Safely Navigating Your Online Job Search

University Career Services strongly encourages you to utilize HireMason to search for employment and experiential learning opportunities. Although we make a conscious effort to screen out fraudulent employers from the exclusive internship and job database, we do not endorse any employer or posting. Review all opportunities critically before pursuing them. We offer the following risk management tips for navigating HireMason and any other job database you may use in your search.

What does a fraudulent employer and/or posting look like? While most employers and postings are legitimate, there are some that are not. These tips are to help you know when to do more in depth research before applying.

 If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is! Steer clear of opportunities guaranteeing you thousands of dollars a week and/or exceedingly high salary ranges for part-time or entry level positions.  Verify contact information. It is important to make sure you verify the mailing address, contact person, and the company name. You can verify the legitimacy of a business by checking their profile with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), local Chambers of Commerce, and other employer listings.  Match email addresses with domain names. The email address provided should match the company that the contact person claims to represent. Fraudulent employers will often use domain names similar to a recognizable company but with a slightly different spelling, e.g. @deloitte.com versus @deliotte.com or @us.deloitte.com. While some smaller start-up companies have not purchased their own domain name yet, be aware of employers using domain names from sites such as Yahoo, Gmail, Hotmail, Live, etc.  Be aware of fee-based positions. Applicants should not pay a fee to obtain a job, but there are some rare exceptions. Contact your Industry Advisor in University Career Services if the organization charges a fee.  Look for poor spelling and grammar. Be wary of postings and company websites featuring multiple spelling and grammatical errors.  Never send or accept money as part of the application process. Never, and we mean never, send money or accept personal checks from employers. Never allow employers to have access to your bank account for transferring money and/or depositing checks. This includes providing access to credit card numbers, PayPal accounts, and PIN numbers.  Do not give personal identification information over the phone or through email. Many employers will request your Social Security Number, date of birth, and even your driver’s license number, but this information is not solicited over the phone or through email. It is typically requested as part of a formal job application that candidates complete in writing, often on the same day as the first in-person interview.

of 2 May2015 What do I do if I encounter a fraudulent job posting? Fraudulent job posting are illegal. If you suspect that you have been a victim of a scam via a position posted in HireMason, please notify University Career Services by phone 703-993-2370 and/or email [email protected]. You can also take other measures to report the incident such as:  Immediately contacting the local police. The police are responsible for conducting a formal investigation whether the incident took place in Virginia or not.  Filing an incident report with the U.S. Department of Justice. If the incident occurred completely over the internet, you can report all computer and internet- related crime at the US Department of Justice: Computer Crime and Intellectual Property.

Adapted with permission from “Safeguarding Your Job Search,” by University of Virginia University Career Services