Too legit to quit: What are the "normal" steps for remote employment?
October 27, 2020 12:19 PM Subscribe
How do you know a job offer is legitimate and not just a phishing scam for sensitive information? (Scenario below)
Partner is looking for a job and currently unemployed due to Covid in the US. It is fairly obvious weeding out the recruitment scammers who do not speak English, but I think partner was just scammed with an elaborate attempt to get his information that involved a recruitment company and third party. Partner had a call with a recruiter for a position in partner's field - hourly position paid through recruiting firm, seemed legit. Had an interview with one out of three people would be working with/for at company hiring recruiter after strange scheduling confusion on Tuesday of last week. On Friday, got email "congratulations! they want to hire you - fill out this application with your date of birth so we can get your paperwork started". No other details like start date, benefits, etc. Partner emails back "can I get details please." Response, "sure. this part is all new for me but i think you will start next week. Also I need you social security number so you can get paid." Huge red flag. Partner emailed company directly and they said "yes this is legit. we want to hire you and have the recruiter handle this so as not to step on toes." Still seems phishy. What are the chances that this is a legit job? How do you protect yourself moving forward? Shouldn't there be an i9? Seems elaborate to get SSN and DOB.
Partner is looking for a job and currently unemployed due to Covid in the US. It is fairly obvious weeding out the recruitment scammers who do not speak English, but I think partner was just scammed with an elaborate attempt to get his information that involved a recruitment company and third party. Partner had a call with a recruiter for a position in partner's field - hourly position paid through recruiting firm, seemed legit. Had an interview with one out of three people would be working with/for at company hiring recruiter after strange scheduling confusion on Tuesday of last week. On Friday, got email "congratulations! they want to hire you - fill out this application with your date of birth so we can get your paperwork started". No other details like start date, benefits, etc. Partner emails back "can I get details please." Response, "sure. this part is all new for me but i think you will start next week. Also I need you social security number so you can get paid." Huge red flag. Partner emailed company directly and they said "yes this is legit. we want to hire you and have the recruiter handle this so as not to step on toes." Still seems phishy. What are the chances that this is a legit job? How do you protect yourself moving forward? Shouldn't there be an i9? Seems elaborate to get SSN and DOB.
Partner emailed company directly
How sure is partner that this e-mail actually went to Company and not "recruiter?"
posted by evilmomlady at 12:30 PM on October 27, 2020 [3 favorites]
How sure is partner that this e-mail actually went to Company and not "recruiter?"
posted by evilmomlady at 12:30 PM on October 27, 2020 [3 favorites]
You know, I don't think it's definitely a red flag. 99% likely this is a real job.
Some things you could check:
Do the company and recruitment firm both have physical locations and glassdoor reviews?
Is the contact info (emails, phone numbers) matching the domains of the firms and the company's?
If yes to all of the above, then it's almost for sure legit.
dates of birth and social security numbers are secret, yes, but I agree, it's pretty elaborate way to get them. If you think about it, any bouncer could copy your drivers license without much effort.
What I have done to protect myself in these situations is to just put "Will provide upon request" in every blank for paper SSN. You should be able to do the same with DOB. It has never caused an issue before.
I would reply as your partner: "Hey! I'm so excited! Just so I can have it on record, can you send details of start date, benefits, salary, etc? I'm a little nervous sharing my social security over email, is there a more secure way we can share my data - like through an online employment portal?"
posted by bbqturtle at 12:31 PM on October 27, 2020 [10 favorites]
Some things you could check:
Do the company and recruitment firm both have physical locations and glassdoor reviews?
Is the contact info (emails, phone numbers) matching the domains of the firms and the company's?
If yes to all of the above, then it's almost for sure legit.
dates of birth and social security numbers are secret, yes, but I agree, it's pretty elaborate way to get them. If you think about it, any bouncer could copy your drivers license without much effort.
What I have done to protect myself in these situations is to just put "Will provide upon request" in every blank for paper SSN. You should be able to do the same with DOB. It has never caused an issue before.
I would reply as your partner: "Hey! I'm so excited! Just so I can have it on record, can you send details of start date, benefits, salary, etc? I'm a little nervous sharing my social security over email, is there a more secure way we can share my data - like through an online employment portal?"
posted by bbqturtle at 12:31 PM on October 27, 2020 [10 favorites]
It sounds like an awful lot of work to get information that's not really that hard to get if you're tied to online crime. I mean, if the company that he'd be working for is legitimate and vouches for the recruiting company, it sounds like you're dealing with someone new to a not very good company rather than a fraud. Does searching for both the contracting company and the one he'd be working for turn up the digital crumbs that legitimate businesses leave behind?
posted by Candleman at 1:19 PM on October 27, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by Candleman at 1:19 PM on October 27, 2020 [1 favorite]
did you look up the interviewers on Linkedin?
posted by fingersandtoes at 4:07 PM on October 27, 2020 [1 favorite]
posted by fingersandtoes at 4:07 PM on October 27, 2020 [1 favorite]
Yeah, in my experience it would not be unusual to ask for details like date of birth, and even social security number, before all the details are set (many/most companies will do some form of a background check, for example). The fact that you separately emailed the company (which I assume has an online presence typical of the type of company your partner is applying for) and got a consistent response would quiet any worries I might have had. As Candleman says, this is far, far more effort and organization and a higher level of professionalism than a scam to simply solicit someone's SSN and DOB would typically warrant.
That said, yes, the right thing would be to get an offer letter describing the terms and benefits before getting started on payroll procedures. This strikes me more as disorganizing hiring than a scam, but your partner isn't wrong to ask for some details before moving forward and not accept "this is all new to me" as an acceptable answer.
posted by exutima at 9:00 PM on October 27, 2020
That said, yes, the right thing would be to get an offer letter describing the terms and benefits before getting started on payroll procedures. This strikes me more as disorganizing hiring than a scam, but your partner isn't wrong to ask for some details before moving forward and not accept "this is all new to me" as an acceptable answer.
posted by exutima at 9:00 PM on October 27, 2020
I think if your gut is telling you there's something not quite right here, it's definitely worth putting in every single effort to establish the ligitimacy of this offer. Some good ideas for how to do that above, just don't discount your gut feelings. Don't give out any information until you feel satisfied that this is a legit offer.
posted by WalkerWestridge at 1:24 PM on October 29, 2020
posted by WalkerWestridge at 1:24 PM on October 29, 2020
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by mekily at 12:24 PM on October 27, 2020 [6 favorites]