Job hunting: By hook or by crook

Scam job websites may promise lots of work, but all they want is your money. Tony Levene (Guardian journalist) explains how his graduate son almost fell for one such scheme, and how to spot one yourself.

It's a given that finding a job is really tough, even more so for recent graduates, those who have been made redundant and people who may be returning to work after a period of family responsibilities. Online recruitment methods – including external job sites – remain the most common and effective way of attracting good-quality graduate candidates, a recent graduate recruitment survey by publisher IRS found. Many of these sites are genuine. But as jobseekers trawl the web for vacancies, scam operators see big opportunities, coming up with rip-offs ranging from £100 for a "CV rewrite", to identity theft crimes netting thousands for perpetrators. Even if you don't lose any cash, scam job sites cause frustration and anger that someone is treating you like a sucker... read more
The Guardian, November 09