As job scams soar, a new set of victims emerges -- small businesses
Imagine getting a flurry of emails and calls from angry people claiming you've stolen their money -- by promising them a job that doesn't exist. And you have no idea who they are, or why they are calling.
Work-from-home scams aren't new, but I've seen enough data points lately that I believe an alert is in order: there is a fresh epidemic of job scams. They are both more prevalent and more sophisticated, so job seekers need to be more careful than ever. Worse still, there is a fresh set of victims and targets who need to worry -- small businesses that are being impersonated.
First, some stark numbers: The Better Business Bureau reported last year that job scams had made post-Covid a resurgence, and The Identity Theft Resource Center said recently that reports of job scams were up 118% in 2023 as compared to 2022. In fact, the agency told me that just from December of last year to January of this year, reports were up 500%.
So if you are looking for work, keep your guard up. Job seekers are in a very vulnerable position. The standard advice to avoid scams sounds straight out of kindergarten -- don't talk to strangers, don't volunteer personal information, and never share any financial details with someone you don't know. But job seekers often *have* to do all those things. How else can you participate in an interview? What's worse, resumes are often public, giving criminals exactly the kinds of deep personal details that make fodder for scam cover stories -- "I see you've worked in publishing for years! You'd be perfect for this job receiving royalty payments and processing them for our overseas authors."
What's more job seekers are often in the emotional position experts often tell consumers to avoid -- they're highly agitated, and in a hurry, because they really need a paycheck. That makes them even more vulnerable.
Many job scams ultimately boil down to the same kind of crime: Persuading victims to send money using an irrevocable method, such as a wire transfer or Zelle payment. For a recent episode of The Perfect Scam, I spoke to a victim who was in the middle of a big corporate layoff, and was happy to land a new position. The firm sent her a check -- via PDF -- to deposit so she could buy a new computer and other equipment for the position. While her bank initially cleared the check, and put the money in her account, it later reversed the payment because the check was a fraud. Unforunately, in the interim, she had sent several payments for the new equipment as instructed. Before the mess was untangled, she had wired six payments of more than $20,000 to the criminals. In the end, the victim found herself unemployed and without a penny left in her checking account.
Job scams are roping in other kinds of victims, too. Ryan Staller owns a digital marketing agency in Fort Myers, Florida, called NetOne360. Recently he began receiving dozens of email inquiries about a job opening at his shop. But he had no open positions. Instead, criminals had made a copycat version of his firm and began reaching out to hundreds of job seekers. At one point, he was getting so many inquiries that he had to put a "We have no job openings" notice atop his website. But that's not all. At least two victims sent the criminals thousands of dollars, and when they realized what had happened, they blamed Staller.
"I had a woman out of Atlanta calling me, yelling at me on the phone telling me that, 'You stole my money, I want my money back.' And I was like, 'I have no idea really what you're talking about,' " he told me.
Staller didn't have any money stolen from him, but he was very worried about his company's reputation.
"My biggest thought was, is my brand here in jeopardy? And what do I need to do? How do I need to fix this going forward? Is this something I need to rebrand?" he told me.
In the end, the crush of emails faded away, and for now, things seem back to normal. Of course, he can never be certain his firm won't be impersonated again.
The only defense against this crime is awareness. This kind of impersonation scam reminds me of the episode we published about National Geographic photographer Paul Nicklen not long ago -- criminals often impersonate him and create look-alike accounts to steal from victims. Nicklen isn't at risk of financial theft, but he is a victim. He and his staff are now constantly on the lookout for emails and other messages from victims so they can be warned about impersonation crimes. You should be, too. You might not think a criminal could use your company, or your social media profile, to steal from other people. But the creativity of these organized criminals cannot be underestimated.
And if you are a job seeker, never send your own money at the instructions of a potential employer. Even after you think you've been hired. For plenty more tips and other information about job scams, please consider listening to this episode of The Perfect Scam by visiting our website, or clicking the play button below.