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  Geebo 8:00 am on May 12, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: check scam ( 76 ), employment, Scams ( 1,219 ), Whatsapp ( 3 ), work at home ( 14 )   

  Work at home scams continue to rise 

  

  According to the Better Business Bureau, work at home scams were on a sharp rise even before the COVID-19 crisis started. Now, with so many people having been laid off or furloughed these scams have become even more prevalent over the past couple of months. These scams start off with tempting online ads promising decent money for relatively easy work without having to leave your home and risk infection. However, you could be risking something that’s almost as devastating.

  For example, a woman in Minnesota recently responded to an online ad for a data entry position. The ad promised to pay $15 an hour and promised at least a 40-hour workweek while maintaining a flexible schedule. After she responded to the ad she was instructed to download WhatsApp so an interview could be conducted. WhatsApp is a messaging app that’s popular overseas and often used in place of text messaging. Essentially, she was being interviewed for this job over text message. This is usually done so scammers can avoid sounding like they’re calling from another country.

  The scammers had said that they were going to pay for her to buy a new laptop for the job. They claimed they were going to send her a check to buy the equipment from an approved vendor. However, they told her that she only had 24 hours after receiving the check to purchase the equipment. If she had received the check it would have been a counterfeit check that she would have been responsible for if she had deposited it into her bank account. The 24-hour turnaround is a way for the scammers to get the money moved quickly before her bank could realize it was fraudulent.

  It wasn’t too long before the scammers started asking her for personal information like a copy of her driver’s license and who her cell phone carrier was. They then sent her a form that asked for her banking information along with security passwords. Thankfully, she realized this was a scam before her identity could be compromised.

  While there are legitimate work at home positions to be found, they are not as common as online ads may have you believe. If the offer sounds too good or it feels a little off, listen to your gut and avoid giving out any information to the scammers.

   

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  Geebo 8:19 am on April 9, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: check scam ( 76 ), employment, job scam ( 71 ), repackaging ( 21 ), reshipping ( 21 ), Scams ( 1,219 )   

  Work at home scams rise during crisis 

  

  Work at home scams are nothing new. However, due to the current coronavirus crisis, many people have been furloughed or laid off and are looking for additional sources of income. With most states enforcing a stay at home order many will look for jobs that they could do at home. Unfortunately, the scammers know that there is a demand for these types of jobs and are actively looking to take advantage of that situation.

  One of the most common work at home scams is the repackaging or reshipping scam. In this scam, you’ll receive a package at your home. You’ll then be asked to repackage the item and send it to a third party. These items are often stolen goods having been bought with a stolen credit card. This way it becomes harder to track the stolen item.

  The biggest problem with the repackaging scam is that often the victims can be held criminally responsible for being an active but unknowing participant in the scam. The least of you’re worries would be that you would never get paid or you’ll get paid with a phony check that will bounce after you deposit the check. Then you’ll be responsible for the money lost by your bank.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUnY8kjcEQo%5D

  Speaking of phony checks, another work at home scam will have the scammers send you a phony check so you can buy work materials. All you need to do is deposit the check then send the amount you didn’t spend for materials back to the phony employer. By the time your bank realizes the check is phony, the scammers have already made off with the money leaving you holding the bag and indebted to your bank as mentioned above.

  These scammers will try to act like legitimate employers and in doing so will ask you for your personal and financial information. This puts you at a potential risk for identity and monetary theft.

  If an online employer hires you on the spot and the job sounds too good to be true it’s more than likely a scam.

   
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  Geebo 9:00 am on January 27, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Census ( 4 ), census takers ( 2 ), employment, job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,219 )   

  Avoid this census scam in 2020 

  

  With it being 2020 and a new decade, the US Government is getting ready to issue the 2020 census forms. Each decade the government takes the census in order to not only determine the number of seats each state has in the U.S. House of Representatives but to distribute billions in federal funds to local communities. To complete this monumental task, the government often hires census takers to visit the homes of people who haven’t or are unable to complete their census forms. With the 2020 census upon us, scammers have not hesitated to try to take advantage of people who are looking for one of these government positions.

