I've been applying and out of a job for months, so I'm currently on the rollercoaster of emotions like many of you in the soul crushing endeavor of finding a job and being valued for what we're worth. So most of us have seen the typical scams from fake recruiters, asking us to download a separate messenger and all that. But here's a new one for ya. I'm also avoiding using links and exact addresses for formatting, bear with me.
I recently applied on Indeed, to a data entry position, for a pretty large clothing company. Did the usual, applied on the indeed site on the 1st of the month. The very next day, I got a reply, with a subject line “re: regarding you application to (company)”. Standard, I get it. It tells me they're not choosing me but this is the reply:
“The team was very impressed with your background and accomplishments and, they believe that you can certainly add a lot of value to any team; however, a client of ours has a similar remote position open if you are available to start right away. Send your resume to (name at Outlook mail)”
The reply address was from “no reply at us greenhouse mail io”. I looked up what the hell greenhouse mail is, an apparently it is a recruiter or software used by many companies. Ok, so that seems legit so far.
I reply directly to the person on the 3rd, with a copy of the email reply. I politely ask if this email was incorrect, invalid, whatever. I get a response from them the next day, where they introduce themselves, name, occupation, and what the role is (personal/executive assistant), pay. They ask for my basic info, which is fine, it's on every damn resume I have anyway. They mention they're on a board of directors to several companies, charities, and mainly work as a consultant in a group. Super busy, needs help, blah blah. Says they're out of office, doing meetings, so we'll schedule a formal interview in two weeks.
Paranoid as I am, I look up the name. I see very limited and rather poorly done websites that match up to the claim of being part of a consulting group. I found one private LinkedIn page, with very limited activity (likes, one sentence congratulatory responses on other posts, etc) but going back four years. I found their spouses page on LinkedIn, which is open and matches up to the consulting group page online. More google searching shows no other activity, but they are part of a board of trustees for their local area in Georgia. I had two friends see if they can find these people on Facebook as well, to no avail.
So far, maybe legit, but something still doesn't pass the sniff test. I got a reply today, telling me “I passed all the checks and is confirmed for the position”. But I never directly sent my resume to them. My dumbass wishful thinking, was that whoever referred me from the greenhouse mail, must know them, or they asked the recruiter directly, or whatever. But no one is ever that lucky or fortunate right? So the rest of the email, is asking some basic questions like “how do you handle stress?” and stupid shit like that. But no other personal information has been given and I haven't replied.
Some red flags, punctuation and grammar. Really dumb but I think if you're a professional, you'd check it. But also, if you're typing the email on the phone, maaaaybe I can see it. Also, for a person that claims to be an executive, wouldn't they be vetting their own assistants through other means? They seem awfully trusting of a stranger, who they've never talked to before at all, especially when they mention financial stuff and we've never even had a formal interview or conversation. They never did directly answer the initial question of whether or not this was a valid opportunity…
Anyway, lemme know what y'all think, I can fill in some blanks and questions if y'all got it. Personally I think it's too good to be true and there's just too much missing pieces going on, and this can also serve as a warning to those desperate for jobs.