I this a scam? Has anybody encountered this?

[David Bowie]

Hi

I am starting a new part time job on Monday. However, I have been looking for a full time job and have been sending my resume out . A couple of days ago, I got this email from one of the jobs I have applied to.

Hi veronica,

I see that you are interested in the job we posted on Craigslist. After reviewing your resume, we decided that with your experience, you'd be a wonderful candidate. The hours of our office are M-F 10am-6pm with a 1 hour lunch that you do get paid for. You are entitled to 2 weeks vacation within your first year of employment, you also have 6 sick days and 6 personal days that increase by 2 every year you are with the company. We also have a wonderful 401k and health benefit package, which details will be given to you on the day of the interview.

Before we schedule an interview, I need you to do a free credit check through this company that we've been working with for years. Go to this link ( http://bit.ly/7ICF46 ) and get your credit report, we will be automatically alerted via an e-mail notification. Before you worry, we are NOT judging your credit score, nor do we get access to your private information, such as your social security number. Secondly, this absolutely CANNOT be worked around. I do apologize for the sensitivity in this matter, but it is strict company protocol. Think of it this way, would you want the employees handling your financial information to get properly screened? I'm sure your answer would be yes!

If you do not agree with taking the credit check, please do not bother e-mailing to work around it, because unfortunately, there is nothing we can do, it's strict company protocol and if you cannot follow our rules now, we don't want you on our team. I hope you can understand!

Thank you,
Blair Fletcher

Today, I got a very similar email from another company that I have applied to.

Now, I must add, both of these companies offer great pay and benefits (and seem a bit too good to be true.)

In the credit report, I am supposed to supply my social security number and my credit card number. Can I be sure it's a scam. Is this a new tactic that employers are using. I know my credit report would be fine, but I don't want anybody stealing my information.

What are your thoughts? I have sent out my resume a lot and have never encountered this until this week. If a company wants to interview me, they usually just call.

Thanks

[angel_luv]

I wouldn't do it.

[BacktoBasics]

100% scam. Did you apply to these people in person? Do you know where they can be found. A job with a stip of revealing a credit card number is a massive red flag. I would go ape shit if I were you.

[desflood]

No, no no no no no! Never give out your ssn or cc number. Bad news. Run away as fast as you can.

Wait, you have to know this already. You must be trolling.

[David Bowie]

No, I haven't replied to them. It's just these jobs seem to be so good and its hard to get an interview these days. I just need reassurance that I'm doing the right thing by not replying. I mostly apply for jobs through craigslist (where they usually do not mention the name of the company in the ad). I must say that I have had a lot of sueccess with craigslist in the past and everything has always turned out legit. This is the first time I am encountering this.

[BacktoBasics]

No question its a scam. There is zero reason somebody would need a credit card number. If they absolutely had to run your credit for employment the cost would be 0.

Don't run away. Report them.

[Pero]

What are your thoughts?

Well duh, your name is David and the letter is addressing veronica. Of course it's a scam. :p:

Seriously though, it really has a scam feel to me...

[Strike]

I agree with B2B. Report them. Don't hesitate.

[ashbeeigh]

Yeah. This is classic craigslist scam crap. Have you googled their names or the names of the businesses/credit reporting company to see if anyone else has fallen prey to the same scam yet?

I love Craigslist. The majority of my interviews have come from CL, but it's always good to be safe.

[David Bowie]

Yeah. This is classic craigslist scam crap. Have you googled their names or the names of the businesses/credit reporting company to see if anyone else has fallen prey to the same scam yet?

I love Craigslist. The majority of my interviews have come from CL, but it's always good to be safe.

The credit reporting company is creditreport.com. Seems legit. But you have to read the fine print, because they will start charging you after three days.

Yah, the whole thing is a scam. It's sad. Because I love craigslist, and I don't want to be wasting my time sending my resume and information to people who want to steal money.

This seems to be happening more and more. I've gotten a couple of replies where the person I would be working for is currently overseas, and part of the job is to transfer or wire money. Ugh.

[PM5K]

It's obviously a scam for a few reasons.

The first and most obvious being that you have to pay in some way in order to be eligible for employment. Ask anyone that's ever had their credit run for employment purposes and they'll tell you it didn't cost them a dime, neither do drug tests, or background checks, at least from any reputable employer.

Secondly, why on earth would they run a credit check if they weren't going to use it to judge your credit score? Doesn't make any sense.

