How to spot a phoney job ad: Check out the email address and never pay upfront

South Africa is experiencing its highest unemployment rate ever.

People are struggling and starving. This makes them vulnerable and desperate.

It therefore angers me to no end when fake jobs are posted and shared on social media.

Not only does it end up costing poor people money, but it gives them hope, only to be ripped away, and that is just incredibly cruel.

COMMON TYPES OF JOB FRAUD

Fraudsters are using social media platforms, fake websites and even SMSes to scam people.

Most of these skelms charge “administration fees” and even have the audacity to ask job-seekers to pay for online police clearance checks. But SAPS says that police clearance checks cannot be done online.

South African law prohibits anyone from charging you money to apply for a job.

So if any company wants you to pay ANYTHING upfront in return for a job – that’s illegal, and most probably a scam.

Recruitment companies are not even allowed to charge you for drawing up a CV, if it means you have to pay to register with them.

Never give your financial details to any company that says it needs it to run a credit check on you.

This is illegal for a company to do – and one of the easiest ways to defraud you of money.

Uniform job scams are on the rise.

This takes place when a “company” advertises a job that requires a uniform, such as a security guard.

There is normally an above-average salary to entice job-seekers.

They will make contact with the candidate, have a short “interview” and tell them that they have the job.

Then they will ask them to make upfront payment for the uniforms needed for this job.

Thinking that they have the job, the person will make payment – only to find that the position, and sometimes even the company, does not exist.

Sometimes the company is legit, but when the jobseeker rocks up for work, they will find that no one knows anything about the position or the person who advertised it.

Nothing gives away a fake job ad as quickly as an email address.

The moment you see a “big” company name with a gmail or yahoo address – you should run.

Some fraudsters go a step further and create an email address linked to a company, but the name will just be spelt differently.

For example, SANRAL. It is alleged that a woman posing as Nthwana Ngoma using the contact number of 012 5160069 and email address [email protected] contacts job seekers, asking for money.

Sanral spelt with a double “a” in the email address is an indication that the email is fake.

Be extra vigilant of people offering jobs outside the country.

Many times young women are lured with the promise of amazing salaries and perks.

Often, these job offers are fronts for sex and drug trafficking rings.

Be careful and don’t pay for training materials.

Desperate job seekers will apply for an advertised position.

The recruiting company/employer will ask them to come to an address and bring along their relevant documentation.

Once they get there, the jobseeker will feel “so close” to landing this job that they pay for training or training material.

A legitimate employer/recruiter will first interview you and discuss your options before training.

Sharing job adverts on social media platforms, using a company logo advertising mainly contractor or general worker jobs – are the main source of these job scams.

Through the cellphone numbers provided, members of the public are lured to contact the criminals where they are then requested to pay money via mobile transfer facilities and instant cash methods so they cannot be traced.

Companies share their information on websites for the convenience of their customers but skelms take advantage of this and set up meetings at legitimate addresses only to cancel at the last minute.

If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

It is ILLEGAL for any employer or recruitment company to charge any money to secure a job.

My appeal is not only for those looking for work to be vigilant scams, but also for people to ensure that the ad is legit before sharing it with others.

It could prevent a lot of disappointment and misery.

If you have been the victim of a job scam, report it to SAPS.

[email protected]