  Once again, the Better Business Bureau is warning prospective census takers to be on the lookout for hiring scams. Some online listings have already been discovered offering census-taker jobs but then ask for money for either a training or processing fee. These ads are not being placed by the Federal Government as governmental jobs never ask for any kind of payment upfront. The best these ads will do is send you a package on how to apply for government jobs or claim to prepare you for the application test but will not deliver any kind of actual employment.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfL3992GvSw&feature=youtu.be%5D

  While this may seem like a once in a decade scam, these phony employment ads crop up all the time for governmental jobs. The most common of these scams is for the US Postal Service. However, these scams can also appear for other governmental agencies like the IRS, especially around tax time. It’s best to keep in mind that you will never be charged for applying for a government job and that these positions should only be applied for through official government websites. If you’re interested in becoming a census taker, you can apply for one of the positions at the US Census Bureau’s website.

  BBB: Beware of phony census takers | Greg's Corner is discussing. Toggle Comments

   
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  Geebo 9:00 am on January 8, 2020 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: check scam ( 76 ), employment, job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,219 )   

  Work at home job scam cost victims thousands 

  

  Working at home is the dream for many, especially those who are currently looking to get back into the workforce. Because of that. many scammers use phony work at home positions to try to lure suspecting victims into their clutches by promising them good pay for easy work. However, with most things online, if it sounds too good to be true it probably is. Recently, in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, police have received reports of a work at home scam that has cost its victims thousands of dollars. Money that they’ll probably never be able to get back.

  The victims, in this case, found these jobs on a legitimate employment website. They even went through an application process and an interview. After they were ‘hired’ they even spoke to a phony human resources department. It seems like these scammers were willing to pull out all the stops to make sure this looked like a legitimate job opportunity. The job itself entailed the victims depositing a check into their own bank accounts before being told to use the money to purchase a laptop. Then the remainder of the money was sent to various clients through platforms like PayPal, Zelle, wire transfers, and, of course, gift cards.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g0b8G4fsQgQ%5D

  As you might have expected, the checks the victims were sent were fake checks but the money was already spent by the time their banks noticed. With the money being sent to various places, the victims are now on the hook for paying the money back to the bank. Any job that asks you to process business funds out of your own bank account is more than likely a scam. Not only that but since the victims went through an entire application process, the scammers have their personal information as well. So potentially these victims could also be victims of identity theft in the future.

  No matter how legitimate a job may appear, if they want you to use your own bank account or your own funds to do the job it’s probably not a job at all.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on June 3, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: BBB ( 18 ), employment, job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,219 ), summer ( 2 )   

  Summer is scam season for jobs! 

  

  With Memorial Day Weekend behind us and many schools ending the year, a number of people will be looking for seasonal employment during the warm weather months. Whether it’s students looking for some pocket money for weekend activities or adults and retirees looking to supplement their incomes, many of these temporary positions are in demand. That doesn’t mean that scammers take the summers off. They’ll be using this influx of job seekers to try to fleece their victims any way they can.

  The Better Business Bureau is warning people to be on the lookout for certain scams targeting seasonal applicants. One particular scam is said to target college students by sending spoofed emails that look like official emails from the college the student is attending. In reality, it’s another take on the fake check scam. The student will be sent a phony check that the scammers say is for the supplies the student needs for the position and will be asked to deposit the check and will then be asked to wire the money to phony vendors. Again, once the bank where the check was deposited finds out the check is fake the victim will be on the hook for the money owed to the bank.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P4nBcBLPeWY%5D

  The BBB is also warning to be on the lookout for employment listings that say things like ‘no experience needed’ or ‘immediate start.’ These are red flags for potential scams. Don’t be in a rush to accept any position that may come your way. Ask as many questions as possible from your potential employer and try to get everything in writing. Real positions will be willing to provide any information you might need while the scammers will try to convince you otherwise. Hopefully, with these tips, you’ll have a productive and enjoyable summer.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on May 31, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: employment, repackaging ( 21 ), Scams ( 1,219 ), work at home ( 14 )   

  ‘Work at home’ could put you in jail! 

