Tips on how to Avoid Being Conned while Job Hunting Online
Social Media has made it easier for job seekers to find jobs posted by employers seeking candidates. Be it Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin or IG, you’ll always find a post or two on your timeline about a compnay or individual looking for someone to hire. Unfortunately, the same Platform as been infested by cons and sapmmers looking to prey on desperate individuals looking to land a job. Fake jobs are everywhere today.
Below are 9 Tips to stay while on the hunt for your dream job.
- Never pay for a job interview. Normally, scammers will find something that many job seekers won’t suspect like CRB clearance fee. If you are asked for any kind of payment to facilitate your employment, RUN! A job is supposed to pay you, not you paying for a job. If they claim to be a recruiter for a company, go a step further and ask the try contacting the said company to check if at all they are recruiting via an agency. As a jobseeker you do not pay for the services of a recruiter; it is the employer who pays the recruiter to find the right person for their role. Also, never pay for background checks or any other review of your qualifications and experience.
- Watch out for “Too Good to Be True Kinda Jobs”. Always be cautious and skeptical about any job you come across that is very enticing, and somehow guarantees happy endings. If it’s so simple that anyone can do it, or no particular skills, experience, or education are specified, RUN! IT’S PROBABLY A SCAM! All Jobs should have a description, like qualifications and responsibilities. If none is specified, red flag, proceed with caution.
- Make Google your friend. Always do your own due diligence. Research about the company hiring, visit their website or social media pages to ascertain they’re actually hiring! Nobody is going to protect you online but yourself.
- Pay attention on how they want you to apply. Most fake jobs will appear to come from a legitimate company, but the application method will be altered. If the contact’s email address doesn’t match the company’s website domain (e.g. they ask you to send applications to tuskysjobs@gmail.com rather than jobs@tuskys.com), RED FLAG! RUN! If they ask you to call/text/whatsapp, proceed with caution and revisit tip no.1.
- Another red alert is if a job requires you to apply by filling in a Google form. If you are redirected to a Google form, be sure that link is either coming from the real company/organization website, their social media pages or a reputable jobs website/page. Anyone can create a Google Form and design it to look like the Legitimate Company’s Recruitment page. If in doubt, try contacting the company via social media and ask if they are recruiting via the said form.
- Don’t include sensitive information like ID Number/birthday on your CV and never submit your CV to a site that does not provide a privacy policy, has no contact details such as a physical address, or is not well-known. Only send your CV to reputable organisations. Once I have your ID Number and Birthday, I have everything to steal your identity. Unless specified, just provide your Name, and contact information.
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- For every posted job online, make an effort to learn more about the publisher by visiting their profile and checking their recent posts, profile/cover photos, number of posts, accounts age/when they joined and number of followers/friends. Be very cautious when dealing with new accounts or those with incomplete/inactive profiles.
- Don’t be afraid to ask your friends/followers if a vacancy or recruiter is legit. If you doubt any opportunity, share it on your profile asking if anyone has ever dealt with the said person/company. You’ll be amazed how online strangers can be lifesavers at times!
- Lastly, be a brother/sister’s keeper. Don’t just share anything that claims to offer a job opportunity. If you spot a scammer/fake posts, alert other users.
DO you have any other tip for job seekers? Share it below in the comment section. If you found these tips to be helpful, share with your network and enlighten a job seeker out there!
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