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[Note: All situations, URL’s, IP addresses, and names used below are intended to be fictitious. Monster.com is used in the examples because it is so well known, but any job site could have been used. These situations are not unique or specific to Monster.]
The Solutions
1.
You receive an e-mail recruiting you for a job at A Big Company,
Inc. The URL (address of the Web page you are viewing) printed
in the message is http://www.ABigCompany.com/jobs/
However, when you
click on the link, the URL that appears in the “Address”
bar of your Web browser is http://216.78.94.111/ABigCompany.com/jobs/.
The page you see displays the Big Company logo and links to the
other parts of the Big Company Website. Can you trust that
you are really viewing a page on the Big Company Website?
No! The numbers to the right of the “http://” are an IP (Internet Protocol) address. When someone uses an IP address rather than a domain name in this kind of situation, it's usually to trick people who would be suspicious if they saw the real domain name in the URL.
Every computer connected to the Internet has its own unique IP address (e.g. 216.78.94.111). We usually see domain names rather than IP addresses because domain names are much easier for humans to remember than a string of numbers.
The domain name, ABigCompany.com, in this example, is a folder on the Web server located at IP address, 216.78.94.111. The A Big Company logo is visible because it probably has been stolen from A Big Company’s Website, not difficult to do.
It is relatively unusual to see an IP address rather than a domain name (which is easier to trace), so be very cautious in this kind of situation. Something smells very fishy here. The best thing to do would be to contact A Big Company and ask about the recruiter, the job, and the URL.
2.
Following a link in a blog comment entry, you visit a Website that
displays the Monster.com logo, and it looks exactly like the Monster.com
Website looked the last time you visited it.
When you look in the
“Address” bar of your browser, you see this URL –
http://www.youcantrustus.net/monster.com/.
Can you trust
that you are really viewing a page from the Monster.com Website?
No! "Monster.com" - in this case - is the name assigned to a folder for the Website by the people who run the YouCanTrustUs.net Website.
The folders
on a Website can be named anything someone wants to name them, for
any reason they choose. The use of the name for a folder does not
necessarily mean that there is a relationship, and, in this case,
the domain
name of the Website you are viewing (YouCanTrustUs.net)
is immediately to the right of the “http://” and following
the “www” - http://www.youcantrustus.net/monster.com/.
If you have
any question about a relationship or what you are seeing, contact
the "real" Website, and ask.
See the article Understanding Domain Names (linked at the top of this article) for more information.
3.
An acquaintance sends you a link to a job he found that he thought
would interest you.
It appears to be on Monster.com (has the
Monster logo, etc.). When you click on the link to apply for it,
you notice this URL in the “Address” bar of your browser
- http://monster.youcantrustus.net. Can you
trust that you are really applying for a job on Monster.com?
No! In this case “Monster” is the name that has been assigned to part of the YouCanTrustUs.net Web server computer. As with the folder names in # 2, above, a Website owner may assign any name to a part of their Website.
The Website
page being viewed is on the Web server for the YouCanTrustUs.net
domain - http://monster.youcantrustus.net.
When you combine the confusing domain name with the use of the Monster
logo, it is obvious that YouCanTrustUs.net is pretending to be Monster.
What good reason could they have to do that? Don’t
fall for this kind of scam.
See the article Understanding Domain Names (linked at the top of this article) for more information.
4. At one of the big Web job sites, you find a good job opportunity. When you check out the company Website to learn more about them. It looks impressive. You apply for the job.
Within a few days you receive an e-mail from one of the company’s recruiters, asking you to fax them your driver’s license so they can begin the interview process. They say they need the license to verify that you can fulfill one of the job's requirements - driving from one company location to another. Should you FAX them your driver's license ?
No! Particularly if your driver’s license number is your Social Security Number, verify before you trust!
Even the best managed Web job sites cannot guarantee that every job and every employer are legitimate. Most do try to ensure that scams are not being run off their sites, but very, very few can assure you that every employer is real. The employer in this example could well be bogus.
No matter how excellent an employer’s Website looks, be very suspicious if it gives visitors NO clues about who is behind it, where it is located, and how to reach the human beings who work there. How would you even find it to show up for an interview, if one is ever scheduled?
To be safe:
* Look up the company name in your local online Yellow Pages
(e.g. http://www.SuperPages.com) or the printed version. Be
very suspicious if you can’t find it in either place.
If there is a phone number, call it. Ignore 800 (or other toll free numbers). You want a real phone number that can be Googled and returns an associated physical location in the search results.
* Google the FAX number. If Google has no listing for the whole phone number, Google the Area Code to see if it is in the correct location. (To Google an Area Code, just type the Area Code into the Google search bar)
See the article Understanding Domain Names (linked at the top of this article) for more information.
5. At your favorite job site, you submit your resume for a job, with A Big Company, because it looks like a good fit for you. Soon you receive an e-mail from a recruiter representing A Big Company. He says that the company is very interested in you, but as part of their pre-screening process, he needs to do a reference check and a credit screening before any interviews are scheduled. So he wants you to send him an e-mail with your Social Security Number and the address of your last residence. His e-mail address is ABigCompanyRecruiter@yahoo.com. Can you trust that this is a legitimate request?
No! First, someone working at A Big Company would very likely have an e-mail address associated with the A Big Company domain name, not a Yahoo.com e-mail address which is easy for anyone to get and difficult to trace without a court order.
Some employers,
particularly in banking and investment industries, may request information
for a pre-interview screening. If this kind of thing happens to
you, call the employer (use the Yellow Pages or call Information
for the employer's phone number), and ask to speak to whomever is
in charge of recruiting new employees. Then, ask that person
if the recruiter and the position are legitimate before your respond.
6.
Out of the blue, you receive e-mail with “employment@ABigCompany.com”
as the “from” address.
Can you trust that
the message is really from A Big Company?
No! With many e-mail software packages, it is very easy to change the “From” address to anything, even to Whitehouse.gov. There is no “validation” or “authentication” that the sender is who they say that they are, so don't assume that the domain name used is always the domain name of the originator.
Also, be suspicious of a do-not-reply@ABigCompany.com as the from address, particularly when they give you a someone@Yahoo.com or @gmail.com address for your response. A do-not-reply@ address is not always a scam, but it should send up red flags when associated with a direction to use an e-mail address which is not ABigCompany.com for your response.
Questions about domain names?
For more information, see the article About Domain Names
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Article by Susan P. Joyce,
Job-Hunt's editor and senior job hunter
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