Beware of Bogus Online Employment

Postings!

Tri-State Better Business Bureau

Looking for Work?•The internet is a good resource for information, but there are risks!

•Job sites like Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com, and community sites like Craig List are popular employment sources for the public.

•Jobseekers should know that typically job sites do not monitor or review employment offers. These sites, and your BBB, recommend keeping your social security number and financial information safe!

“Too Good to Be True”If a job ad sounds too good to be true, then it usually is!

You probably won’t be paid a high salary for doing little work.

For example. work-at-home opportunities are popular on job sites and typically require you to provide a product or service from your home. Although legitimate offers exist, common schemes include stuffing envelopes, assembling products, medical billing, selling advertising on the internet, and data entry.

Unfortunately, opportunities to work abroad are not offered to inexperienced jobseekers. Watch for a promise of employment, unlisted post office boxes of phone numbers, and guarantees.

What is Real or Fake?

COMMON RED FLAGSDon’t pay an “employer” to do work. Reliable companies do not ask for money up front.

Be careful if a business won’t disclose who they are or where they’re located. If you can’t verify this information and follow up by checking them out with your BBB, consider looking elsewhere.

Genuine employment offers don’t require you to send personal information via email. Resist the urge to respond to a request to “verify your identity”.

Paying to ApplySome employment listing services and “consultants” write ads to sound like there are jobs available, when in fact they’re really only selling information.

EXAMPLE

You may have seen post office job listings in the newspaper instructing you to pay for an employment

exam or promising high test scores for a fee. But jobseekers can contact the post office directly to learn

about opportunities.

Learn more at USPS.com.

Personal InvitationsSCENARIO

A scammer sends mass e-mails to long lists of recipients. The e-mail claims to be a response to job application or it claims to have seen your resume on the Internet, noting that your skills match the requirements for their job. You are invited to complete an online job application.

PROCEED WITH CAUTION! Did you apply for a job with this company? Did you send a resume to this recruiter? Check it out the business with your BBB!

Protect Yourself1. Research any company for which you are

considering working for. Ask for business name, address, and phone number.

2. Don’t give out any personal information until you have checked the company out.

3. Don’t pay for a promise.

4. Check the business out first with your BBB!

Watch out for…1.Companies that ask for personal

information without disclosing who they are;

2.The request for an upfront fee;3.claims of high earnings with no

experience4.the promise of something for nothing5.or instructions to visit another site (link

provided by them) to check your credit score or run a background check.

HELPFUL LINKSTri-State Better Business Bureau

Federal Trade CommissionAvoiding Job Scams (PRC)

NCL’s Internet Fraud Watch

TRI-STATE BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU

5401 VOGEL RD., SUITE 410 EVANSVILLE, IN 47715

P 812-473-0202 F 812-473-3080

WWW.EVANSVILLE.BBB.ORG INFO@EVANSVILLE.BBB.ORG