You are here: Home > Guides + Tips > Top Tip > Tips Archive

How to spot a job scam

  Here are 10 tips to spot a working-from-home scam…

  1. Know who you’re dealing with: The company may not be offering to employ you directly, only to sell you training and materials and to find customers for your work
  2. The job advert asks for money to get a job: Would any employer ask for money to process an application? 
  3. The email address is a free account: Free email accounts are provided by the likes of Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail and others.  Usually a genuine company email account will have the format somebodysname@thecompany.com 
  4. Check references: If the advert contains references or testimonials from people who are already doing this work, ask for their details so that you can talk with them about their experiences. A reputable company shouldn't have a problem giving you this information
  5. You can’t determine the nature of the job:  These adverts are full of enthusiasm about income possibilities doing a job that requires little or no effort, but they never tell you what the job actually involves
  6. It guarantees an income: Legitimate employers advertise salaries, not “guaranteed income”. Commission-based jobs make clear that monies are earned on an Opportunity To Earn (OTE) basis
  7. ‘Earn €1000s weekly’: Why would an employer offer you €1000s to do a job for which they could pay a minimum wage and keep the profit themselves?
  8. ‘No skills or experience are necessary’:There are very few jobs that require no skills or experience
  9. Don’t believe that you can make big profits easily: Operating a home-based business is just like any other business – it requires hard work, skill, good products or services and time to make a profit
  10. Get all the details: A legitimate company will be happy to give you information about exactly what you will be doing and for whom

 Read more about working from home scams