Job Seeker Alert, Phishing Scams on the Rise

Job seekers should always be on the alert when replying to ads online. The number one type of ad they should steer clear of is one that lists no company name. Let me tell you about my recent experience with one such ad.

On the website wweek.com they have a jobs classified section. It is similar to Craigslist in that anyone can list an ad. Although, this one has a twist, you hit the "reply to ad" button and it asks for your resume', email and name. Sounds legit, doesn't it? So I was dumb enough to fall for the ad below and I must tell you that I was just a tad bit leery since there was no company name listed, but what the heck.

Reply: click here
-Applicants must have at least 0-6 months of office experience.
-Knowledge of MS Word, Excel and Outlook.
-Experience handling shipping and receiving is a plus.
-Will be assisting various departments in the company.
-Must be multi tasked and detail oriented.
For an application send email
Salary/Wage: $16
Status: Part-time
• Location: Corvallis/albany
• Post ID: 4367029

Within 24 hours I got a lengthy reply back from rick8@dastomedia.com and here is his email:

Thank you for your prompt reply, as the hiring manager I am glad to see you are serious. Your email is definitely appreciated. From your response we have gathered that you are qualified for the current position, and in my opinion more so than any of the other 14 applicants who have submitted their information for review.

To remind you, the job is basic but requires: some oral and written communication skills and the ability to perform general administrative tasks including answering the phone and message taking, the preparation of mailings, the order and maintenance of supply quantities, copy work, emailing, filing, and typing. I will give you more specific details during the interview.

Hours: 9AM to 5PM (Can be flexed a bit if required)
General Pay: you can earn up to $17.00 per hour after your initial paid training (we will decide final salary after interview based on experience)
Benefits Package: Dental and medical, eyecare, life/disability insurance, tuition reimbursement after 6 months, vacation/sick time and 401k.

While you are running errands, you will also be given one of our company credit card(s) for all business purchases. My company will require that you acquire a recent (past 14-21 business days) credit report. We started this because our company had some bad incidents with prior employees taking advantage of having access to a company credit card.

We are prepared to set up an interview time for you but you have not submitted one of the items necessary to satisfy the pre-interview requirements. We show you have not completed your credit report which all candidates must submit before scheduling an interview. We are trying to complete the schedule for these interviews immediately so please finish the report now so your record is complete.

Perform the credit check here www.yourfreescore360.com/?id=i5tcabw2hjm8
There is no cost for the trial and we have found they do have the most accurate score.

I ask you to not email me the entire report. We do ask that you reply with your current score then please print the report or use the save to email option and bring the report with you to the interview.If you do not return the required information as soon as possible it may result in you being passed up for the job.

Reply with the results and an availability time to set up an interview. My availability would be from 7 to 10 in the morning or 2 to 5 PM.
We are looking to fill this position immediately so do not hesitate.

Have a great Sunday
Rick Darlenton
Human Resources

So on the surface it appears that this nut job, Rick, is trying to run a phishing scam for your vital credit records but in reality he is an affiliate looking to get people to sign up for the free credit score. He doesn't even bother to hide his affiliate id (id=i5tcabw2hjm8) from you.

After doing a brief Google search I found Rick also goes by the name of Chuck Ritz, and Amy Cohn and the website he/she uses is rexormedia.com He/she is apparently a nation wide problem. So steer clear of dastomedia.com and rexormedia.com.

One website that I found very helpful is gathering information about scam artists like these is http://flakelist.org/ So if you see something that sounds suspicious check it out at flakelist first.

One last item, did you know that this type of fraudulent activity is investigated by not only the FTC but by the US Secret Service. Yes this is a federal offense. Victims are encouraged to report all email scams to the Los Angeles Electronic Crimes Task Force at LA.ECTF.reports@usss.dhs.gov

For more information visit this website at the FTC about credit report scams http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2003/09/creditrptalert.shtm