| With unemployment at the highest rate since the early | | | | Harpointner, CEO of AIS Media, says "many of these |
| 1980's record numbers of people are desperately | | | | scams are just newer twists on an old fraud. Today's |
| searching for work. The Internet is the medium most | | | | scam artists have learned to streamline the fraud using |
| job seekers turn to today as do con artists who use | | | | the Internet. It has become the newest arena for scam |
| the Internet for fraud by preying on the unsuspecting. In | | | | artist to easily reach desperate people. The scammers |
| today's economy, employment scam has become one | | | | appeal to the desperation of the unemployed, who in |
| of the fastest growing categories of fraud. | | | | many cases have been out of work for more than six |
| Fraud practitioners use Internet marketing and email | | | | months." |
| scams to lure unsuspecting individuals who are looking | | | | The Internet scams have caught the attention of the |
| for work. Employment is advertised on legitimate job | | | | Federal Trade Commission (FTC) which launched a |
| placement sites and message boards or the | | | | crackdown on job con artists who prey on |
| "supposed" job offers arrive to the individuals by email. | | | | unemployed Americans. Labeled "Operation Bottom |
| The typical guise is an international company needs to | | | | Dollar", the FTC-in cooperation with other federal |
| hire U.S. citizens as "agents" to perform certain | | | | agencies such as the FBI, the Department of Justice |
| services. The Internet scam is simple: The lure of a | | | | and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service-has begun |
| home-based job that requires very little work and pays | | | | targeting individuals and groups marketing deceptive |
| big dividends, drawing "applicants" who then become | | | | and illegal jobs as well as work at home and other |
| victims of the scam. Not only do they become the | | | | phony Internet scams. |
| unwitting victim of fraud, they end up losing money | | | | Along with email scam, the con artists place bogus |
| they could ill afford and in many cases they | | | | employment ads on legitimate Internet job placement |
| themselves become victims of identity theft and | | | | sites. The recruitment industry has stepped up its fight |
| sometimes even unwilling accomplices to crime. | | | | against the scam as well. Job portals such as |
| The too-good-to-be-true positions include payroll clerks, | | | | Monster.com, Craigslist, CareerBuilder and others, as |
| customer service representatives, shipping managers, | | | | well as search engines like Bing have become |
| mystery shoppers, craft assemblers and many more | | | | proactive in attempting to reduce these scams by |
| variants-all promising hefty salaries, benefits and huge | | | | entering into partnerships to display FTC consumer |
| commissions. For many victims, the hook is the | | | | information to educate job seekers in recognizing job |
| promise of immediate, advance payments to the | | | | scams. Recruiting sites, portals, message boards and |
| applicant. The company obtains personal and banking | | | | other Internet services are quick to remove the scams |
| information from the new hire and checks are sent | | | | as they are discovered, but with the fast pace of the |
| with instructions to wire a portion of the funds to a | | | | Internet, the ads are posted as quickly as they are |
| third party to cover expenses. In some cases, | | | | taken down. Caution and prudence by job seekers is |
| packages immediately arrive with instructions on | | | | the primary defense to avoid being a victim of a job |
| re-shipping merchandise to international destinations. | | | | scam. |
| Once the checks are deposited and packages | | | | AIS Media's Harpointner warns that if the posting |
| shipped, the dream job quickly becomes a nightmare. | | | | appears too good to be true-it probably is. |
| The checks the victims deposited into their personal | | | | "Desperation should not cloud common sense" says |
| accounts are fake. The duped "employee" is out their | | | | the AIS Media CEO. "As job seekers scour the |
| own money which was subsequently wired and they | | | | Internet and their email inbox anxiously looking for |
| are now liable for the balance of the funds which can | | | | ways to generate much-needed income, they should |
| run into thousands of dollars. Usually the scam victim | | | | always maintain a wary eye for scam. Avoid |
| has lost all of their personal, scant funds previously | | | | responding to emails from unknown sources and take |
| deposited in their own bank account as well. In many | | | | the time to go online to research the company to see |
| cases they have also unknowingly re-packaged and | | | | if credible information is available from legitimate news |
| shipped stolen merchandise, often purchased with | | | | agencies. It should be obvious that companies are not |
| stolen credit card information, and the "new hire" has | | | | paying big money for someone to do basically nothing |
| unknowingly participated in money laundering crimes | | | | from home. Red flags for job seekers include requests |
| and other fraud. | | | | for personal information like social security numbers, |
| Spam has become the advertising tool of choice for | | | | mother's maiden names and cash payments from the |
| many of the con artists. AIS Media, an Atlanta-based | | | | applicant during an application process." |
| Internet Interactive company that monitors Internet | | | | It is a well known fact among con artists that people |
| fraud, reports a dramatic increase in these scam | | | | are more susceptible to greed during difficult financial |
| emails. Unsolicited emails are received by individuals | | | | times. Job seeks should protect themselves by |
| featuring subject lines such as "Immediate Placement", | | | | recognizing the fraud by avoiding con artists who have |
| "We Received Your Resume", "Business Request", | | | | learned to streamline their scam using the Internet to |
| "Our Job ID 95313", "We're Pleased to Offer Your Job" | | | | line their pockets with money from people who are |
| "HR Department Announcement", etc. Thomas | | | | already suffering. |