, especially if you’ve handed over money or personal information.

First, alert your bank and all three credit bureaus that your financial information may have been compromised. This will help put more eyes on your bank accounts and credit score and keep a look out for suspicious activity. This can also help you to potentially get some of that money back.

Report the job posting to the Internet Crime Complaint Center, which is a partnership between the National White Collar Crime Center and the FBI. It seeks to help those who are victimized by online job scams. You’ll need to provide some personal details and as much information as you can about the job posting and your interactions with the scammers.

Lastly, trust your gut when job hunting online. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.