We have compiled a reminder for you of 5 signs that you have fallen for scammers, and not for conscientious employers. If you see at least one of the five points, turn around and leave.
Also, be sure to read our other article on the signs that you have a good vacancy in front of you. They complement each other and it will be easier for you to identify a decent employer. First of all, always go to trusted companies like Layboard.
They demand money from you
In most cases, the main goal of scammers is to get money, so basically fraud schemes are related to paying for something. For example, the interlocutor assures that you will be hired immediately after purchasing their paid course. Or you will be put on staff after posting a deposit for work uniform/work computer/learning materials.
Every year the schemes of deception become more and more diverse. Fraudsters ask for a deposit for the provided goods for sale, and then disappear; others create entire systems and issue loans to unsuspecting people. Be carefull!
A decent employer provides the employee with everything necessary for work – both equipment and uniform, if necessary. If they extort money from you under any pretext, leave.
“Muddy” working conditions
Probably, everyone has seen annoying ads on the Internet in the style of “I work 3 hours a day and earn 100,000 rubles a month.” All such ads have one thing in common – they very clearly describe pleasant bonuses and very sparingly mention responsibilities. After reading them, it is not clear – what should be done?
Often such ads hide network marketing, pyramid schemes, etc. You may be invited to join a “club”, become a distributor or business partner, or participate in a profitable project. A beautiful and ornate job description can turn into banal aggressive sales or writing fake comments on the Internet for a penny. If job responsibilities are vague, this is suspicious.
But network marketing is not so bad, illegal schemes can be hidden behind incomprehensible vacancies with rosy conditions.
They promise too high a salary
Probably, even the most inveterate skeptic’s eyes will sparkle at the sight of a salary with many zeros. But let’s be honest: high salaries are paid for great and high-quality experience, or for unique skills and abilities, and not for everyone.
There are companies that are willing to pay good specialists wages above the market – this is normal. But if you see a vacancy for which neither work experience nor education is needed, and at the same time the salary is very high, turn off the dreamer mode and beware.
Requesting a lot of data and documents
With official employment, the employer asks a potential employee for some documents, but already with direct registration. If you are asked to bring a whole bunch of documents with you to the first interview, do not hesitate to find out why this is required.
Fraudsters may collect data to sell on the black market or use in other illegal schemes. Often, for these purposes, they are asked to fill out very detailed questionnaires, indicating many contacts.
Once again: we are not talking about basic questionnaires when passing the selection, where you talk about yourself and your experience – this is normal. But if immediately after the response they send you a questionnaire on 10 sheets, where you need to write the contacts of all uncles and aunts indicating their places of work, ask – can you tell me the CVV code right away?
Offer to transfer wages through intermediaries
At first glance, this may be an ordinary decent job, for example, a remote operator. But when it comes to paying salaries, the employer sends a link and says that payments will be transferred through an intermediary site and you just need to register on it. And then the card data is stolen, the money from it too, the employer disappears, etc.
Not all transfers through intermediaries are fraudulent. Many remote companies use remote billing services to save time and delegate responsibilities. Before agreeing to such payroll conditions, read the reviews on the Internet about this platform and make sure that this is not a fraudulent site. Well, about the company itself, offering this format of work, also learn more.
How to find a real employer?
Step one – read carefully
“Office work 4 hours a day, 3 times a week. Salary 200,000 rubles. Requirements: age 18-80, education does not matter” – such announcements should alert any applicant. Do not waste your time and talent on a not quite legal business. Be sure: if the job advertisement promises you mountains of gold, then gold can turn into sand.
When looking for a job, follow the logic: the higher the salary promised in the vacancy, the higher the requirements for applicants should be. If the amount is six figures, be prepared for multi-stage interviews and test tasks. The functionality, even very wide, should be described in the vacancy clearly and clearly, and not just with the words “office work” or “manager is required”.
Step two – compiling a “dossier”
So the position has been selected. Before submitting a resume or going to an interview, conduct a quick analysis of information about the company. Take a look at what the company’s website is, what information is presented on it, how recent the news is, what it is about, what former employees write in job reviews – in a word, create a mini-dossier for yourself.
However, when reading reviews, do not believe everything that the authors say. It is not uncommon for fired employees to use Internet forums as a means of getting revenge on a company that did not have a successful career. Separate facts from emotions. It’s one thing if a former employee writes that the company regularly delayed wages (this is a fact, although it needs to be verified), and quite another if he speaks badly of colleagues (these are emotions).
After reviewing the information, you will make a more informed decision about whether you should go to an interview. So, stale news on the site may indicate stagnation in the company. The absence of the “contacts” page should be alarming at all.
Step three – call the recruiter
If the vacancy is fake, then you will hardly be able to find out something over the phone. As a rule, scammers do not want to go into details, promising to tell everything about the future job at the interview. Often they do not even announce the name of the company, convincing, for example, that the company is new and very promising, and just now the recruitment is underway.
Be sure to ask about the employment contract. Decent employers do not evade their duties to conclude a normal labor contract, but scammers will certainly avoid answering in every possible way.
However, there are exceptions to this rule. Often, even reputable companies offer to arrange some types of work (design or one-time) under a civil law contract (work contract, author’s order, etc.).
Step four – lock the wallet
One of the basic rules when looking for a job is not to pay anyone. As a rule, recruitment agencies take payment not from applicants, but from employers. If you contact the company directly, there is absolutely nothing to pay for either – you came here to earn money, not spend it.
What can scammers ask to pay for? There are several options – for training (“Here we will teach you the technique of calling customers, and you will immediately start earning”), for any material values \u200b\u200bthat you will be provided with (“You need to leave a deposit for dietary supplements that you will offer”) or for working tools ( e.g. customer database).
Step Five – Interview
Finally, how to spot a fraudulent employer in an interview? Assess the space where employees work. Does it have computers, other office equipment? How lived-in does it look? If the office has only desks and telephones, be on your guard – it is possible that you have a one-day company in front of you.
At the same time, the office of a successful company does not have to be located in the city center and amaze with design delights. The main thing is that you see that people are working in the room, texts and tables are on their monitors, plans and graphs are on the walls.
If there are too many people in the reception company or in another room where visitors or applicants are welcomed, evaluate – who are these people and why are they all here at the same time? Numerous candidates for vacant positions – isn’t there too many of them in relation to the size of the company? Disgruntled customers who show up to get their money back? Or maybe just students waiting to meet the CEO at some kind of “open day”?
Do not be too lazy to search the Internet for information about the company inviting you to work, and employee reviews. If the company has neither social networks nor a website, and the name is difficult to google, this should alert.
Too rosy working conditions, a huge salary with a minimum of effort expended – this is a fairy tale. In reality, this may turn out to be either simply not true, or a trap to get money from you.
Be vigilant, double-check all the information, do not send documents to strangers. Good luck finding a job!