  

  We’ve discussed the re-packaging or re-shipping scam before. Normally how it works is someone looking for work will reply to an employment ad for a work at home position. That person will usually be hired on the spot and will be asked to receive items in the mail then re-package them and send them to another destination. This is done to send items purchased with a stolen credit card to a location where the thieves can receive the item. More often than not, the person being used in the scam either doesn’t get paid or they lose money by cashing a phony check disguised as payment. However, one man from Alabama has ended up in prison for his efforts.

  According to the Daily Beast, the man had responded to one of these ads and was re-packaging items with no problem. That was until Postal Inspectors showed up at the man’s house letting him know that he was involved in a re-packaging scam. The man then emailed the people he was working or to tell them that he wouldn’t be packaging items for them anymore. The scammers then reportedly told the man that the Postal Inspectors were actually fraudsters who were trying to steal the items being re-packaged. So, the man kept re-packaging the items he received. That was until he received a shipment of high-capacity magazines for AK-47s marked ‘toy parts’. That’s when federal agents arrested the man. The man admitted to knowing that the boxes contained gun parts and was sentenced to 16 months in prison.

  While this is a rare case of the re-packaging scam, it does show that entering into any number of work at home scams can be potentially costly to the victim. Whether it’s loss of funds, time, or personal information, these scams have proven to be quite effective in finding victims.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on May 9, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amazon ( 103 ), discrimination ( 5 ), employment, pregnant employees   

  Is Amazon firing expecting mothers? 

  

  Amazon, once again, finds themselves being portrayed in the media in an unflattering light. They’re coming under fire again for their alleged treatment of their employees in their fulfillment centers. In the past, Amazon has been accused of not only overworking their employees but pervading every instance of the employees’ lives. Reportedly, many Amazon employees are so afraid of losing their jobs that they’ll work sick or injured which only further exacerbates their mental and physical conditions. Now, Amazon is being accused of unfairly firing a group of employees that should be protected by law.

  Recently, CNET published an expose into Amazon’s supposed practice of firing pregnant employees. Amazon is facing several lawsuits over this practice and there could even be more victims of this practice that are either too afraid to sue or just can’t afford legal representation. However, one woman who claims to be a victim of Amazon is speaking out about her treatment by the company. The woman claims that Amazon would use declining production standards as a way to terminate her while she was pregnant even though by her doctor’s orders she couldn’t perform the same tasks in the fulfillment center. She also claims that Amazon was unwilling to accommodate her in such a way that would benefit both parties. Amazon’s infamous bathroom break policy which sees employees get written up if they take more than 10 minutes and are only allowed so many breaks per day. As you can imagine, this policy is not very amenable to pregnant workers.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZqobFxIv0U%5D

  She’s not the only former employee suing Amazon as there have been six other lawsuits filed against Amazon in the past four years over similar treatment. That may not sound like a lot but Amazon has settled out of court for other former employees claiming wrongful termination. Sadly, Amazon isn’t the only multi-billion dollar corporation that allegedly discriminates against pregnant employees but is at the top of the ladder when it comes to being visible in the public eye. Unfortunately, it seems they’re setting a bad example for the rest of corporate America to follow.

   
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  Geebo 8:00 am on March 18, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: Amazon ( 103 ), employment, job scam ( 71 ), job search ( 8 ), Scams ( 1,219 ), Spokane ( 3 ), Washington ( 11 )   

  Amazon job scam is permeating NW Washington State 

  

  Previously, we’ve mentioned how Amazon is hiring for new work at home positions and how job scams topped the BBB’s list of worst scams in 2018. Now, those two stories seem to have converged into one. One of the states where Amazon is looking to hire new employees is Washington. They are also looking to open a new fulfillment center in Spokane that promises an additional 1500 positions. Due to those factors. among others, scammers have decided to use Amazon’s hiring initiative in the are to embark on a massive fleecing of Amazon hopefuls.

  The scam appears to be overly elaborate but effective at the same time. It starts out with a robocall going out to local residents offering positions with Amazon that supposedly pay $27 an hour. The robocall directs victims to go to a website that has the Amazon name in the site’s address but isn’t an official Amazon website. Once there, victims are instructed to enter personal and financial information while the phony website makes it look like the victim is applying for a job at Amazon. More than likely, any unsuspecting victim of this scam will have their identity and possibly their finances stolen.

