Whether you’re a seasoned vet in your profession or fresh in the field and looking to land your first gig, LinkedIn has become an invaluable resource for anyone on the hunt for a new job. Unfortunately, scammers have also made LinkedIn their place of “work,” conducting a variety of scams targeting hopeful job-hunters.
So if you’ve been job hunting and applying, here’s what you need to know to keep from falling for a phony listing!
Is LinkedIn Legit?
Before we get into sniffing out scams, it’s worth talking about what LinkedIn is and confirming that, yes, LinkedIn is overall very legitimate. If, for whatever reason, you aren’t familiar with LinkedIn, it’s an online networking platform meant to help build professional relationships and connect job seekers with businesses for opportunities that match their skill sets. Think of it like Facebook, but for businesses and professionals.
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As to whether LinkedIn is legit? The answer is absolutely. That said, not everyone on LinkedIn is legit, and that’s why it’s important to know how to spot the scammers trying to camouflage themselves as hiring managers and recruiters.
LinkedIn Scams
Because of LinkedIn’s popularity in the professional world, LinkedIn job scams come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, ranging from lazy and obvious to carefully crafted and highly devious. Let’s look at the six most common scams on LinkedIn.
1. Fake Recruiters Hiring For Your Position
If you currently have a job and a LinkedIn account with your title or position, you’ve almost certainly received a message from a recruiter/company claiming to have a role they think you’d be a perfect fit for. We’re all for manifesting your dream job, but when you’re approached out of nowhere with an offer that seems too good to pass up, don’t let your excitement lead to your guard being put down.
How it works: You’ll get a message on LinkedIn about an exciting job opportunity that matches your current position. The attention grabber is that the job (that doesn’t exist) pays way more than your current job, offers a signing bonus, and is fully remote. Jackpot! … for the scammer (if you fall for it).
Once they have you on the hook, they’ll have you fill out some standard employment forms, which can often include private information like your social security number and other financial information that can be used to steal your identity.
2. Fake Job Listings
For those fighting the battle of searching for a job, the same principle applies as the fake recruiter scam: if it’s too good to be true, it’s probably a scam. This type of scam is a bit wider-reaching than the recruiter version, since it functions by having people reach out to the scammers about a listing, rather than the other way around.
How it works: Scammers create listings for jobs that offer good pay, benefits, and the ease of working remotely. Oftentimes, these listings will be for jobs that claim to need no prior experience or credentials, maximizing the number of people who are tempted to apply.
Once an application is submitted, victims are given employment forms that are actually just a ruse to steal private information. Sometimes, scammers are even brazen enough to ask you to pay a “standard” onboarding fee that they claim you’ll get back upon completing training. Once they have your information and payment, they’ll disappear without a trace.
3. Equipment Scams
Related to fake job scams, equipment scams are often the final act in completing a scam on LinkedIn. Rather than trying to steal your information with employment forms, these scammers will make you think you’re all set up to start working, but will ask you to order a specific piece of equipment that you’ll need to begin your role. This can vary from things like MacBooks, monitors, or other expensive items.
How it works: Once you’ve been “hired,” a manager will instruct you to order equipment like a MacBook, and the company will reimburse you via check. They will then send a check that is an overpay (typically by sending $3000 instead of $300), and claim that they accidentally made a mistake. Then, they’ll ask you to send them back the difference, at which point the original check will bounce, and you’ll be out whatever money you sent, plus whatever money you spent on equipment.
4. Phishing and Whaling
If you know anything about modern scams, you should already be familiar with phishing. For those who need a refresher, phishing is a popular type of scam that lures victims into clicking on malicious links that can lead users to downloading malware or inputting sensitive private information on spoofed websites.
Whaling, on the other hand, is a less talked-about sibling to phishing, where the targets are specifically high-profile individuals at certain businesses (i.e., CEOs, CFOs, etc.).
How it works: Rather than using the promise of a new job to get people to click a link, scammers will use fake or stolen LinkedIn profiles to message individuals in an attempt to get them to click on a link. The contents of the link can vary, from fake forms meant to steal information, all the way to malware designed to infiltrate whole company systems.
When it comes to whaling attacks, scammers often put in much more research, as compromising “high-value” targets can result in a much bigger payday. Other than being more convincing and having a specific target, whaling generally works the same as phishing.
5. Investment Scams
LinkedIn is all about business relationships, which makes it not so strange when someone reaches out with an investment opportunity. While a little bit of due diligence should stop a scammer in theory, in reality, people make mistakes when presented with an “amazing” opportunity.
How it works: Scammers reach out with some investment opportunity, either claiming they can boost your business or are looking for investors like you for some special opportunity. They’ll typically have a pretty thought-out pitch that seems legit on the surface (other than the too good to be true returns they promise), and that you only need to send them some money to get started. You know how this one goes: they take your money and disappear.
6. Compromised Account Scams
As if it weren’t enough dodging fake jobs, investments, and links on LinkedIn, you should also be regularly making sure your LinkedIn account is safe and secure. That’s because scammers will take over LinkedIn accounts in order to scam people connected with them.
How it works: Whether through a LinkedIn scam or some other scam that gives them access to your various account usernames and passwords, scammers take over your account and begin messaging your contacts as if they were you. People are obviously going to be far more trusting of someone they know, which means they’re more likely to click a link without thinking twice.
How to Avoid Getting Scammed On LinkedIn
Simply knowing about common scams is a solid starting point for identifying and avoiding them. But scammers are always coming up with new ways to trick people into giving up their private information and money, so here are some general warning signs to look out for:
- Grammar and spelling errors
- Suspicious links
- New or strange profiles with no activity (or activity that you suspect to be driven by bots)
- Above-average compensation
- An undue sense of urgency or pressure
- Job offers with no interviews
- Messages from people you know but don’t sound like the person
It Doesn’t Hurt to Double Check
It isn’t unheard of for someone new to reach out on LinkedIn. Before you actually start engaging that person with potential business talk, it doesn’t hurt to run a quick search in order to confirm A. they’re real, and B. they aren’t a business catfish.
Tools like Spokeo People Search can give you the details you need to make sure that an exciting new opportunity is coming from someone legit, and not just an opportunity for you to get scammed.
Cyrus Grant is a writer from Southern California with a background in law and dispute resolution. When he isn’t writing, he can be found deep-diving into the latest technology trends or simply spending time at the beach.