Job scams have increased during the Covid-19 crisis. How to avoid one

After nearly six months of unemployment and struggling to find a new job amid the coronavirus crisis, Aaron Heaps, a New York-based actor and waiter, finally thought he’d found something.

Automattic, a publishing company that owns and operates WordPress.com, contacted Heaps through a startup job site called AngelList and encouraged him to apply for a customer service position with a special application code.

“It’s been a very long application,” Heaps, 28, said, adding that all communication is through an online app called Telegram. But those questions are typical for a job interview, so he thinks “seems legit, they don’t ask anything too personal, I don’t have much to lose,” he said. .

He also continued to research Automattic during this process and learned that the company communicates online and has many employees working remotely. So he kept going until he was sent a new lease and contract form asking for more personal information including government identification and proof of address.

That’s when he saw many red flags. The $45 an hour salary seemed too high for the position and didn’t match the salary information of other companies he found online, Heaps said. And, he hasn’t had any direct contact with the company, something that usually comes with a job offer.

He took his word for it and requested a video conference to address some of the questions he had. He never received a response – neither AngelList nor Automattic had anything to do with what turned out to be a fake job listing.

Now, whenever another company approaches Heaps in a similar way, he worries it’s also a scam.

“It was really a failure,” he said. He reported the fake listing to both AngelList and Automattic, both of which have taken measures to address false postings.

AngelList has seen an increase in fake job postings amid the pandemic and some end up on the site despite an active team that detects and arrests fraud, said Kapil Kale, chief executive officer. talent products at AngelList said. Automattic’s actual job site – not the Heaps link that was given – now lists a scam warning.

Complaints about scams for some business and employment opportunities have spiked this year amid the coronavirus pandemic, according to Federal Trade Commission data.

According to the latest FTC data, reports of fraudulent recruitment agencies, job counseling, working abroad, multi-level marketing schemes and chain letters increased in Q2 2020. Complaints about scam business opportunities and work-from-home plans also increased from last year.

This increase comes as the United States grapples with its worst recession since the Great Depression. More than six months after the pandemic, about 26 million Americans are receiving unemployment benefits and have nearly 11 million fewer jobs than they did before the crisis.

“Whenever we see times of financial crisis and high unemployment, unfortunately,” said Kati Daffan, attorney and assistant marketing director in the FTC’s marketing practice division. , we see an increase in scams targeting people in financial difficulty.

According to Daffan, there are a few key signs that many scams share. Fraudulent listings may require upfront payment, for example, searching for the applicant’s bank or credit card information, or the guarantee of superior income or a luxurious lifestyle.

Kaitie Gibbs, 30, a mother of three from Florida, was the victim of a scam asking for a guaranteed income. Desperate to find another job after being appointed as an account executive at car rental giant Enterprise Holdings in March, she applied for a shipping agent position from far away that she found on the net.

Work at a company called Supreme Purchase, which promises to pay $3,500 the first month and $1,750 on a fortnightly basis after that. Gibbs began in June, picking up packages, changing their outer labels, and shipping them from UPS.

“As a single mom, in my mind, I thought, I can do this at home, which is very easy,” she said.

Near the end of her first month, Gibbs’ manager, with whom she only communicated virtual, asked if she wanted to be paid via direct deposit or PayPal. Gibbs was uncomfortable giving them her banking information, so opted for PayPal.

She was never paid, and after trying to contact the company, discovered that they had provided her with a fake phone number and address. The company has her driver’s license information and her Social Security number.

“I felt used and abused,” she said. “I don’t get paid.

“I worked a full month during Covid-19 expecting pay,” she added. Gibbs wrote to the Better Sales Department when she reported on the company. Several calls by CNBC to Supreme Purchase for comment have not been returned.

According to Daffan, what happened to Gibbs is called a transfer scam and it is on the rise. “Some people with the best intentions get into this and then other than contribute to something they don’t want to contribute, probably won’t get paid,” she said.

If you’ve been the victim of a scam or think you may have seen one, there are several things you can do to protect yourself.

1. Do your research before you apply: While online job boards have protocols in place to detect fraud, people should still do due diligence before submitting any personal financial information.

Mason Miranda, credit industry expert at Credit Card Insider, said: “If you’re in doubt in any way that a job posting might not be legit, call the company in question. “Google the company you’re applying to and look up their contact information.

“Don’t just trust the phone number listed, as it could also be a fake number.”

The best way is to apply for a job through the company’s website, not a link sent to you or posted elsewhere.

2. Report it: If you see a scam or are a victim, you should report it to the website where the fake listing was posted, the FTC and the Better Business Bureau. You can also notify local law enforcement and your state attorney general.

Daffan recommends using idtheft.gov, a website operated by the FTC, as it gives people a personalized recovery plan depending on what happened. Also, if its recommendations include sending a letter to your state or the credit reporting company, it provides templates to follow, she said.

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3. Protect your identity and finances: If you’ve paid a scammer, you should notify the company from which you made the payment as soon as possible to follow up and potentially get the money back, says Daffan. Credit and debit cards have chargeback rights, and funds sent via gift cards or wire transfers may be blocked.

“Unfortunately, scammers convert those funds into products or cash in different ways, so it is difficult to stop it,” Daffan said. “But we really encourage people to try.”

If you accidentally provide other personal information, Miranda says, you may want to freeze your credit reports from each of the major companies, Equifax, TransUnion and Experian, to prevent other accounts from being opened with your name, Miranda said.

You should also check your bank and credit card statements for any fraudulent purchases and report them immediately.

4. Warn others: Finally, if you’ve seen a scam or are a victim, Daffan recommends alerting others in your network who may come across the same post. Sharing your experience can also help handle it, she says.

“It’s incredibly helpful to tell each other about the scam you’ve seen,” she said.

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