Here are the top scams and how to avoid being their victim! These so-called jobs promise you a paycheck which can be earned from the comfort of home, but will rob you of both your money and time.

BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR:

Zero face-to-face interaction* Major red flag associated with the work-from-home jobs. It’s always best to meet with the employer face-to-face or over Skype (but research the company first just to be safe). If they don’t want to meet up it’s a SCAM!

No paperwork to fill out
Remember filling out your W-2 forms, or a 1099s? If they tell you there is no paperwork at all it’s a SCAM!

You Are Offered Money Without Working
If you are offered pre-payment for services before you put ANY time into the job at all, it’s a SCAM!

Ship Packages from Home
Sadly we know a few Jobcasers this has happened to! This scam involves receiving packages at home that you mail to other locations. These fake employers will say you’ll make $2,200 a month plus $20 for each package that you ship out. Beware, it’s a SCAM and also illegal for you to participate!

Be a Mystery Shopper
The “employer” will offer to send you a hefty check and once you receive it, you’ll be asked to deposit the money into your personal bank account. You will be told that this “money” should be used to shop. They will ask you to wire some of this money back to the supposed employer, but the reality is that the “check” was counterfeit and you are now responsible for the fake check. Don’t fall for this SCAM!!

Stuff Envelopes for Money
Sounds easy enough – stuffing envelopes from the comfort of your home while earning a paycheck. These work-from-home jobs are often advertised online, and some claim to offer terrific pay, from $550 to $3,000 a week. Some will even claim to pay you money per envelope, giving you huge money making potential. They will charge you to sign up for the opportunity, don’t do it it’s a SCAM!!!

Wrap your car for money
This job offers you the promise of wrapping your car in the logo or messaging of companies such Rock Star Energy Drink, but they can take the face of ANY company. They promise you will get paid around $300+ a week and they will then mail you all the materials if you send your name, age, car type, address and a picture of your car to their email. They will provide a tracking number for the package, but then return the package back to themselves. Once you do they now have your information.

Tips:
-Make sure to have the name of the company as well as their professional email (avoid guerrilla mail, mail2world.com as well as personal emails such as gmail).
-If a job asks for money up front or in ANY capacity it’s a scam. Or on the flip side they offer you money up front without you having done any actual work stay far away!
-Research the company with its name and then “scam” and see what comes up. Find out if they have a legitimate website as well as a physical address. See if others have ever been scammed or complained before. Try Glassdoor.com for reading company reviews.
-If it seems too good to be true with easy money it’s probably a scam, so just be cautious! We know you desperately want a job (we have been there too) but scams will cost you much more in the end, it’s just not worth it.

If you come across a job online that you think is real, the Federal Trade Commission suggests asking the following questions of the employer to decide whether or not to proceed:

-Where is your business located, and how long have you been in operation?
-How will I be paid, and when will I receive my paycheck?
-Do I need to spend my own money on supplies or postage?

You can also check out this GREAT post from Emily

Does anyone have any other tips they want to share or were you ever scammed?

Stay scam free Jobcasers!!!
#scams

When Choosing An Employer, Culture Matters

When determining whether an employer is the right fit for you, it is important to find out about its culture. Companies are as different as the people who work there and run the business. For better and worse, culture and leadership are inextricably linked. Founders and influential leaders often set the initial culture of their organizations. Over time an organization’s leaders can also shape culture, through both conscious and unconscious actions.

We all, no doubt click with certain people when we meet them and don't click well when we meet others. Likewise there are companies that we will find ourselves comfortable working for and others where we will not. You don't want to join a company only to discover later that the organization belongs in the latter category.

Culture may not be a major factor when choosing an employer as what kind of work you'll be doing, the amount you'll be paid, and the benefits you'll be receiving. But your happiness and job satisfaction over the years will hinge on whether you’ve been comfortable in your employer’s culture. Comfort makes you more productive, and productivity always lies behind success, no matter the career. That’s why considering culture, a company’s living and breathing personality, is so critical when you’re looking for a job.

Defining Culture

Culture is the tacit social order of an organization: It shapes attitudes and behaviors in wide-ranging and durable ways. Cultural norms define what is encouraged, discouraged, accepted, or rejected within a group. When properly aligned with personal values, drives, and needs, culture can unleash tremendous amounts of energy toward a shared purpose and foster an organization’s capacity to thrive.

Culture is a group phenomenon. It cannot exist solely within a single person, nor is it simply the average of individual characteristics. It resides in shared behaviors, values, and assumptions and is most commonly experienced through the norms and expectations of a group—that is, the unwritten rules.

