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One of the unfortunate hazards for the modern job seeker is the presence of scammers in the job market. These are people who have the nerve to be sending out emails purporting to be job offers, but which are actually offers to open your bank account to these people for cleaning out. I've received a couple of these, and given I'm unemployed and don't have that many assets to start with, I tend to take it a bit personally. So here's how to spot a scam.
The first big hint is you're receiving a job offer out of the blue from a company you've never applied to. The two companies I've received out of the blue offers from are RLB Solution Company, and Constellation Travels. I know I've never applied to these companies, because I keep track of where I'm sending my applications (I'm required to in order to get unemployment benefit). Genuine employers wait for you to contact them. Genuine employers aren't trawling for employees, because employment in the current economy is a buyer's market - there are more people looking for work than there are jobs available.
(Yes, there is such a thing as the head-hunter, who is seeking to get people to move from one employer to another. The thing about head-hunters, though, is they're hunting up at the top end of the market, for people with highly specialised skill sets. They aren't looking around the bottom of the market for lowly Administrative Assistants and Sales Assistants).
The second big hint is when you receive a job offer with no other contact whatsoever. No interview, no preliminary contact, nothing except the job offer showing up in your email box.
A genuine employer will want to interview you. They're wanting to make you a part of their workforce, which means they're going to be looking for the signs of both psychological and literal bad breath or poor hygiene, or anything else which might make for problems in fitting you into their team. Scammers, on the other hand, are looking to find their victim and bleed them dry with the minimum amount of effort, and keep things as impersonal and distanced as possible along the way.
Third big hint is that the job appears to involve a lot of money for not very much work. One of the primary rules for avoiding scammers of all persuasions is this: if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Again, the current economy is a buyer's market for employers. So they're not going to be offering you high wages to try and get you started in a low-skilled position. Instead, they're more likely to be low-balling you. A scammer, by contrast, wants to use your greed to hook you in and get you interested, so they're going to be offering lots of money for not much actual work.
Now, some little things which also contribute to the setting off of the "scam" flag. The first is the employer doesn't appear to be located in your country. Now, both of my out-of-the-blue offers ping this one good and hard. RLB Solution turns out to be a firm which appears to be based in Germany (so why are they looking to hire someone in Australia if they don't have an Australian office?). Constellation Travels is based in the Philippines, and also don't have an Australian office (although they say they're going to be opening one in September 2014... pity it's already October).
(If you aren't an actual, established business broker, why would a company be contacting you in order to set up a new office in a country they don't currently do business with? Again, see the "too good to be true" clause).
The second is the company doesn't appear to have a serious web presence. RLB Solution has a website which appears to consist of one page, in German, plus a PDF file (http://rlbsolution.com/vacansy%28eng%29.pdf) detailing the job they have open[1]. The job description is the only part of the site which is actually in English, and they don't offer an English-language translation.
Constellation Travels, by contrast, has a website which is all about offering bespoke Asian tours to rich customers, mostly in the USA and Europe. They don't have a careers page, and they don't appear to be recruiting. Also their news highlights stop at February 2011.
The third one is the people who are contacting you appear not to have a web presence either. Or rather, their web presence is rather insubstantial. For example, the person contacting me from RLB Solution purports to be Anna Stern, their Hiring Coordinator, Human Resources. Except... she isn't mentioned on their website. She doesn't appear to exist on LinkedIn. The nearest Facebook has for her is Anne Stern. The same goes for the person who's supposed to be contacting me from Constellation Travels, Adrian Forlan. He isn't mentioned on their website. He doesn't appear to exist on LinkedIn. He isn't available on Facebook.
What's even more interesting - neither of them appear to have an online presence anywhere else, either. I'm not on Facebook or LinkedIn myself, but I have a fairly wide-ranging history online.
None of these minor things are really key indicators on their own. It's the combination of all of them which sets my "scam" flag to snapping in the metaphorical breeze.
But of course, the real indicator is in the job descriptions, once you finally access them. If anyone is offering you money to "process online transactions" or "process transactions via Western Union", it's a pretty good warning they're not planning to actually give you money. They're planning to take all of yours. Most banks in most countries these days will deal quite successfully in currency exchange - it's not like it's a huge issue. So what would they need you for? Why would they need access to your bank account to "process transactions"?
