CHARLOTTE, N.C. — We have a warning for you if you get unsolicited job offers or inquiries through social media sites.
Who doesn’t like to get interest from another company? In many ways, it’s an ego boost and validation that you might be doing something right. But don’t let that flattery go to your head and cause you to let your guard down, because, it could be a scam.
Social media is a happy hunting ground for people looking to scam you right out of your money. It’s easy for them because people post so much every single day, billions of times with billions of posts. What we do, where we work, what kind of jobs we want are all online. It’s called networking, but not everyone looking has good intentions.
Josh Jacobs is graduating from college soon. He and some others that reached out to WCNC said they were being recruited by an online marketing company that they say promised opportunity. The pay was promising: up to $120,000 a year, with offices in Florida and here in Charlotte. It was a gem of a find, right?
“It was a job opportunity that I was very excited about, even more excited when I found out I apparently had the job,” Jacobs said.
He and the others did Zoom interviews, and coincidentally they all got the job. At the upcoming in-person meeting, the person on the other end wanted him to bring something personal.
“The text message I got back asked me to bring my bank account information and my list of addresses for the last seven years,” Jacobs said.
It starts with a great tale, then leads to a great salary, and before you know it you’re distracted just enough to make a mistake. Most companies ask for social security and bank information at some point, but the red flags here couldn’t be ignored.
“Sometimes scammers are really good sales folks, they know what to ask and what not to ask,” said Tom Bartholomy with the Charlotte Better Business Bureau.
- Tip 1: don’t be flattered enough not to do your homework.
- Tip 2: look at email addresses! The one Jacob was responding to was a Gmail address, which should raise an eyebrow.
- Tip 3: if it’s your industry, check them out even more. Unless it’s a start-up, there should be a digital footprint.
The interesting thing here is, the people in the interview communicated with each other after asking each other if they thought something was off.