Pat Foran CTV News Toronto Consumer Alert Videojournalist

A Milton, Ont. woman has been looking for a job, hoping to work remotely in technical support, and received an offer from someone who claimed to be a recruiter who reached out to her through LinkedIn.

But Lori Foster said that not long into the interview process the recruiter wanted a lot of personal information, which made her uncomfortable and eventually led her to believe it was a scam.

“Had I provided the last foiur digits of my social insurance number, my birthday and other personal information they were asking for I could have been the victim of identity theft,” said Foster.

LinkedIn is a social networking website business professionals use to communicate and make new contacts.

When CTV News Toronto reached out to the company to ask about criminals using the website to try and get personal information through resume scams, Brionna Ruff with LinkedIn Corporate Communications said in a statement, “we work every day to keep our members safe, and this includes investing in automated and manual defenses to detect and address fake accounts, false information, and suspected fraud.”

“Our policies are very clear: we do not allow fraudulent activity, including financial scams on LinkedIn. We also encourage members to report any suspicious messages so our teams can take action. You can learn more about the work we do to keep members safe here.”

According to the Better Business bureau (BBB) there was a major increase in employment scams during the pandemic as many people tried to find ways to work from home.

“Information like your banking details, your social insurance number and other personal information is something that you don’t provide until you are hired,” President and CEO of the BBB for Central Ontario Angela Dennis sai.

The BBB said you should always beware of unsolicited job offers and be careful if you are ever asked to receive a cheque, cash it and then forward on the funds to others.

You should also never have to pay in advance to get a job and another red flag is being told that you have been hired without having to do a job interview.

Dennis said most importantly is doing your research and not giving out too much information when answering a recruiter or searching for a job.

“What they are trying to do is get people’s information to steal their identity and open up bank accounts and credit cards,” Dennis said.

Foster contacted CTV News Toronto hoping to make others aware that if they’re looking for a job and they’re asked to provide too much personal information before they’re hired, chances are it’s a scam.

“It could be they want something from you. They don’t actually want to give you a job, they just want your information,” said Foster.

If you’re asked to conduct a job interview through a messaging app and you’re told not to phone to talk to someone or do a video call, chances are it’s a scam.

According to the BBB if you have doubts about the authenticity of the job offer, by-pass the recruiter all together, and call the company directly to see if the job actually exists.

source: https://toronto.ctvnews.ca/mobile/looking-for-a-job-beware-employment-resume-scams-1.6011632