  [youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w34SBAgKjS8%5D

  Another aspect of the scam has the scammers trying to get their victims to pay the scammers money for phony employment fees such as processing fees or background check fees. The scammers will try to get this money through either requesting the money be wired to them or paid through gift cards, two of the most prevalent calling cards of a scammer. Amazon themselves have commented on this scam stating that they will never ask a prospective employee for financial information or request any kind of employment fee. These tips not only apply to Amazon but also to most major employers. If these tips are kept in mind hopefully your potential job search will be a relatively stress-free one.

   
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  Geebo 9:08 am on March 11, 2019 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: BBB ( 18 ), employment, job scam ( 71 ), Scams ( 1,219 )   

  BBB: Job scams were the worst in 2018 

  

  The Better Business Bureau is reporting that in 2018 job and employment scams topped their list of riskiest scams. More people lost money to job scams than any other scam the BBB tracks last year. The job scams even beat out standard scams like the fake check scam, phony online purchases, and tech support scams. In most employment scams the scammers will try to get you to pay some kind of advance processing fee for things like background checks while most legitimate employers will burden this cost themselves. Any prospective job that asks you for money is almost definitely a scam and should be avoided at all costs. Not only could you lose money but your identity could be stolen as well.

  So why were employment scams so prolific in 2018? The BBB attributes most of the job scams to Amazon’s search for their second headquarters last year. Not that Amazon is to blame but scammers took advantage of Amazon being in the news so much by offering fictitious Amazon jobs to unsuspecting victims often using websites and social media posts that mimic Amazon in a very convincing way. Amazon has only one official job application portal that can be found at amazon.jobs.

  The BBB also issued warnings against the other typical job scams to be on the lookout for. We’ve already mentioned any job that asks for money in advance. There’s also the work at home jobs that you have to be wary of since many of them are scams. You should also be wary of any job that offers you an immediate position without arranging an interview first. No legitimate employer would hire someone sight unseen. Lastly, you should be on the lookout for anyone trying to charge you to get you a government job as all government jobs are posted publicly by the government themselves. In today’s job market where so many people are desperate to find ways of supporting their family, this desperation can lead to not thinking clearly when it comes to finding a job.

   
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  Geebo 10:16 am on December 5, 2018 Permalink | Reply
  Tags: employment, Facebook ( 173 ), scam ( 22 ), veterans ( 8 )   

  Facebook slips as the top place to work as a Facebook scam targets veterans 

  

  In a follow-up to yesterday’s post about Facebook employees looking to leave the company, Glassdoor released their 2019 rankings of the best places to work. Facebook has fallen hard from its number one perch sliding all the way down to number seven. While it’s still in the top ten of the best places to work in the country, its decline on Glassdoor’s list shows that worker’s attitudes toward the company have definitely shifted in a less than positive way. Facebook was supplanted at the top of the list by consulting firm Bain and Company.

  In other news, a scam has arisen on Facebook that is indicative of its ongoing fight with foreign agitators. WIRED is reporting that foreign entities are posing as various US veterans groups in order to provoke outrage among veterans. As has been Facebook’s usual response to matters like this, Facebook has only been shutting down these scam pages when they’ve been notified by a legitimate veterans organization although the process took months. The scam pages seem to be largely targeting veterans who served during the Vietnam War. The scammers seem to be targeting Vietnam vets due to their age and are hoping that the vets are not savvy internet users. Unfortunately, a number of these scam pages continued to stand because Facebook said that the page did not violate their ever-vague community standards.

  What can be said about this latest Facebook faux pas that hasn’t been said about the others? Again, this latest scam shows that Facebook seems to thrive on controversy and outrage in order to keep their users engaged on the platform by any means necessary. In this day and age where the average Facebook users use the platform to obtain their news, they can almost hardly be blamed for buying into the misinformation since they’re inundated by it on an almost constant basis. If Facebook isn’t willing to help those who have served our country then who are they out to help besides themselves?