I just have to share an unfortunate experience that a close friend just experienced. She was looking for a job that she could do, to work from home. As many have learned from the pandemic working from home was an ideal situation and many companies allowed their employees to do this. So, she answered an ad for employment to do data entry for a health company at home. It sounded like a real company, too, but that is what they do; they take legitimacy and turn it into a fairytale ride. Hold on, here we go...
This is rampant from what we are finding out. First, the scammers try to get you to chat on a message application that they are on, usually because it's not as easy to trace their steps this way. They never had a real conversation with her on the phone; it's done in text messages so as not be traced. Then, they put the applicant (victim) through an interview process and the applicant becomes "qualified" for employment after some short process of qualification questions. Oh, what do ya know? You're "hired"!
They proceed to tell the applicant that they will need to buy "equipment" to begin working and only from their supplier, so they send the applicants a (rubber) check and tell them to deposit it. Then, they proceed to get the applicant to use their own money because upfront it appears as if their check is good, because it goes through and shows up in your account, but it takes some time to bounce.
The unsuspecting job seeker goes to the bank and arranges to "Venmo" money to the equipment "supplier" so they could begin working. And they even tell them to buy gift cards and take pictures of the numbers to send to them. Don't ask me how they explain this step to sound legitimate, but this is what happened and it happens all the time.
I feel there are many red flags as I listen to her story, but when people want to believe in something they need so much, they are blinded by their own faith. I only write this to hopefully save someone from getting scammed, as I've seen the anguish it has caused my friend.
She is still dealing with the bank and the gift card companies trying to get everything squared away. It's not only money the scammers steal from people, they also take away their faith in humanity. It's probably the worst thing humans could do to each other, besides committing murder. So sad, with the pandemic and with a war going on, that this is what people choose to do to other people.
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