Q: I’ve never used LinkedIn for job searches, so what should I watch for so I don’t get scammed?
A: LinkedIn is the largest social network for business professionals, which also makes it a common way for scammers to trick those looking for work.
They’ll use a host of tricks to get people to let down their guard, so it’s important to understand some of the red flags associated with job scams.
Vague Job Descriptions
Often scammers will engage you with promises of great pay with very vague job descriptions, hoping that you focus on the pay and not the actual job.
A real position should have a very clear description of the job being offered along with the qualifications that are required.
Any job that is offering to pay substantially more than anyone else in that industry should be viewed with great suspicion.
You Can’t Find Them Online
Before you engage with anyone on LinkedIn, it behooves you to do some research on them and the company that they represent away from the network.
In the age of social media and the need to have a web presence, if you can’t find anything about the company through various Google searches, it’s another huge red flag.
You can also do an image search by dragging their profile picture to Google’s Image search page: https://images.google.com/
If the image is a stock photo or is for someone with a different name, it’s a scam profile.
How Complete Is Their Profile
A legitimate recruiter will have a profile filled with activities over a…
