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People would be attracted to a potential job that offers a 100% remote work setting and an excellent salary and benefits, along with the promise of funds to buy equipment and furnishings for a home office. However, there is potential risk, because such an offer can be a set-up for a scam.

A common scenario as reported by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has a fraudster reaching out to an individual as an external recruiter claiming they are looking for a candidate to work for a large, well-known company. The fraudster exploits the fact that many recruiters work remotely and deal with candidates nationally. As such, the fact that the candidate never meets the recruiter in person does not seem unusual. The fraudster/recruiter offers a highly attractive opportunity, with the intention of striking at the candidate in two ways.

• Candidates who respond and complete an application provide personally identifiable information (PII), including address, phone number, email address and social security number. The fraudster then will have information that can be used to steal an applicant’s identity and commit fraud in multiple ways while pretending to be the applicant.
• Once a candidate is “hired,” the fraudster sends that individual a check as a salary advance or to pay for home office equipment. The check sent is always greater than the advance or allowance and so the candidate is instructed to send back the excess funds, often in the form of gift cards, money transfers or a cash app. (For example, the candidate receives a $3,000 check, from which a candidate is instructed to keep $2,000 and send back $1,000). The candidate sends the “excess” funds back to the recruiter/fraudster in a timely basis, only to find out 5–7 days later that the check received for the advance was fraudulent. At that point, the candidate has bought equipment for a job that does not exist and has sent money to the recruiter/fraudster, who they can no longer contact.

The FTC offers the following advice to individuals as a means of protection:

• Verify job openings before responding to an offer to apply

  An individual should visit the official website of the company to which they are applying. There should be a “career opportunities” section of the website, and that can be referenced to confirm the existence of the position that was presented by the recruiter.

• Research what general news is circulating about the company

  Use a search engine on the internet to look up the company’s name connected to words such as “scam,” “review,” “complaint,” or “fraud.” The same search can be conducted using the name of the recruiter or the “agency” for which that individual is working.

• Never pay for the promise of a job

  Legitimate employers would not ask candidates for money either in the form of fees or as a return of “overfunded” set-up costs. Legitimate recruiters are not compensated by candidates; they are compensated by the companies for which they place personnel.

• Never deposit a check from an unknown person

A legitimate employer would not send a check to a prospective employee, a portion of which would be expected to be refunded, particularly in the form of gift cards, money transfers, or cash apps. A legitimate employer has a standard set of equipment it would send to a remote employee.