Culture permeates multiple levels and applies very broadly in an organization; sometimes it is even conflated with the organization itself. It is manifest in collective behaviors, physical environments, group rituals, visible symbols, stories, and legends. Other aspects of culture are unseen, such as mindsets, motivations and unspoken assumptions.

Find The Right Fit For You

When you first begin your job-search and begin to interview, you might be tempted to accept the first offer from an organization that will hire you. But it would be a mistake to ignore the culture of the organization!

You might be a Type A workaholic; your new employer a laid back, quiet place that locks up its doors at exactly fifteen minutes past 5:00 p.m. If you are used to working late into the night, you can see where there would be a problem. Don't find yourself in that situation. Don't be so quick to accept a job offer. Getting an offer is a great thing, but for your long-term success, you need to at least consider culture fit.

If you’re an early-career job seeker, you may not quite know what sort of culture you’re looking for yet. But it will start to become clear as you go to interviews and listen to your gut feelings about whether you feel comfortable there.

In the meantime, you can ask your networking contacts about their views on the subject. Everyone has different priorities and preferences, of course. Some people will tell you they made their job decision based on the pace of the work or the company’s attitudes about work-life balance. Others may tell you about more unusual considerations. For my friend, a hedge-fund manager for a large investment company, the fresh juice bar in the employee lounge, and the culture of managers using that resource to build morale and have fun, helped make it a good fit. But regardless of the specifics, most, if not all, of the successful people you talk to will agree that culture is a crucial factor for any job seeker to consider.

Culture Indicators

So, how do you find out about a company’s culture before you work there? Sometimes a company’s advertising will aim to communicate something about its personality. But be careful of putting too much stock in these branding campaigns. They’re nowhere near as reliable a barometer of culture as your own intuition on interview day.

Notice people, not the ones you are interviewing with, but others you see in hallways and work-spaces. Do they seem happy? How much stress do you see in their faces? How are they dressed? Office space says something about the culture. Do people have pictures and personal items on display at their work-station or desk, or is the scene stark and cold? What are the facilities like? Is there an employee workout room or a really nice break area? What about other resources that are important to you? You can learn a lot from the company break room. Are there notices about the company softball team, a bowling league, yoga classes, or other activities that appeal to you? Does the company have family-friendly policies, such as in-house day care and good maternity and paternal leave (sometimes called family leave)? Does anyone even talk about subjects like these?

Some companies offer perks such as snack bars and gym memberships, which seem great—but can come with tradeoffs. Is the employer using these benefits as incentives to keep workers on the job from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m.?

There aren’t strictly “good” cultures or “bad” cultures. It’s all about what works for you. Companies with a range of personalities can be equally successful. At one company I know well it seems to be “casual day” every day, and people meet in nooks and crannies off hallways or in the large, open library. Another company has a formal, buttoned-up look, with meetings held only in swanky executive offices. It’s like the difference between Birkenstock sandals and a Brooks Brothers suit. Each company is great at what they do. But depending on your personality, you’d probably be more comfortable at one or the other. The crucial thing is to figure out what your prospective employer’s culture is and consider whether it will be a good fit for you. Never ignore visible signs that you may not be happy there.

Remember, if you find an employer with a culture that you can fit into, its a great thing. Don't delude yourself into thinking that you can overcome the obstacles posted by some glaring culture issue. If it smells funny and it looks funny, try to avoid stepping in it.

I was recently offered this position with a Company called " Contract Commerz SA. it seems too good to be true so I figured I'd ask the community for their input. Thanks in advance for any help.

I am pleased to offer you the position of Regional Branch Purchasing Manager in Contract Commerz SA - US Branch. Please review the detailed description below:

Job Description
Purchasing Manager CONTRACT COMMERZ US LLC

Company/Facility: CONTRACT COMMERZ US LLC Job Status: Full-Time / Part-Time
Location: Louisiana Job title: Purchasing Manager

