Online job boards have become hot spots for identity thieves.
The U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation said in July that it is
investigating a variety of cases involving online job scams. In one scenario the
FBI cites, people are finding resumes posted online with Social Security numbers
and other personal details, and using the information to apply for fake credit
cards and loans in the job hunters' names. In another, people send a job hunter an
email claiming to be from a recruiter or company seeking personal details for a
pre-employment background check, and use the information for identity theft.
Margaret Davis, 36 years old, of Chicago, says she was a victim of identity
theft in 2001. After applying for a position on a job board, she exchanged
emails and had a phone interview with someone whom she thought was from a
recruiting agency.
Ms. Davis opened the employment forms emailed to her as attachments and later
noticed several attempts to hack into her personal computer. She traced them to
the emails, she says, discontinued contact with the person, and reported the
incident to the job board. But two years later, she says, she learned that
around the time of the correspondence, her Social Security number had been
stolen and used to rack up $3,600 through an online account with a large
electronics retailer. She then reported the problem to a credit bureau and the
police.
Ms. Davis says she was able to restore her credit. But identity-theft
problems often aren't easy to resolve, so prevention -- by keeping personal
information private and taking precautions to make sure you're dealing with
legitimate companies and recruiters -- can save you money and time.
When you post a resume, clear it of personal information. Cyberthieves have
been able to gain access to resume databases and troll for Social Security
numbers and other personal information, such as where you live and your contact
information, says Pam Dixon, executive director of the World Privacy Forum, a
public interest research group in San Diego.
Some job boards offer posting options to keep your personal information
anonymous, allowing users to check a box to "hide" contact information from
employers. Ms. Dixon suggests keeping your name, address, date of birth and
phone number hidden, and never posting your Social Security number or any other
information that could help a criminal set up a bank or other customer account.
On job board CareerBuilder.com, for example, if you "hide" all your contact
information, employers can contact you only by email by choosing a "Send email"
option.
Since scam artists have been known to post fake job ads, also remove personal
information from resumes you submit to potential employers, says Ms. Dixon.
Sometimes phony job postings can be spotted by checking for their misspellings
and grammatical errors, she says. Ms. Dixon suggests creating a temporary phone
number or email address for your job search.
Think twice before revealing personal information by email or phone. Con
artists "phishing" for information through fake interviews may ask for, say,
information such as your Social Security number or a scan of your driver's
license or passport, says Ms. Dixon, and claim it will expedite the application
process.
Jennifer Sullivan, spokeswoman for job board CareerBuilder.com, also cautions
against providing your marital status, eye color or financial information such
as bank-account or credit-card numbers.
Two popular phishing methods are asking job seekers to complete a
pre-employment background check or to create a direct-deposit account with the
company, according to John Kane, acting manager of the Internet Crime Complaint
Center in Fairmont, W.Va., which is funded by the FBI, and run in partnership
with the FBI and the National White Collar Crime Center. In most circumstances,
you shouldn't agree to a background check until you have had an interview in
person, or set up direct deposit until you've been hired.
There are legitimate work-at-home positions, as well as freelance and
contract work, for which you may need to share personal information with an
organization before meeting with hiring managers in person, but before you do,
look for signals that it might not be above-board. You can start by searching on
the company's name on the Better Business Bureau's Web site. Another helpful Web
site is Lookstoogoodtobetrue.com, maintained by a joint federal law-enforcement
and industry task force.
"The victim community tends to be very vocal in terms of warning people about
scams," says Mr. Kane.
When Shelley Cardenas, 51, posted her resume on a large job board after her
employer relocated from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., she received an email offering
her a financial post -- though she hadn't applied for the job. When she did an
online search for the name of the person who contacted her, nothing came up in
affiliation with the company. The same thing happened when she searched online
for the names of executives she found on the Web site the email cited. Growing
skeptical, Mrs. Cardenas posted her concern on a Web site
dedicated to exposing scams online, and a discussion participant sent her a link
to user complaints on the site about the company. After receiving six emails
that she suspects were scams via the same job board within two months, she
pulled her resume from the job board.
"I think it's unfortunate in this day and age that there are so many people
out there that just want to hurt other people," says Mrs. Cardenas.
If the company that contacts you appears to be a well-known employer, don't
think you're in the clear. Criminals are copying company Web sites and tweaking
the contact information or links, says Ms. Dixon of the World Privacy Forum.
Although a Web site may look credible, do an Internet search of the company to
make sure the URL of the official Web site matches the address the employer
refers you to. If there's a mismatch, find the phone number of the company's
corporate headquarters on the official Web site to verify that the hiring
manager who contacted you is an employee.
