Keeping yourself safe: Suspicious job opportunities
This article is part of our series on common types of scams involving cryptocurrencies and how to keep yourself safe from them.
Remember: crypto transactions are irreversible and final, which means we won’t be able to reverse a transaction for you or recover funds.
If you’re concerned about being scammed, please contact our customer support team and we’ll do our best to help.
Keeping yourself safe from suspicious job opportunities
Bitcoin scams involving fake job ads published on professional platforms like LinkedIn are becoming increasingly sophisticated and deceptive.
These scams often start with what looks like a legitimate job opportunity, offering attractive work-from-home opportunities. The positions advertised typically require little experience, making them appealing to a wide audience, and often don’t require an interview.
Recruitment scams may employ different tactics to extract money from their victims. These can include:
- Requesting a payment upfront from the victim to process an application, conduct a background check, or purchase “job equipment”
- Requiring the victim to pay for a fake training or certification program
- Sending a counterfeit check to the victim and asking them to deposit the check, then sending the funds back to the scammers, sometimes in the form of crypto
- Attaching malicious files to recruitment emails, which, when downloaded, can give scammers access to sensitive data stored on the victim’s computer
- Asking the victim to open a Shakepay account and trade crypto as a condition of accepting an “offer of employment".
Warning signs to look for
- A job posting that contains spelling or grammatical errors
- A salary offer that’s unusually high for the position
- The company offering the position has little or no online presence
- A recruiter contacting you about a job you didn’t apply for
- A recruiter only communicating with you through a messaging service like Telegram or WhatsApp
- A recruiter asking you to open a Shakepay account to receive your salary in crypto
- A recruiter asking you to pay in crypto to complete a set of tasks
- A recruiter requesting that you send them money, or send money to someone else on their behalf
- A recruiter contacting you through a non-business email address like gmail.com or hotmail.com
- A recruiter telling you they’ll send you crypto and that you’ll need to send some back in due time
What to do if you think you're being scammed
1. Research the company
Using a search engine like Google, see if you can find another website for the same company. The real company may use a .com domain name while the fake company may use a domain name like .online or .life.
2. Look up when the company’s website was created
You can find this information using the website who.is. If the website of the company that’s offering you a position is less than 6 months old, be skeptical.
3. Refuse unsolicited job offers you receive on social media
Be cautious if a recruiter contacts you about a job you didn’t apply for.
4. Avoid sending crypto, even if you’re being told it’s required for your work
Remember that crypto transactions are final and irreversible. Once you send a Bitcoin payment to someone, you won’t be able to get it back.
5. Report the incident to our Customer Support team and law enforcement
Contact our Customer Support team and report the incident to your local law enforcement and the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre.
Wrapping up
Scammers are always looking for new ways to hook unsuspecting victims, but with a healthy dose of skepticism, you can steer clear of their nets.
If you’re looking for more ways to protect your account, the Security section of our blog contains lots of useful tips and tricks from seasoned Bitcoiners.
Hope this helps keep you safe. Remember: If something doesn't seem right, keep your wallet tight. 👀🔒