They don't. The reason they need access to your bank account is so they can take all your money instead.
So, if any of you out there are getting emails from Anna Stern of rlbsolution.com, or Adrian Forlan of constellationtravels.com, offering jobs you can't remember applying for, just hit delete.
[1] Incidentally, this pings off another warning - the job offers payment in $NZ, not $AU. If they're not even offering payment in my currency, why do they need an Australian representative again?
Edited 06 FEB 2015 to add: I've done an updated post on RLB Solution. It's available at http://megpie71.dreamwidth.org/52222.html.
The first big hint is you're receiving a job offer out of the blue from a company you've never applied to. The two companies I've received out of the blue offers from are RLB Solution Company, and Constellation Travels. I know I've never applied to these companies, because I keep track of where I'm sending my applications (I'm required to in order to get unemployment benefit). Genuine employers wait for you to contact them. Genuine employers aren't trawling for employees, because employment in the current economy is a buyer's market - there are more people looking for work than there are jobs available.
(Yes, there is such a thing as the head-hunter, who is seeking to get people to move from one employer to another. The thing about head-hunters, though, is they're hunting up at the top end of the market, for people with highly specialised skill sets. They aren't looking around the bottom of the market for lowly Administrative Assistants and Sales Assistants).
The second big hint is when you receive a job offer with no other contact whatsoever. No interview, no preliminary contact, nothing except the job offer showing up in your email box.
A genuine employer will want to interview you. They're wanting to make you a part of their workforce, which means they're going to be looking for the signs of both psychological and literal bad breath or poor hygiene, or anything else which might make for problems in fitting you into their team. Scammers, on the other hand, are looking to find their victim and bleed them dry with the minimum amount of effort, and keep things as impersonal and distanced as possible along the way.
Third big hint is that the job appears to involve a lot of money for not very much work. One of the primary rules for avoiding scammers of all persuasions is this: if it seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Again, the current economy is a buyer's market for employers. So they're not going to be offering you high wages to try and get you started in a low-skilled position. Instead, they're more likely to be low-balling you. A scammer, by contrast, wants to use your greed to hook you in and get you interested, so they're going to be offering lots of money for not much actual work.
Now, some little things which also contribute to the setting off of the "scam" flag. The first is the employer doesn't appear to be located in your country. Now, both of my out-of-the-blue offers ping this one good and hard. RLB Solution turns out to be a firm which appears to be based in Germany (so why are they looking to hire someone in Australia if they don't have an Australian office?). Constellation Travels is based in the Philippines, and also don't have an Australian office (although they say they're going to be opening one in September 2014... pity it's already October).
(If you aren't an actual, established business broker, why would a company be contacting you in order to set up a new office in a country they don't currently do business with? Again, see the "too good to be true" clause).
The second is the company doesn't appear to have a serious web presence. RLB Solution has a website which appears to consist of one page, in German, plus a PDF file (http://rlbsolution.com/vacansy%28eng%29.pdf) detailing the job they have open[1]. The job description is the only part of the site which is actually in English, and they don't offer an English-language translation.
Constellation Travels, by contrast, has a website which is all about offering bespoke Asian tours to rich customers, mostly in the USA and Europe. They don't have a careers page, and they don't appear to be recruiting. Also their news highlights stop at February 2011.
The third one is the people who are contacting you appear not to have a web presence either. Or rather, their web presence is rather insubstantial. For example, the person contacting me from RLB Solution purports to be Anna Stern, their Hiring Coordinator, Human Resources. Except... she isn't mentioned on their website. She doesn't appear to exist on LinkedIn. The nearest Facebook has for her is Anne Stern. The same goes for the person who's supposed to be contacting me from Constellation Travels, Adrian Forlan. He isn't mentioned on their website. He doesn't appear to exist on LinkedIn. He isn't available on Facebook.
What's even more interesting - neither of them appear to have an online presence anywhere else, either. I'm not on Facebook or LinkedIn myself, but I have a fairly wide-ranging history online.
