“Steady plodding brings prosperity; hasty speculation brings poverty.”–Proverbs 21:5
I received a text today that reminded me of how I almost got scammed. It went something like this:
“Hello!,
I’m _________ from Aol Jobs USA. Are you interested in a remote position/flexible role?
Can I share some brief details with you?”
I blocked the sender and deleted the text but, two years ago while I was searching for a remote job (during the job search phase of an IT Support program), I almost got scammed. I had applied to a lot of jobs and had gotten so many rejections, that when someone said “yes”, I was over the moon with excitement. I was thinking, “This could be my big break”. Well, I was wrong because I missed all the red flags, until the last moment.
Red flag #1–It started with the first contact. They reached out to me by text (not a phone call) about a job that I did not remember applying for. Email is my preferred contact method.
Red flag #2–Instead of the typical phone interview, they scheduled the first interview over Skype (when Zoom is the new norm) 🤔 .
Red flag #3–I got all dressed up for the interview and showed up early on Skype (which I hadn’t used in years), only to find out that it would not be a video interview, but an online chat. I never saw the person’s face, never heard their voice.
Red flag #4–After asking me a series of what seemed to be “normal” interview questions and putting me on hold to “consult with their supervisor”, they told me I was hired. No second interview, no face-to-face with a panel, they “liked” my answers and “hired” me.
Red flag #5— They explained that I would be receiving a check in the mail to cover the cost of office equipment, like a desk, laptop, etc. So, they needed my address for where to send the check which they said I should deposit into my bank account.
Red flag #6–They emailed me the “official” offer letter which I had to print out, sign, and fax back with a headshot photo for my ID (that they would be sending me in the mail). I, excitedly, did what was requested, and then promptly resigned from my part-time job because I thought I would be working full-time from home and making much more money.
Red flag #7–They scheduled another meeting via Skype for 8am SHARP the next day to give me further instructions. I felt that it was kind of militaristic, but I went along and showed up the following day as instructed. The meeting was really brief (less than 10 minutes) and the only thing they said was that I would be receiving the check via FedEx, to look out for it, and report back on Skype the next day at 8am again.
I started to wonder why they couldn’t have included the info that I needed in an email. Why all these meetings that seemed like a waste of time? At the same time, I received the check which was expedited, and I saw that it was almost $5,000. Wow! I had never received that much at one time before.
Red flag #8–Now, my antennas were really up, and I started to have doubts. So, I decided to do a little more research into the company which happened to be a foreign company (possible red flag). I googled the company website and it seemed legit, although the one thing that caught my eye was the size and style of the font seemed “basic” (for lack of a better word). I called them on the number that was listed on the webpage to inquire about the people that were interviewing me, and I got no answer. I used the contact page to send a message and I received no reply.
Red flag #9–I went back to the email messages they sent me and hovered my mouse over the sender’s name, only to reveal that it was a spoof email address. It was NOT the email address of the company.
Red flag #10–The sender’s profile pic was of a stern older lady. I googled the name, and her picture was nowhere to be found on the staff page of the real company. That’s when I realized how close I came to getting scammed.
So, I skipped the 8am Skype meeting, ignored the texts and messages trying to find out what happened, and went back to my real job to ask if they could undo my resignation. And thankfully, they did.
Now, you may be wondering what I did with the check. I still have it and decided to keep it as a souvenir or evidence (if needed) to use during show and tell at some point in the future. I thought about going to the police, but I wasn’t sure how much they could do or if it was even necessary since I did not cash the check. I read that scammers can be hard to trace; they could just close up shop and start over under another name.
For a little while after, I was a bit depressed and stopped searching for jobs. I was also afraid for my life because these scammers had my photograph, name, and address. I was fearful they would show up at my door and do harm to me or my family, but time has gone by, and we are safe by the grace of God.
Needless to say, I learned my lesson, and am more aware of the tricks that scammers use, especially since I am studying to be a Cybersecurity professional. I realize that I am one of the “lucky” ones, though, because a friend of mine told me how her son got scammed in the same way. He deposited the check in his bank account, and it ended up being a fraudulent check.
Bottomline: Be aware of potential smishing and phishing attacks in your job search! Desperation can cause you to miss the red flags; if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Has anything like this ever happened to you or to someone you know?
A Wellspring Of Thought 