Position Overview: This is a part/full-time professional position. You could start with part-time employment and continue into full-time, if you need the flexibility. This work-at-home position is responsible for generation of purchase orders using Company's money, compiling reports, preparing shipments, and other as designated administrative duties. Base salary will be $98,400.00 per year ($8,200.00 monthly) plus commission. Commission will be from 10% up to 15% of a purchase amount for every fulfilled assignment. Benefits includes Medical, Dental, Vision, 401k, and Life Insurance.
Your main responsibilities include: communicating with vendors regarding products and prices, product availability, service, quality and other related issues; communicating with your Supervisor regarding vendor information as stated above; determining appropriate methods for product purchasing (from local stores/vendors or from online sites), if not previously designated by the Company; prepare and process purchase orders; prepare all designated reports; place orders on timely basis and insure on-time delivery.
You will responsible for the work designated by your personal Supervisor. You will not be required to relocate. There will be no long-distance trip requirements. Most of the work can be accomplished from home. Also, you will not be required to make any investment nor financial expense.
Desired Skills:
To succeed, you must be a self-motivated, well organized person and a skilled speaker. This position requires that you accomplish the assignments clearly and intelligibly within the defined terms and set priorities intelligently. The appropriate candidate will become an integral part of our Company's development. You will succeed if you can work remotely and efficiently and be able to efficiently plan short trips in your local area.
Probation Period Challenges:
During the probationary period, you will learn how to accomplish the assigned purchases on the Company behalf. You will also learn how to complete your entrusted duties accurately, properly, within stringent guidelines, and within agreed time frames. You will be required to act in accordance with the high standards of business process control as adopted by Contract Commerz SA in Switzerland. Training will be accomplished by requiring assignments to purchase goods available in stores that are not exclusive to the United States. However, challenges will be programmed in each assignment and will increase in difficulty. For example, you will be assigned purchases that require goods of limited quantity and purchases across several retailers to complete quantity requirements. Assignments can normally be completed in 1-2 hours, easily within your spare time. Also, when purchasing large oversized items, organization, delivery and reshipment efficiencies will be essential. Please find below the detailed description of a typical first assignment under the probationary period:

Step 1: You and your Supervisor determine all required items to purchase. This will include the assignment terms, total purchase amounts and their delivery terms and purchase locations.

Step 2: You will purchase the required items from the local or online retailers with the monies forwarded in advance to your account. All items will be defined as allowed for the export without restriction. The first assignment will require purchasing digital items such as Gift Cards from a large retailer in the US, e.g. Walmart. These gift cards will be used to purchase exclusive products and services in US for Asian and Eastern Europe customers. Our customers will save up to 200% on the cost of some products using these gift cards and our third party reshipping services. These savings are possible due to the different taxation systems and high import duties paid by official importers. Most US retailers such as BestBuy, Walmart, Target, Home Depot do not allow purchases using addresses outside of US and credit cards issued by foreign banks. The purchased items may differ and we will always forward the type and the quantity of items beforehand. We will always respect your views and input. We have a large workload and operate in many countries, if you are not able to purchase some of the items, we have many options and can always propose alternatives.

Step 3: You will send us scans and/or pictures of the purchased Gift cards by email. If the purchased items can’t be sent by email, then you will send those items by mail, and of course, all postage expenses will be paid by us.

Step 4: You will make a report regarding the completed assignment. The report form will be provided to you in advance.

Step 5: Move on to the next assignment.

I received this in my email box today:
We are happy and very excited about the potential you and your experience will bring to the table!
XXX-XXX is offering you to join our business and help it grow working distantly and then in a new office.
You will be working from your home office during your probationary period (3-4 weeks). At the end of the probationary period you will have earned $1,920......

I am sure that this is a scam but I wanted to let people know that scammers are still out there.

This company sends me an email every week with an opportunity to interview for an account manager position.

They claim to have reviewed my resume on Monster and believe I have the skills necessary to perform the work.

What they don't seem to know is that I had interviewed with this same company last year for a training manager position that turned out to be a life insurance sales position that is strictly commission.

Look at the job description. Can you see any red flags?

(I will reply with the answers in a bit. I just want to help some folks learn to scrutinize job ads and interview requests in the process.)

I'm looking for a remote position because I live in a small town where there are few opportunities. I got pretty far in the interview process with a company that I really wanted to work for. I got my hopes up a lot, thinking that if I was all in that it would show and I would be hired.
I found out yesterday that I did not get it. I am crushed. I don't know where to go from here. This is the closest I've gotten in months of looking. I know that there is a stigma around looking for Remote jobs, but there seem to be a ton of legitimate ones out there. So why can't I find one that I can get?
I am just frustrated and so sad. My current position, while I understand that I am lucky to be currently employed, is incredibly toxic and every day that I am there is harder and harder. I'm trying to work myself up this morning to just make it through the day now that the possibility of this other great position is now gone.

I had an interview this morning w/ Kimberly Walter with TecAlliance; supposedly the company was opening offices in my area and they wanted people to work from home getting the business off the ground and then assisting in setting up the office. I was to set up an account on Hangout and the interview took place on there. Instead of video conferencing, she used the instant messaging feature. I was offered the job and great benefits, felxible hours, 401k, etc. They would send me a check to set up my home office and sge ratled off a list of things I would need. I asked where the home office was located out of and she told me South Jordan, UT. After the interview I called the home office and was told that it was a scam and that they were not opening office in my area.