Also, if you follow the link, which is obviously a shortened version of the actual URL, you'll see the actual URL contains a referral ID which means the person that sent you to that link will get paid when you order your credit report.

Seems like a good scam considering the reactions in this thread.

Also, maybe this isn't part of what makes it a scam but I've never gotten paid for lunch, of course I've never had a really, really good job so maybe some people do.

[Spursfan092120]

Just thought I'd post this..it was on Craigslist as a warning.

http://sanmarcos.craigslist.org/cgi-bin/jobs.cgi?&category=jjj/

craigslist (http://sanmarcos.craigslist.org/) SCAM ALERT

SCAM ALERT - affiliate scammers (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affiliate_marketing) are posting bogus ads promising (nonexistent!) employment, paid research trials, or other compensation, but then notifying repliers that they'll need to jump through a hoop first, directing them to:

background checking services
credit checking or reporting sites
sites where you are instructed to enter your resume or other personal information
sites where you are asked to sign up for a "free" trial offer
sites offering training or education
sites offering a "system" for making money
survey or focus group sites
sites designed to deliver malware (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malware) or misuse your identifying information

all in hopes of earning affiliate marketing commissions (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Affiliate_marketing) or otherwise profiting at the expense of persons seeking employment.


Lots of variations on this scam, but each generally involves dangling (nonexistent!) compensation, and then directing you to a website where you are asked to sign up for something, use your credit card, or input personal information such as your email address.

[BlackSwordsMan]

seems like total bullshit

[panic giraffe]

yeah that seems like a scam.

you should report them.

[Shaolin-Style]

Report them asap, complete scam. So sleazy.

[Heath Ledger]

100 percent scam. They also do this shit when you write about a house for rent. Usually its a nice house with photos of something with a price thats too good to be true. It's an autoresponder, they can time it to send right away or a day or two later. 100 percent scam any time you see one of these, companies run their own background checks/credit reports internally.

[Frenzy]

I don't think a company would type this "...and if you cannot follow our rules now, we don't want you on our team. I hope you can understand!.."


plus the cc should be a dead give away.

[marini martini]

Tell them you smoke!!!:hat

:toast:lmao:toast:lmao

[Sigz]

Sounds good to me.

[chode_regulator]

I see no problem...giv ethe the info. What's the worst that could happen right?

[JudynTX]

Tell them you smoke!!!:hat

:toast:lmao:toast:lmao

:lol :lol

And yea, that sounds like a scam.

[easjer]

One of our system affiliates requires credit checks for financial positions, but the affiliate pays for it, just as we pay for our background checks. We also use our own trusted companies and never require more sensitive information than a SSN. We also don't run background checks until someone has had at least one face to face interview because it's not cost-effective to run them on every potential candidate.

Sorry about that.

[I. Hustle]

I think it's real. I say go for it. You can't beat a paid lunch.

[Soul_Patch]

From CL

craigslist SCAM ALERT
SCAM ALERT - affiliate scammers are posting bogus ads promising (nonexistent!) employment, paid research trials, or other compensation, but then notifying repliers that they'll need to jump through a hoop first, directing them to:

•background checking services
•credit checking or reporting sites
•sites where you are instructed to enter your resume or other personal information
•sites where you are asked to sign up for a "free" trial offer
•sites offering training or education
•sites offering a "system" for making money
•survey or focus group sites
•sites designed to deliver malware or misuse your identifying information

all in hopes of earning affiliate marketing commissions or otherwise profiting at the expense of persons seeking employment.


Lots of variations on this scam, but each generally involves dangling (nonexistent!) compensation, and then directing you to a website where you are asked to sign up for something, use your credit card, or input personal information such as your email address.

[DUNCANownsKOBE2]

I bought a free trial for a product online and gave my credit card number a few weeks ago. Today I get to devote my time to recovering the $200+ in phony purchases made via my credit card (and never received the free trial product to begin with). Don't do it.

[I. Hustle]

I bought a free trial for a product online and gave my credit card number a few weeks ago. Today I get to devote my time to recovering the $200+ in phony purchases made via my credit card (and never received the free trial product to begin with). Don't do it.

You really thought those pills were going to make your pener bigger?

[DUNCANownsKOBE2]

You really thought those pills were going to make your pener bigger?


:lol it was actually a muscle toning powder that never got to my house, so they charged me when the free trial was over even though I never got the product, but after tearing 3 customer service reps new assholes, I got my money back.