888-883-9301

I received a call/message from this number 10/5/10, stating they received my resume to call about a career opportunity. It was a pre-recorded message so I didn't bother calling back.

info on employment scams

Scam Artists Capitalize on High Unemployment Rate
Watch for these red flags when looking for jobs
September 6, 2010


As the unemployment rate hovers around 10 percent, scammers are taking advantage of the opportunity by preying on the unemployed, the Better Business Bureau warns. Identifying the common red flags of a scam is one way for job hunters to protect themselves and their wallet.
According to the Labor Department, new jobless claims in mid-August unexpectedly jumped to 500,000, an increase of 12,000 over the previous week. Not only did jobless claims rise suddenly, but the length of unemployment is bleak for many. According to a July report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly 45 percent of unemployed Americans had been out of work for more than 6 months.
“The dismal employment rate means that a lot of people are desperate for work and may be grasping for any job which creates a great opportunity for scammers,” said Stephen A. Cox, President and CEO of the Council of Better Business Bureaus. “Not thoroughly researching a job opportunity can make a bad situation even worse and a victim can lose hundreds or even thousands of dollars to any number of job-related scams.”
BBB recommends looking out for the following seven red flags when searching for a job:

Red Flag: The employer offers the opportunity to become rich without leaving home
While many legitimate businesses allow employees to work from home, there are also a lot of scammers trying to take advantage of senior citizens, stay-at-home moms, students and injured or handicapped people looking to make money conveniently at home. Job hunters should use extreme caution when considering a work-at-home offer and always research the company at www.bbb.org and at www.consumeraffairs.com.

Red Flag: The employer asks for money upfront
It is rarely advisable for an applicant to pay upfront fees or make a required purchase to get a job. BBB often hears from job hunters who paid a phony employer for supposedly required background checks or training for jobs that didn’t exist. Always research the job thoroughly before opening up your wallet. Also be wary of job placement companies that ask for large upfront fees to find you a job.

Red Flag: The salary and benefits offered seem too-good-to-be-true.
The adage holds true for job offers: if the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Phony employers might brag about exceptionally high salary potential and excellent benefits for little work and no experience necessary in order to lure unsuspecting job hunters into their scam.

Red Flag: Employer e-mails are rife with grammatical and spelling errors.
Online fraud is often perpetrated by scammers located outside the U.S. Their first language usually isn’t English and this is often evident in their poor grasp of the language which can include poor grammar and the misspelling of common words.

Red Flag: The employer requires you to check your credit report
After posting their resumes online or responding to online job listings, many job hunters received what they thought was good news: an e-mail from an interested employer. In order to be considered for the job, the applicant has to check his or her credit report through a recommended website. The truth is, the e-mail is just an attempt to get the job hunter to divulge sensitive financial information or sign up for credit monitoring services.

Red Flag: The employer is quick to ask for personal information such as Social Security or bank account numbers
Some job seekers have been surprised to learn they’ve gotten a job without having to do a single interview. However, when the employer then asked for personal information in order to fill out the necessary paperwork, suspicions were raised – and rightly so. Regardless of the reason, a job applicant should never give out his or her Social Security or bank account numbers over the phone or email and only after they’ve confirmed the job is legitimate.

Red Flag: The job requires you to wire money through Western Union or MoneyGram or receive and forward suspicious goods
Many phony jobs require the employee to cash a check sent by the company through the mail and then wire a portion of the money on to another entity. Reasons given for this requirement vary from scam to scam. Whatever the reason though, the check might clear the employee’s bank account but will eventually turn out to be a fake and the employee is out the money he or she wired back to the scammers. BBB also warns against receiving and mailing suspicious goods—such as electronics or luxury items—overseas.


Read more: http://consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/09/une ... l#ixzz0ywFo14g0



Identity Thieves Prowling for Job Seekers
Fake job ads up 345% as recession creates opportunities for scam artists
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/03/job_scams.html

March 9, 2009

With the unemployment rate rising and living costs going up, more people are looking for new jobs or second jobs. These are ideal conditions, it turns out, if you’re an identity thief.
Job seekers will register with employment agencies, check employment ads, mail out unsolicited resumes, network, post resumes on job search sites and search Craigslist.
In fact, the UK Association for Payment Clearing Services which tracks the prevalence of fake job ads said that fake ads are up 345 percent over the past three years. Unfortunately identity thieves are taking advantage of these uncertain economic times to scam job seekers and gather personal identifying information.
The Identity Theft Resource Center offers these tips:


• Protect your Social Security Number by limiting how many people see it. Never put your SSN on a resume. Let a company ask for it when they consider you a serious applicant. To minimize your risk, you also may want to not list your home address and just put your city and state on the resume.


• Consider opening a separate email account for your job search and keeping your primary email address private. Placing your email address on a resume could open the door to spam and phishing, account verification, and other email scams. (The recent Monster.com breach exposed resumes and email addresses. If you had placed your Social Security number or home email address on your resume, you could have made yourself a target.)


• Check out a company you found on a website carefully before giving them your information, for example Craig’s List. Anyone can create a website, but it doesn’t mean that they are a real company. You can find information on a company through the Better Business Bureau or the State Attorney General where the company is located. You can also Google the business to find out more about them. Most reputable companies will have a significant presence on the Internet, not just a few mentions.


• Avoid any website that requires you to “pre-register” with your SSN, home address or driver’s license number. Also, you should not be required to prepay to view job listings. Both these requirements are strong indicators of a scam.


• Update your computer security prior to emailing resumes and receiving email correspondence. Making sure your computer security is currently updated against viruses, Trojans, and other types of computer malware can help to protect you from any intrusion in an attachment you might receive.



• Make sure the person who contacted you actually works at the listed company and is not someone who has posted a job pretending to be part of a company. Does the URL address include the name of the company? If not, who actually sent it? Call the company involved, and ask for the Human Resources Department. Some companies recommend not responding via email to any person asking for more information, but rather to call the company directly. Rarely does a company hire someone sight unseen.


• Be wary of some common job scams. Avoid any company, especially a foreign company that wants to hire you as a “payment representative “or” accounts receivable clerk.” This scam indicates that you get to keep a percentage of all checks or money orders you place in a bank account for them. Do not open a bank account for a company. You will be the responsible party should any money laundering occur, or if checks bounce. This is called a “money mule scam.”

Another scam is to notify you that you are one of the finalists for a job, and they need your Social Security number to do a background check. If you have not had a face-to-face interview with the company, you should be very skeptical. No one gets a job based on a resume alone.
Finally, watch out for the “work-at home” scams, especially those that ask you to “forward” packages you receive to a third party. That package may contain stolen goods or illegal drugs. There is rarely need to have a private party as a “freight forwarder.”
The safest ways to job search are to use local want ads, visit the unemployment office, use temp employment services, tell friends and family about your search, and network via professional groups and business acquaintances. When contacting a local company you can meet them, see the facilities, and ask acquaintances in that industry about their reputation. Consider not contacting foreign companies, especially those from Nigeria, Russia and third world countries.

Should you decide to use the Internet, ITRC strongly recommends that you read the safety tips on job seeking websites and report any suspicious posting to the website concerned.


Read more: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2009/03/job_scams.html#ixzz0TGskhzJw




Florida Probes Eight Firms For Alleged Employment Scams
Suspected of exploiting desperate job-seekers
February 17, 2010

The ads make it sound easy; let the advertised firm train and place you in a new job, or set you up in a work-at-home business that will triple your income. It hardly ever works out that way, however.
Now, the State of Florida has issued subpoenas to eight firms suspected of running employment or work-at-home scams.
"Unemployed Floridians are particularly vulnerable to scams that falsely promise quick fixes for people who are jobless," said Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum. "With the unemployment rate in Florida at record highs, we need to be vigilant in our efforts against people looking to capitalize on someone else's difficulties."
One of the firms receiving a subpoena is Career Services International, based in Orlando. McCollum's office is investigating allegations that the company misrepresents available services and collects fees for those services, but fails to provide them. Consumers have complained that the quality of service was not what the company had promised and indicated problems with missed deadlines, untrained employees, and lack of advertised expertise.
Federal-State Crackdown
The subpoena is one of a series issued over the past several months targeting employment scams and was announced today to highlight the office's joint enforcement effort with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC)and several other states. Seven other Florida companies have also received subpoenas investigating potential violations of Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act. Allegations include misleading or deceptive marketing of work-from-home opportunities as well as job placement services and other Internet business ventures.
The other firms under investigation include:

• Coretech Media LLC, doing business as Netcadetpro.com and Net Money Training, located in St. Petersburg; Investigation of unfair and deceptive trade practices related to home business opportunity kits advertised over the internet

• Darling Angel Pin Creations, Inc., located in Brandon; Investigation of unfair and deceptive trade practices involving work at home job opportunity

• GC Displays, Inc., doing business as Atlanticpacificonline.com, located in Clearwater; Investigation of unfair and deceptive trade practices involving job placement services

• Home Biz Ventures, LLC, doing business as Bidfuel.com and Blogtoolkit.com, located in Clearwater; Investigation of unfair and deceptive trade practices involving internet business opportunity which offers on-line membership access to training and products to sell on auction sites

• My Career Corp., Inc., located in Tampa; Investigation of unfair and deceptive trade practices involving job placement services

• Pacific Webworks, Inc., located in Salt Lake City, Utah; Investigation of unfair and deceptive trade practices involving work from home opportunities

• Viable Marketing Corp., located in Seminole; Unauthorized recurring charges associated with negative option "work at home" internet business opportunity

McCollum says consumers should be wary of any company offering employment positions that require little or no education but claim to pay high wages, companies that charge an up-front fee for their services or products, companies that offer "memberships" to internet-based employment opportunities, and any other opportunity that sounds too good to be true.


