Job offer text scams: fake recruiters, task scams and fake checks

"Hi, I'm Jessica, a recruiter. Your resume was recommended to us for a remote part-time position. Just 60 to 90 minutes a day, $300 to $800 daily, paid every day. Reply YES if you're interested." You didn't apply for anything. That's your first clue.

What the texts look like

Job scam texts are short, upbeat and vague (illustrative examples):

• "We have reviewed your profile and would like to offer you a flexible online position. Reply YES to learn more."
• "Hello, this is the HR department. We're hiring online product assessors. No experience needed."
• "Your application for a remote data entry role was approved. Please add our hiring manager on WhatsApp."

The FTC has noticed scammers increasingly skip links entirely and just ask you to reply "YES" or "INTERESTED", which makes the message look less like spam. They often use the names of real staffing agencies or well-known companies.

Where it leads: task scams

The fastest-growing version is the "task scam". The FTC reported that task scam reports went from zero in 2020 to about 5,000 in 2023, then roughly 20,000 in just the first half of 2024. People reported losing more than $220 million to job scams in those six months.

1. You're given "tasks" in an app or website: rating products, liking videos, "boosting" hotel reviews or "optimizing" app listings.
2. Your account shows commissions piling up, and you may get a small real payout early on to build trust.
3. Then a "combo task" or "premium order" puts your account into a negative balance. To keep going, or to withdraw what you've "earned", you must deposit your own money, usually in cryptocurrency.
4. Each deposit unlocks a bigger requirement. The earnings were never real, and the money you deposit is gone.

Where it leads: fake check scams

Other fake jobs (personal assistant, "mystery shopper", remote admin) send you a check to buy equipment, supplies or gift cards from a "vendor". You deposit it, the money appears, and you send most of it on. The FTC explains why this works: banks have to make deposited funds available quickly, but it can take days or longer for a bank to discover a check is fake. When it bounces, the bank will want you to repay the full amount, and the money you sent is gone.

Some fake jobs instead ask you to receive and reship packages, or to accept and forward payments. Those can make you part of a crime without knowing it.

Red flags

• A job offer you didn't apply for, arriving by text or a messaging app.
• High pay for very little work, few details about the actual job, and no real interview.
• A "hiring manager" who only chats by text or on Telegram or WhatsApp.
• Being paid to like, rate or review things online. The FTC says honest companies don't do that.
• Any request to pay a fee, deposit crypto or "top up" your account.
• A check for more than you expected, with instructions to send part of it on.
• Requests for your Social Security number or bank login before you've had a real offer.

How to check a job offer

1. Don't reply to the text. Look up the company yourself and go to the careers page on its official website.
2. If the job is listed there, apply through that site. If it isn't, contact the company through its official channels and ask whether the recruiter works for them.
3. Search the company or recruiter name with words like "scam" or "complaint".

If you've already paid or deposited a check

• Stop paying. No deposit will release your "earnings".
• Fake check: tell your bank immediately that you think the check is fake, and don't send any more money from it.
• Crypto or payment app: contact the exchange or app you used and report the fraud. Save wallet addresses, screenshots and transaction IDs.
• Bank or card: call your bank and ask whether payments can be stopped or reversed.
• Gave your SSN or ID: visit IdentityTheft.gov and consider freezing your credit.
• Watch for "recovery" offers promising to get your money back for a fee. That's another scam.

See what to do if you've been scammed for the full list.

Where to report

• The FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
• The FBI at ic3.gov, especially if you lost money or crypto.
• Forward the text to 7726 (SPAM), and report the account in WhatsApp or Telegram.
• The real company, if the scammer used its name.

Not sure about a recruiter's message? Run it through ShadyCall's free Scam Text Checker before replying, and check trending numbers to see if others are getting the same text.