5 New Job Search Scams and How to Spot Them

5 New Job Search Scams and How to Spot Them5 New Job Search Scams and How to Spot Them4As work from home job opportunities continue to rise (41 percent over the last decade, according to a new report by the U.S. Census Bureau), the scams that overwhelm this job niche rise as well.And unfortunately for job seekers, scammers are getting more savvy and elusive by the day. Of course, obvious job scams still exist (unsolicited emails offering jobs, job descriptions that use lots of $$$ and punctuation, and jobs requiring you to invest large sums of money to be hired) but a lot of very sneaky, very convincing new job search scams have come up over the last year.5 New Job Search Scams and How to Spot ThemIn buchen to help you stay ever-vigilant against job search scams, here are five new job search scams and how to spot them.1. Scammers using fake URLs to mask themselves as large, well-known companiesThe scam Youve found a job listing online that appears to be from a reputable, well-known company like General Electric or CNBC, and theyre offering work from home jobs But is it really from the company that it claims to be?How to spot the scam Double-check the URL (web address) of the company. For example, you may think you are on G.E.s site when you are actually on a bogus page made to look impressively similar to the real thing. An example of a recent bogus website is http//cnbc.com-index.in/. Though it looks like a .com and gives the impression you are on a page within the CNBC site, its really a .in that has nothing to do with the real CNBC website.To double check a job with a funky URL, open a fresh browser and search for the company by name. If you Google General Electric and then search their website for their careers page, youll be able to compare their real hiring site to the potentially bogus one youve found.2. Scammers using well-known company names to get personal banking informationThe scam The Federal Trade Commission recently had to refund $2.3 million to over 90,000 consumers in the U.S. who were allegedly charged hidden fees by a fake work-at-home service that used Googles name to advertise. The online work-at-home operation, which operated under the names Google Money Tree, Google Pro and Google Treasure Chest, deceptively used Googles name and logo. The operation promised that consumers could earn $100,000 in six months after signing up to receive a work-at-home kit for a shipping fee of under $4. The operation didnt tell consumers that, by ordering the work-at-home kit, they were disclosing their account information and would be charged an additional $72.21 each month, the FTC said.How to spot the scam This is a new scam that uses traditional scam tactics like promising a HUGE amount of money for a small investment, offering some kind of magical kit to help a person find a work from home job, and requesting personal bank account numbers and information. Even the newest job search scams use the old scam methods because they stil l work.3. Scammers prowling on LinkedIn offering too-good-to-be-true jobsThe scam We recently heard from a member of our LinkedIn Group about an unfortunate experience she had when dealing with a job offer she received through LinkedIn. The job seeker says, I gave up a work-at-home fleck with a reliable paycheck because I was contacted by someone through my LinkedIn profile. The company offered me a much better paying position and requested I leave my current position and start there the following week. I did as they requested. I worked for them for 2 weeks and 2 days and then out of nowhere they said they decided to go in a different direction and let me go. They NEVER paid me they owe me over $1,000 and wont respond to my calls or emails.To make matters worse, this job seekers old company, a reputable business which allowed her to work from home, wont re-hire her because she failed to provide two-weeks notice when she left the job originally.How to spot the scam If youre contacte d out of the blue by a company offering you a job without having had an interview, this is a big red flag. Additional red flags include Any company that asks you to quit your current job immediately and start working for them the following week (without allowing you to give the traditional two-week notice), or that rushes you into making a decision, or that promises you a better paying job than your current position without adding new responsibilities or tasks.Sadly, scammers are incredibly savvy at tapping into the desperation that a lot of professionals feel to make more money, and the urgency they apply to the situation makes it difficult for the job seeker to look at the job rationally and logically. If you feel like you might be dealing with a scam job but you arent sure, email feedbackflexjob.comor post the job to the LinkedIn Groupfor discussion. Were happy to tell you whether the job and company would pass our rigorous screening.4. Scammers using Instant Messaging to communi cate with job seekersThe scam Scammers have started using fake instant messaging accounts created through programs like Yahoo Messenger and Google Talk in order to conduct fake job interviews with unsuspecting job seekers.How to spot the scam While instant messenger has become a great way for employees to communicate with one another, its very rare to find a legitimate company using IM to conduct job interviews. If a company asks you to chat with them over IM, request a phone interview instead, and make sure they give YOU a number to call, and not the other way around. Before consenting to any interview, research the company to see if you find any red flags about them.As you can see fromthis actual transcript of an IM chat between a scammer and a job seeker, the scammers English language skills are often lacking, they offer unnecessary details like their age, they use lots of and ?? punctuation, and they are able to provide the job seeker with a hiring decision immediately. They th en ask for $369 for software programs, and require payment via Western Union, another huge red flag.5. Scammers hiring mystery shoppers to help them commit wire fraud through Western UnionThe scam Two scam companies were recently shut down after tricking job seekers into fake mystery shopper jobs in order to help them transfer funds. Idealcorp.net and Survsonl.com promised the chance to work from home helping a market research company gauge customer service at Western Union. Mystery shoppers were issued $2,000 checks, told they could cash them and keep $300 for themselves and wire the rest to someone overseas. They would then report on the quality of Western Unions customer service. But the $2,000 check turned out to be counterfeit, and once the bank where the con victims deposited it learned it was worthless, the victim had already sent off the $1,700 balance using his or her own funds. The banks held the victims accountable to pay back the money.How to spot the scam Companies sho uld never require you to use your own bank accounts or other personal accounts to help them transfer funds. Mystery shopping jobs are often the target of scammers, and real mystery shopping jobs should never require you to use your own money to make purchases or evaluate a retail experience. And a legitimate company will never send you a cashiers check out of the blue or require you to send money to someone you have never met.And most mystery shopping scam jobs carry a sense of urgency, just like LinkedIn scam jobs. They might require you to accept the job and cash their check within 48 hours or otherwise pressure you to act quickly. Never accept a job under the threat of a deadline if you arent 100 percent certain that the company is legitimate.