Read more: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/02 ... l#ixzz0ftMC4KaX

FTC Cracks Down on Jobs Con Artists
Scams prey on Americans left jobless by the recession


By James Limbach
ConsumerAffairs.com
February 18, 2010

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has launched a new crackdown on con artists who are preying on unemployed Americans.
The fraudsters utilize job-placement and work-at-home scams, promoting empty promises that they can help people get jobs in the federal government, as movie extras, or as mystery shoppers; or make money working from their homes stuffing envelopes or assembling ornaments.
As part of the law enforcement sweep, dubbed "Operation Bottom Dollar," the FTC has filed seven cases against the operators of deceptive and illegal job and moneymaking scams. In addition, the sweep includes 43 criminal actions by the Department of Justice, many involving the substantial assistance of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
The agency also announced partnerships with the online job placement service Monster.com, the search engine Bing and the centralized network of online communities Craigslist to help job seekers recognize job scams so they can avoid being victimized. Monster, Careerbuilder, Bing and Craigslist will display FTC consumer education material to people who are using the companies' Web sites to look for jobs.
"Federal and state law enforcement officials will not tolerate those who take advantage of consumers in times of economic misfortune," said David C. Vladeck, Director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection. "If you falsely advertise that you will connect people with jobs or with opportunities for them to make money working from home, we will shut you down. We will give your assets to the people you scammed, and, when it's appropriate, we'll refer you to criminal authorities for prosecution."
To help consumers avoid being conned by employment scams, the FTC has produced a new consumer education video in English and Spanish.


Read more: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2010/02/jobs_scams.html#ixzz0gesTr4l6

I have received calls from this number, along with a few others that got my resume' from Monster or whatever and they "think I'd be perfect" for their scam -- oops, "oppportunity." I called the first one back, which was a real company. They are looking for investment advisors; i.e., salesmen, paid straight commission. You need to get the trading licenses, so I suspect they make $ selling you a training course.

Got an automated message from this number tonight telling me to call them for an interview and that I looked like a good candidate.  They did not identify what company they were representing.  I didn't call.  Thanks for posting this information.

I had the same thing.. and they didn't even leave the "company's" name...

This number called me at 7:06pm at 10/11/2010 stated that they had a job that I might like to interview for and thats all. After checking into the matter it seems this number has called many people that are looking for jobs and the resume us been sent to them also. However the company did not provide its name.

Yep, got a call from this number - guess its due to posting my resume on Monster. Need to take the resume off line....

I received a call from the same number right after submitting my resume for a job.  As you stated, it was a recording and I would not wait for the next available operator.  The strange thing to me was the lack of a name, not on the message and not by the machine on the other side.  Not trusting it.

Just got a call from that "company" as well. Guess I shouldn't post my phone number on my resume. Sounded like a scam, and I'm not calling back for their "job opportunity" considering they didn't leave the company name, or job listing in the pre-recorded message.

Just recieved a call from this number,was a recorded message to click 1 to set up an interview, no answer, checked it out on line and saw this complaint about the number, They got mine from monster sad since so many people are really trying with real  companies to get a job.

Same thing as above, only I was silly enough to answer and push 1.  Unemployment does funny things.  After they put me on hold (to speak to someone about making an appointment for a phone interview supposedly) I waited about 5 mins and googled the number and found this.  I am also on Monster, they must be where they are pulling the numbers from.

This number called, didn't recognize it, let it go to voicemail. Recorded message - no name, no company information - offered interview opportunity and to call back to arrange for it. Called at 6:49EDT 10/19/2010. Figured due to dearth of useful information that it had to be a scam. Noticed that I have been receiving a LOT of scam emails ever since posting my resume on CareerBuilder.com. I am cancelling my account with CareerBuilder.com now.

The number "888-883-9301" is for Mutual Insurance Company. Thet are recruiting sales staff... I am sure it is one of those commission based positions that no one wants so they resort to harrassing people looking for real jobs on Monster.com

Husband got the same message as others have indicated above. He didn't call back, and instead we looked it up online, and I found this. Glad we found this.

I received a call from the "company" on my cell phone where I have it listed on the "Do Not Call List".

Got a call from this number.  Thought I'd bettercheck it out since they didn't leave name of company.  Glad I did.

Received a phone call after posting my resume on Monster.  As the other posts say, it was a recorded voicemail that was left, no business name provided.  When I called the number back, it immediately said to hold for an operator and never listed a business name.  I hung up and consider it spam calling.

yep - got the same voicemail last night after recently updating my resume on Monster!  Looks like Monster is not the place to put resumes!  After thinking about it for awhile and trying to find who owns the number (and looking at this forum), decided it ain't worth the risk.  Thanks for posting all this info!

I got a cll from a place that said they got my resume they called themselfs liberty insurance but ive never put in for a job with this Co. or ever talked to anyone. i gave them my address and my email but i also called the FBI

Well, I am disappointed that it's not a legit interview being set up (16 months of unemployment will make you take just about anything!) but glad to know not to waste my time.