None of these minor things are really key indicators on their own. It's the combination of all of them which sets my "scam" flag to snapping in the metaphorical breeze.
But of course, the real indicator is in the job descriptions, once you finally access them. If anyone is offering you money to "process online transactions" or "process transactions via Western Union", it's a pretty good warning they're not planning to actually give you money. They're planning to take all of yours. Most banks in most countries these days will deal quite successfully in currency exchange - it's not like it's a huge issue. So what would they need you for? Why would they need access to your bank account to "process transactions"?
They don't. The reason they need access to your bank account is so they can take all your money instead.
So, if any of you out there are getting emails from Anna Stern of rlbsolution.com, or Adrian Forlan of constellationtravels.com, offering jobs you can't remember applying for, just hit delete.
[1] Incidentally, this pings off another warning - the job offers payment in $NZ, not $AU. If they're not even offering payment in my currency, why do they need an Australian representative again?
Edited 06 FEB 2015 to add: I've done an updated post on RLB Solution. It's available at http://megpie71.dreamwidth.org/52222.html.
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Thank you!
Re: Thank you!
I asked my job agency person about this email and he said it was very suspicious that they are asking you to sign something and email it back - if you sign a job contract someone from the company should be there in person witnessing it. Once you've signed something, you could be in BIG trouble coz they've 'got you', he said, so don't sign it.
Notice they ask you to sign it even if you decline the job, lol. Anything to get your signature and yes, he said it will very likely lead to you losing money into their bank accounts, at a later stage of proceedings, he said. He told me not to accept the job offer.
thanks for the writeup
Thank you
Thanks heaps for this post. This RBL Solutions actually had a proper job offer, so I applied. But, I didn't give my address.
I actually asked if it was a scam, because, my cousin read the form with me.
I didn't give any details. I told them to call me if it's a legit job.
It's awful that people are preying on desperation of job seekers to get a good job.
Thank you.
-Sarah
Oh Dear
Re: Oh Dear
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I even logged-in to their "virtual office". I feel scared what's going to happen now. What do you guys suggest, please help.
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If you're in Australia (as your IP address suggests) go to the ACCC website (https://www.accc.gov.au/) and ask them for help. Otherwise, go to the consumer protection or employment protection people in your country, and bring the whole thing to them. I should make it clear: I'm not actually affiliated with the ACCC or any other regulatory body, so I can't actually do anything about this myself.
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When I discuss these things to my husband, he said it's not worth the risk so I blocked the number she used for calling me for an "interview" and change the passwords of all my account. I got pretty scared after reading this post.
RLB solution
Re: RLB solution
i just got an email from an anna stern at RLB Solutions =dodgy
Should you accept this job offer, per company policy you'll be eligible to receive the following beginning on your hire date.
• Salary: Annual gross starting salary of $19,200, will be paid every 3 weeks by your choice of check or direct deposit
• Performance Bonuses: Up to three percent of your annual gross salary, paid quarterly by your choice of check or direct deposit
Benefits: Standard, RLB-provided benefits for salaried-exempt employees, including the following:
• Education assistance
• Best Curators
• International travel opportunity
• Management Training Program
• Health, dental, life and disability insurance
• Profit sharing
• Sick leave
• Vacation and personal days
To accept this job offer:
1. Carefully read Document Attached to this E-mail.
2. Sign and date the enclosed Confidentiality Agreement where indicated.
3. Send signed and dated scanned document listed above back to us by E-mail within 2 days (including weekends).
To decline this job offer:
1. Sign and date this job offer letter where indicated below.
2. Write short explanation of your decision to refuse this job offer.
3. Send all required information listed above within 2 days (including weekends)
If you accept this job offer, your hire date will be on the day that you sign our Employment Contract. Plan to work for the remainder of the business day after. Please read the enclosed new-hire package for complete, new-hire instructions and more information about the benefits that RLB Solution offers.
In accepting our offer of employment, you certify your understanding that your employment will be on an at-will basis, and that neither you nor any Company representative have entered into a contract regarding the terms or the duration of your employment. As an at-will employee, you will be free to terminate your employment with the Company at any time, with or without cause or advance notice. Likewise, the Company will have the right to reassign you, to change your compensation, or to terminate your employment at any time, with or without cause or advance notice.
