Jobseekers exploited by scammers on LinkedIn

The story of jobseekers falling victim to scammers on LinkedIn has become increasingly prevalent. Tony Young, a former tech executive, is among many Australians who have fallen prey to these scams. Over the past three years, Tony sent out applications for over 400 jobs, but his interactions with potential employers often turned out to be fraudulent.

Scammers posing as consultants would contact jobseekers, promising to improve their resumes for a fee. When jobseekers refused, the scammers would lower their offers significantly. Australian jobseekers are now warned about this pervasive fraud, with recruiters expressing concerns to the ABC and online forums about fake job advertisements on LinkedIn.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) reported receiving 138 scam reports related to LinkedIn in just two months, with losses reaching up to $254,449. Tony received emails that appeared to be from Aurecon, an engineering consultancy, offering to review his resume for a fee. However, no one from Aurecon actually contacted Tony, and the person who emailed him had cloned a legitimate LinkedIn profile.

LinkedIn's latest Job Search Safety Pulse report revealed that Australians are more vulnerable to recruitment scams due to ongoing cost-of-living pressures. Nearly half of the respondents said they would take risks when applying for jobs, and more than a third admitted to being more susceptible to such scams. Around 16% of the respondents had fallen victim to job scams.

Scammers often target younger jobseekers, with 25% of gen Z respondents saying they had fallen for such scams. Scammers impersonate large companies or recruitment firms, contacting jobseekers through LinkedIn or email with tailored job opportunities. They may request payment to start a job or participate in a course or training.

Tech recruiter Trevor Churchley observed that scam activities on LinkedIn have become more noticeable in recent years. He warned of red flags such as recruiters based in unusual locations, having no followers or connections, and no legitimate companies contacting candidates with certain email addresses. LinkedIn stated that scams of any kind are against their policies, and they take proactive measures to detect and remove spam and scam content.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) noted that employment scams are promoted across various online platforms, including professional networking sites.