All that glitters is not gold! Quiet an old proverb but a very true saying. A very interesting phone call aroused my thoughts to this blog. How much have we heard of cyber crimes and how protected are we?
Last week I received a call from a recruitment agency telling me that I have the most appropriate CV that aptly fits the requirement of their MNC client. The call progressed taking my background study, my experience and so on and so forth and slowly a trap was coming to light. The deal was that, I should register for their service, making an online payment of USD 250 in consideration for the exclusive professional service rendered by them. The recruitment consultant claimed that, the recruitment agency caters only to a niche market of high profile multi-national companies and management positions. In all fairness it sounded to be a legitimate claim. However, I personally do not believe in paying to get paid. The terms of trade in human capital so far is that, the employers spend to identify the right candidate. After all the recruitment agency would make at-least half month to two months of basic salary as commission for placement of a candidate. Although I did not intend to take their services, something about the call intrigued me to investigate more about them. But the website just read something like, 'Wisdomjobs.com or Timesjob.com or CareerExcel.com etc., The obvious questions that came to my mind were,
- Is it a registered entity?
- What corporate body is it, a company or firm etc.,?
- Where is it primarily located? Does it have a physical office space?
- Does it have an organisation with dedicated people physically working?
However, if it was a physically existing entity then my approach to investigate would have been different. But it happened to be an E-Commerce business. The website I was looking at was fully packed with contents and ranking meter. It had reasonable amount of partnering job sites and the job search engine boasted as many as 1500 jobs across the globe. It all looked so real and so appealing but I wanted to investigate more.
As one may know, in Google, its all about key word search. In the case of the agency that approached me, I used the words, 'reviews', 'scam' along with the 'website name' and 'phone number' I received the call from, in various possible combinations. As always, Google showed up as many pages as my screen can handle. I believe, its always the top 3 or 5 search results that tend to best fit the search requirement. And I saw that, most of the messages read that the candidate lost the money transferred to this website. Drawing reference from the messages it seemed that, in some instances, the recruitment consultants had given written email and even signed documents confirming refund in the event of unsatisfactory service or inability to place the candidate on job as committed. However, there was no case of refunds reported. Refund requests were deferred and with the passage of time calls were not answered. However, I even saw a countable few comments of positive service response. But a word of caution here, it could be the fraudsters themselves posting such comments to continue on their fraudulent business.
As one may know, in Google, its all about key word search. In the case of the agency that approached me, I used the words, 'reviews', 'scam' along with the 'website name' and 'phone number' I received the call from, in various possible combinations. As always, Google showed up as many pages as my screen can handle. I believe, its always the top 3 or 5 search results that tend to best fit the search requirement. And I saw that, most of the messages read that the candidate lost the money transferred to this website. Drawing reference from the messages it seemed that, in some instances, the recruitment consultants had given written email and even signed documents confirming refund in the event of unsatisfactory service or inability to place the candidate on job as committed. However, there was no case of refunds reported. Refund requests were deferred and with the passage of time calls were not answered. However, I even saw a countable few comments of positive service response. But a word of caution here, it could be the fraudsters themselves posting such comments to continue on their fraudulent business.
Interestingly, there were also experiences shared were, the account details provided for refund purposes or instructions to open the bank account online to enable immediate transfer of refund were alternatively used to siphon out funds from the candidates bank account.
Do you know it only takes as low as $2 to set up a domain name and for $10 one can have email accounts with the website domain name. The setup is within the world-wide-web which gives very limited potential for regulating its governance and operations. Cyber crimes are meshed and tangled in webs within our virtual home, the 'WORLD WIDE WEB'. In this virtual web we are exposed to spider cannibalism where knowingly or unknowingly we are risking our identity and financials. It is important to be in a self protective mode in the web environment. Beware of hooks, crooks and hacks. Do your background checks thoroughly before sharing personal details or financial information.
In this web world, I appeal to all users to be aware and protective about your virtual interactions. Do not get carried away by promotional calls and guaranteed offers. Avoid paying upfront charges where ever possible. Do not share your name and date of birth, bank account and similar information unless it is to known individuals, in an authenticated site and adequate background checks has been carried out. It is recommended not to share bank account information particularly for reasons like recruitment services. Do you know it only takes as low as $2 to set up a domain name and for $10 one can have email accounts with the website domain name. The setup is within the world-wide-web which gives very limited potential for regulating its governance and operations. Cyber crimes are meshed and tangled in webs within our virtual home, the 'WORLD WIDE WEB'. In this virtual web we are exposed to spider cannibalism where knowingly or unknowingly we are risking our identity and financials. It is important to be in a self protective mode in the web environment. Beware of hooks, crooks and hacks. Do your background checks thoroughly before sharing personal details or financial information.
In the event of a need to register bank account information for further access to site or other similar requirement, complete the background check. Even were it seem authentic and reliable, it is recommended for one to be risk averse. One can look at having a dedicated account with limited balance/transaction value. For example, one can have a debit/credit card with a very low balance/transaction limit for utilization towards access to sites or services received. However, make sure to have different passwords and that the card is not linked to any of the regular bank accounts and that the card statements are closely monitored.
Though we have come a long way in advancement in technology, cyber crime is a global threat that is posing immense challenges. If one is caught in the wrong foot, filing a complaint with proper authorities is probably the only window left and getting justice on such matters is left to the power of hope. Be aware and do not let your desperate need or emotion overtake your judgement and action, KEEP SAFE!
Disclaimer: The above blog is the personal view of the writer and the names of websites are fictitious and given as examples only. It is up-to the readers and users to make their own personal impression and/or investigation. The writer does not intend and is not influencing the reader for or against any impression or action related to content in this blog.
