By Jim Kreidler – Consumer Education Specialist/FTC
Lots of folks look for jobs during the holiday season to make some extra cash or pay bills. But scammers follow seasonal employment trends, too, advertising jobs the same way honest employers do. They’re looking for any opportunity to steal your money and personal information. Do you know how to spot them?
After posting jobs that look like the real thing on legitimate employment sites, scammers go through a careful process to try to lure you in. They might offer you the job and quickly ask for your personal information like your driver’s license, Social Security, or bank account number to fill out their “employment paperwork.” But if you share it, they might steal your identity. Learn more at ftc.gov/jobscams.
To keep your money and personal information to yourself, follow these steps:
- Never give out personal information before doing some research. Contact the company directly using a phone number or e-mail you know to be legitimate – not the one you got from the job posting.
- See what others are saying. Search online for the name of the job and the company plus the words “review,” “complaint,” or “scam.” You might find they’ve scammed other people.
- Don’t pay to get a job. Scammers may promise you a job – if you pay them. But no legitimate job will make you pay for expenses or fees for training or anything else to get the job. Anyone who does is a scammer.
- Talk to someone you trust before you take a job offer or business opportunity. What do they think?
And if you spot a job scam, tell the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
