MEMPHIS, Tenn. — It’s the perfect time of year for young people to earn extra money.Plenty of adults also use the summer to find additional employment. Turns out, crooks are looking too.
Both the Better Business Bureau of the Mid-South and the Tennessee Division of Consumer Affairs have warned people not to fall for job scams.
WREG learned, in addition to job seekers, crooks are now targeting employers too.
As a courier, Denise Bond is always on the go.
Bond told WREG, “We delivery everything from envelopes to barbecue daily.”
Weeks ago, she began getting hundreds of calls.
“All over the country, Wyoming, Wisconsin, Ohio,” Bond said of the callers.
Except, the people didn’t want to hire her, they wanted her to hire them.
“They’d ask me if I’m hiring for the job, specifics about the job, and after the first few calls I already knew, I would tell them right away, it was a scam.”
Bond’s company, High Speed Delivery Courier Service, worked with the Better Business Bureau to figure it out.
Crooks apparently targeted people who posted their resumes on Career Builder.
The thieves even created a website with a similar URL and information as High Speed’s.
They stole Bond’s reviews, BBB profile, even contact information.
The fake job was for “freight forwarding.”
“They would forward freight to the people’s homes and then promise them $2500 a month to re-package the freight and ship it back out.”
A close look revealed a different phone number on the bogus site.
Spelling errors and incorrect information are classic red flags for job scams.
Red Flags for Job Scams (BBB, TN Division of Consumer Affairs)
- Job scams often target certain positions, especially those offering work from home
- Watch out for up front expenses
- Don’t fall for overpayment scam
- Avoid vague, job descriptions
- Crooks often troll legitimate, job search sites
- Beware of big money pitches
- Avoid high pressure tactics
- If a job looks suspicious, search for it online
- Contact the actual company supposedly posting the job
- Watch out for people who aren’t interested in work experience
- Don’t hand over personal information until you’re sure the job is legitimate
While job seekers tend to be the biggest victims, employers like Bond lose something too.
“Now I’m spending all of my time answering these calls and having to tell people I’m sorry, but A, you’ve either given your information to someone falsely already, or B, stop and don’t do it.”