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9 Characteristics Common to Job Search Scams
Job search scams have some common characteristics.
You will find these scams in e-mail sent to you by people you don't know. You'll also find these jobs posted on legitimate Websites, like Craigslist, and also on well-known job sites.
9 Common Characteristics of Job Scams
- Few job requirements - no particular skills, experience, or education are needed.
- Job described is so simple that anyone could do it, or there is no description of the job - only a sales pitch.
- Little of your time and not much effort are needed.
- You are supposedly paid a substantial amount for performing few "duties."
- The only contact information provided for your application is not associated with the alleged employer. Contact is only via e-mail to an address at yahoo.com, hotmail.com, msn.com, gmail.com or other anonymous e-mail service.
- No Website, domain name, or other public record of the "employer" is available.
- Often, poor English, punctuation, and spelling are used.
- When you analyze them, the jobs don't make sense.
- Anyone/everyone "qualifies" for these jobs.
As the old sergeant from Hill Street Blues said to the police officers as they headed out for their day's work, "Be careful out there!"
© Copyright, 1998 - 2013, Susan P. Joyce. All rights reserved.
About the author...
Online job search expert Susan P. Joyce has been observing the online job search world and teaching online job search skills since 1995. A veteran of the United States Marine Corps, Susan is a two-time layoff “graduate” who has worked in human resources at Harvard University and in a compensation consulting firm. In 1998, NETability purchased Job-Hunt.org, which Susan has edited and published since. Susan also edits and publishes WorkCoachCafe.com. Follow Susan on Twitter at@jobhuntorg and on Google+.
