With the current uncertain economic climate, scammers are thinking of somewhat ‘new’ and creative ways to steal information and money from unsuspecting people.
Hiring is being heightened, and third-party vendors are claiming they are acting on behalf of companies to complete background verifications on new hires or existing employees. They are requesting confidential and personal information to be emailed or faxed – these emails look legitimate as they are obtaining personal emails through various digital channels.
Should you receive an email from a third-party vendor, always check with your hiring manager or the company you interviewed with before sending any information to them, as companies do outsource their screening. With this, third-party vendors should not request specific information such as birth dates, social security numbers, and any other sensitive information as the hiring company will have already provided this information to them via a secure portal. Typically, when these vendors request information from a candidate, they are verifying hiring dates, schools/universities attended, and things of the like.
Everyone is susceptible to these scams, including small businesses. The scam to take note as of recent is a phone message from individuals claiming to be calling on behalf of the GSA inquiring about a 5-year contract with the Federal Government. By doing a little research, reviewing articles outlining a spike in imposter calls relating to COVID-19 and the GSA, you will immediately know if you are being scammed. Please review the GSA’s eLibrary list of vendors here.
These schemes may not necessarily be ‘new,’ but they are becoming more prevalent. We implore you to be more vigilant than ever during these challenging times.