Watchdog warns of Craigslist job scams

WENATCHEE - Craigslist Wenatchee, the popular online bulletin board, is filled with scam job posts, experts say.

Job hunter Kristina Neely found that out firsthand recently while looking for entry-level receptionist and office assistant jobs.

Neely, 25, said her online inquiries about jobs posted on craigslist Wenatchee have yielded nearly a half-dozen replies from people whom she suspects are scammers.

"Most are asking me for weird info, or to go to credit sites and get my credit score, which has absolutely nothing to do with a secretary's position," Neely said Wednesday.

She and her boyfriend, Christopher Hart, recently moved to Wenatchee from Bremerton. Hart is a multimedia coordinator at The Wenatchee World.

Neely said the suspect positions offered generous wages to applicants with little experience. The contact for most of the posts was a "gmail" e-mail address, she said. Gmail is e-mail through Google.

She would often get responses to her inquiries within seconds of hitting "send," she said.

That was this World reporter's experience Wednesday evening after using an anonymous Web-based e-mail account to inquire about a craigslist post for a "Documentation Professional."

The post promised wages of $350 to $900 per week to entice a "reliable and energetic individual to join our highly motivated team of staff." No experience necessary.

Within seconds of sending an e-mail to the gmail account listed on the post, the poster replied, "We are pleased to tell you that you have been selected into the final screening process. ... We require all applicants who have reached this stage to do a routine credit check."

A link to a suggested realistic-looking credit report site was included in the reply. Online credit report forms ask applicants for Social Security numbers and other personal information that scammers can use to access bank or credit accounts.

These should be huge red flags for job seekers, Zan Deery, an investigator with the Spokane office of the Better Business Bureau, said Wednesday.

"It's the economy," Deery said. "This type of scam started off with a bang in 2009."

She added, "Be highly suspect of those who charge you a fee to get a job or promise you a lot of money with little or no experience."

Deery said her office has received a spike in complaints about fraudulent job postings. She said recipients of the phony job offers have often posted their résumés on job-seeking or social-networking sites.

The threat isn't limited to Wenatchee.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation's online Internet Crime Complaint Center (www.IC3.gov), reports that complaints of phony work-at-home or other job scams are on the rise.

"The criminal/employer can then use the victim's information to open credit cards, post online auctions, register Web sites, etc., in the victim's name to commit additional crimes," a warning posted Feb. 3 says.

Deery said job seekers should report suspect postings to craigslist's "abuse" section.

But she warns, "These ads are going up by the hour. They can do mass postings. It's very hard to police it."

Job seekers should research the company's physical location, phone number, Web site and, if applicable, business license.

"If they ask for a fee or personal information up front, just steer completely clear of it," Deery said.

That's what Wenatchee newcomer Neely says she's done to sort out the legitimate offers from the scams.

Craigslist didn't immediately respond to an e-mailed inquiry for comment.

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