JOB SCAMMERS

8 Proven Ways to Avoid being a Victim of Job Scam

With the new batch of corp members now currently in the labour market. The number of unemployment as risen as usual. And as unemployment as risen, so has the number of scam in Nigeria risen. 

The increasing number of job scams across the country is becoming frightening, from fake employers to fake recruitment agencies who are out to scam you of your hard earned money all in the name of giving you a job. This post is to enlighten you so that you will be careful and never fall a victim.

These scammers are getting smarter by the day. As a job seeker you don’t have to be desperate, you have to be smart and on alert.

The following are the 8 things you should consider to avoid being scammed.

1) Look at the job title/description : Before applying for any job, you should look at the job details; watch the tone of the job description. In the past fake jobs advertisers don’t disclose the position or job title they advertise but recently many of them have started disclosing it leaving only few who still don’t. In event they disclose it, the job title are usually generalized with little or no specifics (they do this to get as many applications as possible). Watch out for Job title like Graduate Trainees, Customer Care, Marketing Executive, Graduate Admin Officer, this doesn’t mean that all jobs with these titles are fake but be extra careful when you see titles. On the other hand, the job descriptions are usually generic with no clear explanation on the roles involved in the job.
Most of these fake recruiters/employers target fresh graduates and entry level positions (sometimes mid level) because they believe job seekers in this category are naive and more desperate.

2) Look at the company Name/details: In the past fake job advertisers claim to be a company outside the country, sometimes they use valid company names but use email addresses or websites that doesn’t relate to the company. Recently, they have become more smart and daring, some go as far as using a registered business names. However, watch out for generic names like Global consult, Careerlink Consult, Human Resources Concepts etc
As a job seeker, whenever you see a vacancy, look at the company advertising, if possible do a little background check on the company. Sometimes big companies use HR agencies to recruit, in that case research on the HR company and know if they have track record. Note some companies advertise vacancies anonymously so as to avoid external influence on the recruitment process.


3) Ask Questions before attending any interview : If you are called for any job interview or sent a text message/email by any company that you are not sure of or that looks suspicious to you, politely call, email or SMS the company to get more information. You should ask about the company, the nature of the job and their location. However, you should search online before asking in case their information is already available. If you don’t get a reasonable response from the company or information about them or if they refuse to disclose any of the above information, kindly stay away.

4. Job Offering On The Spot :You are confident in your abilities and you know that you are a qualified candidate, but how does the hiring manager know?Hiring a candidate on the spot is a big sign the job isn’t a real or at least not what you had hoped when you applied. Overzealous employers are generally a tip off that a job isn’t genuine. Actual employers take their time to research and get to know potential job candidates — going through rounds of job interviews — before offering a position.

5. The Job Is Not What It Says It Is : This is very common. Let’s say, you apply for a job in Public Relations (PR) and get invited for an interview, you might find this there: the job is in fact, going door-to- door selling health-enhancement drugs. Some would even sugar-coat or completely change the job description in the hopes of luring you in. Once you're there, he knows it might be hard for you to walk away from an on-the-spot job offer.

6. When They Ask For Money: As a rule, never, ever, ever should you to pay when an employer asks for money for a job offering. There's no such thing as an application fee for a job. Any job offer that requires that you pay a fee in advance, is probably a scam. Most reputable companies will absorb these costs themselves. Another warning sign, is if the recruiter offers to train you for the job, in return for money. NEVER pay money across ever. No legitimate company or recruiter will ask for money upfront. Not for anything. But always use the rule of thumb: if it sounds too good to be true, it most likely is.

7. They Ask For Your Personal Info: You have finally been offered the job position, but then you are asked to supply sensitive personal information about yourself outside your CV — such as your bank account details — please do not do such. While a boss may give you several bogus reasons why they “need” the info to run a credit check, to deposit initial funds into your account — there is never a real reason for a potential employer to ask for personal financial info about you.

8. E-mail/Text From A Non-Business Address: Another popular job scam is when you get an interview invite from a free e-mail services or a private mobile number. Real hiring managers will have their company’s nameas the ending of their email address for example name@jobsmaster.com.ng not Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoomail or any other non-company email address. Hiring managers or recruiters will send their correspondence from their business email address, not their personal one and as such, legitimate job related e-mails will come from corporate email accounts. From experience, we have discovered that some rogue recruiters go from Job Board to Job Board posting fake job vacancies to which hundreds or even thousands of unsuspecting job-seekers fall prey. At JobsMaster , we have instituted a system of rigorous verification of the identity of all employers and recruiters who advertise their jobs on the Jobs Master platform. Job seekers should be careful about applying to jobs they see in some of the unorganised Job Boards that litter the Internet space in Nigeria.

The ultimate aim of these fake recruiters or employers is to collect money from you or give you a slave job. However, which ever is the case, DO NOT PAY ANY COMPANY OR PERSON. STAY SAFE 

And you can tell us your own experience by clicking on the comment below to share your story. 

Source: ngcareers, naira land, Nigeria world news.