We at RLB Solutions hope that you'll accept this job offer and look forward to welcoming you aboard. Your immediate supervisor will be Anna Stern, International Department Manager. Feel free to contact Anna if you have questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Anna Stern
Hiring Coordinator, Human Resources
Re: i just got an email from an anna stern at RLB Solutions =dodgy
Thank you!!!
RLB Solution Company is pleased to offer you a job as a Part-Time Administrative Assistant. We trust that your knowledge and skills will be among our most valuable assets.
Should you accept this job offer, per company policy you'll be eligible to receive the following beginning on your hire date.
• Salary: Annual gross starting salary of $19,200, will be paid every 3 weeks by your choice of check or direct deposit
• Performance Bonuses: Up to three percent of your annual gross salary, paid quarterly by your choice of check or direct deposit
Benefits: Standard, RLB-provided benefits for salaried-exempt employees, including the following:
• Education assistance
• Best Curators
• International travel opportunity
• Management Training Program
• Health, dental, life and disability insurance
• Profit sharing
• Sick leave
• Vacation and personal days
To accept this job offer:
1. Carefully read Document Attached to this E-mail.
2. Sign and date the enclosed Confidentiality Agreement where indicated.
3. Send signed and dated scanned document listed above back to us by E-mail within 2 days (including weekends).
If you accept this job offer, your hire date will be on the day that you sign our Employment Contract. Plan to work for the remainder of the business day after. Please read the enclosed new-hire package for complete, new-hire instructions and more information about the benefits that RLB Solution offers.
In accepting our offer of employment, you certify your understanding that your employment will be on an at-will basis, and that neither you nor any Company representative have entered into a contract regarding the terms or the duration of your employment. As an at-will employee, you will be free to terminate your employment with the Company at any time, with or without cause or advance notice. Likewise, the Company will have the right to reassign you, to change your compensation, or to terminate your employment at any time, with or without cause or advance notice.
We at RLB Solutions hope that you'll accept this job offer and look forward to welcoming you aboard. Your immediate supervisor will be Anna Stern, International Department Manager. Feel free to contact Anna if you have questions or concerns.
Sincerely,
Anna Stern
Hiring Coordinator, Human Resources
Thank you so much for the warning. I almost fell into this trap as I am very desperate for a job.
Re: Thank you!!!
1) Keep in mind that when you're dealing with legitimate employer, you will generally be contacting them first. If the first you've heard of an employer is them contacting you out of the blue to say "here's a job for you", it's a scam.
2) Legitimate employers will want to interview you BEFORE they decide whether or not to employ you. There will also, in most cases, be a gap between the date you're offered the job, and your actual start date.
3) In an Australian industrial relations context, any employer who is offering "sick leave, vacation and personal days" is exactly as shonky as a car salesman saying "plus it comes with all four wheels, and the tyres are included with the car when you buy it" - sick leave, personal days, and vacations (holidays) being factored into all Australian awards and workplace agreements as a matter of course.
4) Any employer who is offering health insurance as part of their employment bundle in an Australian context had better be a health insurance agency, or else your best bet is they're scammers who think the whole world is the USA. Employer-sponsored health insurance is a very USA-centric thing - legitimate Australian employers know we have Medicare, and rely on that for their employees' health needs.
5) If someone is offering you "at will" employment in Australia, they're scamming (or again, at best they're a US-based firm which has no idea about Australian employment law). "At will" is another US-centric term of employment art - and it isn't a particularly complimentary one either. "At Will" states in the USA effectively have no unfair dismissal laws - employers can sack you as and when they fancy, for any reason they want, or no reason at all. It isn't a legitimate basis for employment in Australian terms.
6) The clause about "the Company will have the right to reassign you, to change your compensation, or to terminate your employment at any time, with or without cause or advance notice" is also pretty much direct notice they're not playing a fair game - I wouldn't be taking any job which includes that kind of clause in the contract, simply because it effectively abrogates all your rights as an employee.
7) A job offer out of the blue may seem too good to be true. That's because it is.
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