• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

What is a Fake Overseas Job Scam and How to Avoid it

Reading Time: 4 mins. Posted on December 29, 2014, last updated on October 19, 2020 .

What is a Fake Overseas Job Scam? How they scam people for overseas jobs? Can one detect it and more importantly, how one can avoid it?

What is a Fake Overseas Job Scam and How to Avoid it

The fake overseas job scam was attempted on Shadwal one of my blog readerĀ for a job in a company Koch Industries. He had his doubts about being offered a job, and so asked my help. I found quite a few things weird. So apart from sharing those with him, I wanted to share it on my blog, which he agreed.

So let me share the process.

The process starts with sending a resume to some company mail id. He received a mail from the company saying get ready for an email interview along with an application form along with some interview questions which he needs to complete. He completed the answers and emailed them back. Based on the answer to those questions, he was offered a job.

Looks quite ok but then there are few clear signs that it is a scam and the job is not genuine. Here are the symptoms of it.

1. Email not from an Official domain

The email that he forwarded was from the outlook.com domain. No company will use a Hotmail or any other free domain emails for HR employees. So a genuine job offer will always be from an official domain.

So an email from a free email provider for a job is a clear sign of a scam. Still, it can be tough to determine the originality of the domain email being an official domain. One can always register a domain called companyjoboffers.com or companyjobs.com and do such scam.

Note: An email from @companydomain may not be actually from @companydomain, but then Gmail or any other email provider can detect it for you and send it to spam or junk folder by default.

2. An interview process will never be entirely offline

You can rest assured that you will never be offered a job for answering a questionnaire sent over an email. As an employer, you never know who answered those questions.

Interview, where you are not geographically connected, will have a telephonic interview followed by a video call or live video interview. A telephonic interview is also not enough because the person who may be answering the question may not be the same person being offered a job. If I am a job seeker, I can always ask a person to attend my telephonic interview who may be more capable of answering those questions.

So a video call is a bare minimum for a job interview. Remember that even a video call where you are not able to see the other party can be fake and so you should be able to see them and vice-versa. I have seen companies fly you to their destinations before offering you a job.

3. Simple interview questionnaire

If these set of questions can provide you with a job, you have to be really really lucky.

JobScam

And most (if not all) of the time it has to be a scam and not a lucky offer for you.

Also, the first interview question decides if you will be offered a job or not or rather you are a potential candidate for a scam or not. If you have worked for another company, you may know the Visa process and other such things, and so more often you will not be offered a job.

4. Unprofessional Application form

A one-page application form that looks as bad as this will never be an official application form of a Fortune 500 company.

JobScam-Appform

Even an official application form which can always be downloaded from the official website is not a sign of not a scam, but then a poorly designed application form can be a good sign of things not looking official.

The employment agreement has a sign from the HR Manager, and clearly, the sign does not look like his name.

JobScam-Sign

How they Scam with Fake Overseas Jobs?

The final question is, how you will be scammed? The answer lies in the agreement point number 3.

JobScam-Agreement

They will hire some agents here in India who will help you get the Visa clearance, and you have to bear the cost. So you pay for the money.

Conclusion

The best way to know if it is genuine or fake is just to verify it. Make a call to the official number on their website and check the details. If you cannot get in touch with them over the phone, email them using the contact form on the official website or get in touch with them on social media. Remember to avoid the numbers from where you got a call or any other numbers you have in those PDF files.

If you have a smartphone, you can try Truecaller to help find the details of the caller.

You are Here: Home / Freelancing / What is a Fake Overseas Job Scam and How to Avoid it

About Shabbir Bhimani

Blogging Since 2009. If I can leave my high paying C# job in an MNC in the midst of global financial crisis of 2008, anybody can do it. @BizTips I guide programmers and developers to Start and Grow an Online Business. Read more about me here.

May I help You With ...

Upwork Proposal
Finding Clients
Start a Store
Start a Blog
 

Or Help Yourself ..

Primary Sidebar

About Shabbir Bhimani

Blogging Since 2009. If I can leave my high paying C# job in an MNC in the midst of global financial crisis of 2008, anybody can do it. @BizTips I guide programmers and developers to Start and Grow an Online Business.

Get in touch with me on LinkedIn or read more about me here.

Let me Guide You to Start and Grow your Online Business

Download my
FREE eBook NOW
to win more clients.
And it is not an annoying pop-up either

Additional menu

  • Twitter
  • Linkedin

BizTips

Shabbir Bhimani: Start and Grow an Online Business

  • Freelancers Start Here
  • Start An eCommerce Store
  • Start A Blog
  • About
  • Archive
  • Disclaimer
  • Contact
  • Glossary

2009 - 2023 All my content & images are licensed as Creative Commons.

WebTurtles LLP. LLPIN: AAL-5288. Hosted with Linode.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT