Con Artists Target the Unemployed with Fake Job Scams
As unemployment numbers remain at a staggering high rate in the U.S., many individuals are anxiously looking for ways to make money in order to stay afloat until the job market picks back up.
Unfortunately there are those who strive to profit off the hardship of others. When people are feeling desperate, sadly it is not uncommon for scammers to try to capitalize on another person's misery. These con artists look to take advantage of those who are feeling down and out by preying on their vulnerabilities in order to line their own pocketbooks.
A common approach these swindlers take is to target those in search of income with false ads and claims of easy and fast ways to make money. It is their hope that those in a susceptible financial position will leap at their fraudulent opportunities. Unfortunately these promises seldom, if ever, deliver and those who fall victim to these scams end up losing what could amount to significant amounts of money.
Individuals who come across any such job advertisements should take warning and be on the watch for fake money making opportunities. The con artists are slick and their promises sound good, however in the end it leads nowhere. One of the common tactics involved is soliciting money in order to receive a 'packet', supplies, training materials, or other preparatory item which will either provide income or lead to a job.
However, once the money is received the scammers promise they will deliver, but the problem is they don't pan out.
The Daily Finance reports thetop 10 job scamswhich are currently making the rounds. These scams are the Envelope Stuffing Scam, Employment with Federal Government, Apply for Government Grants Scam, Work from Home Assembling Crafts Scam, Rebate Processing Scam, Online Search Scam, Medical Billing Scam, Pre-Screened Lists of Jobs scam, Mystery Shopper Scam and the Money Laundering Scam.
Monica Vaca, Staff Attorney with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) states "In a time of high unemployment rates, con artists exploit the vulnerabilities of unemployed Americans by falsely promising to deliver what these folks need most: a job that will enable them to put food on the table and pay the rent." (Daily Finance)
This year the FTC announced a crackown on these scammers and are aggressively going after con artists who are preying on the vulnerabilities of those unemployed. It is recommended job seekers be very wary of ads, even those published in reputable publications or websites (Daily Finance). Anyone who asks for money upfront or credit card information is likely a scam.
Many of these offers sound like terrific opportunities, but keep in mind they are carefully designed to sound attractive. One should always pay heed to the old warning 'if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is'. While being unemployed is a very difficult and scary situation, it is important to try and keep a clear head in regards to these fraudulent offers and steer clear.
