A job offer can look professional and still be false. Verify the employer and hiring contact through a channel you found independently before sending sensitive information, installing software or making any payment.
Verify the employer independently before following the next instruction
Pause the conversation and check it outside the message you received. A familiar logo, an interview or a written contract is not enough evidence by itself.
- Find the organization’s official website independently.
- Locate its careers information or an established business contact.
- Ask whether the recruiter, position and hiring process are genuine.
- Compare the role, location, duties and contact details with the offer.
- Resolve suspicious money, software or personal-data requests before proceeding.
- Keep records and use the appropriate reporting or recovery route if necessary.
Do not use only the phone number or link supplied in the questionable message. You may simply be asking the same impersonator to confirm their own story.
Check the organization and the person separately
A real company can be impersonated. Confirming that the company exists does not establish that the sender represents it. Look for an independently verified connection between the recruiter, the actual role and the employer.
A matching email domain can be useful context, but it is not conclusive proof. A different domain may need explanation; a lookalike spelling is a warning sign. Do not rely on a profile photo, social connection or search result alone.
If you find the role on an official careers site, follow that site’s verified instructions. If the role is not listed, ask the employer whether another legitimate process applies rather than assuming either answer.
Recognize requests that change the decision
Be especially cautious when a supposed job asks you to send money, deposit a check and forward funds, buy cryptocurrency or receive business payments through your personal bank account. Pressure to act immediately can make independent verification harder.
Read the FTC’s official job-scam guidance and response options before acting on a suspicious recruitment request.
You will go to https://consumer.ftc.gov
A real employer may have legitimate onboarding requirements. The question is whether the organization, stage, information requested and submission channel have been verified—not whether every request for information is automatically fraudulent.
Work through an equipment-payment scenario
Imagine you receive an offer for a remote support job. The sender says they will send a check so you can buy a laptop from a designated vendor, and asks you to forward part of the money immediately.
Do not treat funds appearing available in an account as proof that the arrangement is safe. Stop the payment process and verify the employer independently. If you already deposited a check or sent money, contact your bank or payment provider promptly through its verified channel and explain the facts.
Do not send a second payment to release a refund or hire a stranger who promises recovery. Preserve the messages, payment details and relevant documents for the appropriate support process.
Verify onboarding before sharing sensitive details
Ask which legal entity is hiring, which role is offered and how the employer normally collects required information. Confirm the route independently before providing identity, banking or tax details.
A request early in an unverified conversation deserves scrutiny. A genuine process later may need sensitive information, but a logo on a form is not verification. Do not send identification documents through an unfamiliar chat because the sender claims the position will disappear.
Our résumé guide focuses on the information needed for an application; it does not require publishing sensitive identifiers or reference contacts publicly.
Treat recruitment software as a separate risk
Before installing an application or running a technical test, verify the source and purpose. Do not assume that a file is safe because an interviewer sent it or a contract looks official.
Review the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre’s guidance on sophisticated employment fraud, including malicious applications.
You will go to https://antifraudcentre-centreantifraude.ca
If you already installed suspicious software or entered credentials, seek trusted technical assistance and use the relevant account provider’s verified security process. Avoid sending further information through the same unverified channel.
Check the offer’s practical terms too
Even after verifying identity, read duties, location, hours, employment arrangement and compensation. A genuine organization can offer conditions that do not fit your needs.
Compare the actual remote or hybrid arrangement and distinguish base pay from conditional payments using our salary discussion guide. Keep a copy of the agreed terms.
If something goes wrong, act on the specific exposure
Record what you shared or paid, when and through which service. Contact the relevant bank, account provider or authority using independently verified details. The appropriate response differs for a payment, exposed identity information or installed software.
Use the official guidance for your country rather than assuming a U.S. report handles a Canadian matter or vice versa. No article can guarantee recovery, but stopping further contact and obtaining appropriate support can prevent the next instruction from adding to the harm.