Many new business owners realize that building a business takes time, patience, and they realize that the profits won’t come instantly. Therefore, many want to look for a job if they are currently unemployed for financial stability in the meantime. It may be part time or full time, it is up to the individual’s needs and wants. I am going to say there are many “job opportunities” listed all over the net. Why did I put the term job opportunities in quotations? Because a great majority of them are scams! No matter how legitimate they appear, they likely are not! I will list what red flags there are to look for in a job opportunity listing-
1. If you apply for a job and you are hired on the spot. This has nothing to do with how qualified or how “worthy” you may be to get a job. In most cases employers are having to sift through countless amount of resumes after offering a legitimate employment offer. The odds honestly are against you to get that job on the spot, unless there is any kind of nepotism involved. However, if the employer doesn’t know you from Adam, you probably won’t get the job. If you get it right away within a day or two, there is something fishy about that right there.
2. The salary is unrealistically high. If it is noted you will be making an huge amount of money for doing very little work, or very easy work with very little experience, then that is a red flag right there. These scammers put this out there to lure desperate job seekers.
3. You are expected to wire money. This is a very bad one. If your position is to process transactions for the company, run away. Anyone offering you a real job will not require you to transfer funds of any kind.
4. You are receiving an email from a non-business address. If you are receiving emails from gmail or yahoo, or any email service that is not business related, that in itself is a red flag. However, some scammers are incredibly crafty nowadays that they will go out and create a fake company website and use a business related email address. That being said, just because it’s a business address does not mean it’s legitimate either.
5. You are asked for personal information. After you have been offered your “job” position and they ask you for all kinds of personal information such as your banking info, driver’s license or SSN/SIN numbers, run! They are doing this to steal your identity!
6. Receiving emails at 2am. If you are receiving emails at very odd hours (unless there is a legitimate telecommuting job offered to you in another part of the world which can happen), then that in itself is strange.
7. You are required to pay for the job. If you have to pay for any kind of job, then run. No real job offers should cost you a dime.
8. If the interview is done my IM or texting. An interview from a real employer will interview you through Skype video if the distance is an issue. Otherwise, you would be asked to come to the office to meet the interviewer. No other way is legitimate.
Because of the fact I am going through some changes business wise, I am in a position where I am looking for something part time. But I am not only wise enough to not fall for anything that appears to be too good to be true- but I need to throw this out there to those who are in the same boat.
It’s best to go to a trusted employment agency to look for legitimate work, or go on this forum for legitmate sources. Best of luck!
HI Miriam
You are very right with your point. There are many oppurtunities scattered all over the Net. But when we digg more about them we get disappointed as many of them were just fake, One need to be very careful while they chose to do online works.
I have never heard of having to pay for a test to be considerd for a job. It would be a scam if it happened in my country. If it’s unusual in your country, it’s a scam.
That’s right. It is a scam if you are required to pay.
I’ve done A/R for years. I haven’t been a supervisor but I’ve trained and coached employees so I knew I had a shot at the job. I quickly updated my resume and sent it to my ex-colleague. I heard back right away. I had an interview three days later and then a second interview, and I got the offer. I’ve never been through such a fast recruiting process.