Connecticut Better Business Bureau cautions job hunters about growing incidences of employment scams

Sept. 18, 2009 - PRLog -- Connecticut Better Business Bureau is warning job seekers to be extremely careful in the face of several scams targeting people looking for work.

Connecticut Better Business President, Paulette Scarpetti, says rising unemployment is creating a growing market for job hunter-targeted scams.

“The bad news is that people’s desperation provides a fertile environment for employment application scams.  The good news is that job seekers can protect themselves by understanding how the schemes work and avoiding certain practices.”

Better Business Bureau Advises job hunters to beware of several common tactics used by the scammers:

Job applications that require an upfront fee
Would-be employer requires an upfront fee for a background check.

BBB advice:
Nobody should have to pay money in order to secure a job from a legitimate employer. Red flags include requests for any sum of money to cover costs of testing, training or background checks.

Job placement companies make big promises but don’t deliver
Job placement companies or headhunter firms do not charge upfront fees for help finding a job, but are instead paid by companies that engage their services or by the job hunter once employment is secured.

BBB has heard stories about job placement companies taking money from employment seekers and not making good on promises to quickly find employment positions.  BBB of Greater Maryland identified one such company that advertised on the popular online classified ad Web site Craigslist.  The firm charged as much as $195 and guaranteed it could find job hunters work.  Unfortunately, applicants did not receive call backs, had no way of contacting the company and were unable to obtain refunds.

BBB advice:
Always research a job placement company with BBB before signing a contract.  Avoid companies that require money in advance to secure placement, and ensure there is accurate contact information and provisions for getting a refund.

Phishing attempts by ID thieves pretending to be real businesses
In these cases, identity thieves use unsolicited e-mail, Web sites and a host of other methods to obtain personal financial information from job seekers.  Spam e-mail may direct the job hunters to a Web site that installs spyware on their computers or asks for bank account or Social Security numbers.  In other cases, the job seeker might be asked to submit a resume, find out that “they have been hired,” and immediately are asked to provide sensitive personal and financial information.

BBB advice:
Be wary of unsolicited e-mail from supposed employers – even if the company’s name appears to be one that is well-known – and do not click on any links within the correspondence until having vetted the company and verified the e-mail originated from a legitimate source. Employers require Social Security numbers for tax purposes and bank account information for direct deposit of salary checks, however job seekers should be wary of any requests for such information from companies and job offers that they have not fully researched.

More helpful information on avoiding scams is available at www.bbb.org.

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Founded in 1928, Connecticut BBB is an unbiased non-profit organization that sets and upholds high standards for fair and honest business behavior. For more advice on finding companies and businesses, start your search with trust at www.bbb.org.