Riya Tondon, The Economic Times

Jobs that vanish: Stay away from ghost jobs to save time and money


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A recent report by posted on The Economic Times talks about how Online job platforms have simplified job searches, but fake or ghost jobs persist, wasting time and effort. Applicants must spot and avoid phantom job postings to prevent demotivation and financial loss.

 

Did you recently apply for a job on an online platform with high hopes but did not get any response?

 

 It is common One reason is that the company did not select you. Another reason could be that you got ghosted as the job didn't even exist. While online job platforms have greatly simplified the job search process, the existence of fake or ghost jobs continues to scare applicants. These phantom job postings appear authentic but are often either already filled or do not exist. They waste an individual's time and effort and also leave them demotivated. In some cases, it can even drain your wallet. So it is important to spot and avoid such postings.

 

Reasons for ghost jobs

A primary reason why many job seekers apply for ghost jobs is the lack of employable skills, particularly those who are seeking work on an urgent basis, says Sonal Arora, Country Manager at GI Group Holding. This sense of desperation leads them to overlook red flags

Krishnendu Chatterjee, VP and Business Head at Staffing, Team Lease Services, says there are many reasons why people fall for ghost jobs.

Underprivileged or underqualified candidates looking for better opportunities are easy prey.

Some companies create these postings to create an illusion of growth among their investors or competition. Scammers also use this to extract money or personal information of individuals.

Industries and roles with higher episodes of these scams

Customer service and contact centers, data entry roles, digital marketing and content creation are the roles where the propensity of such scams is much greater, according to Arora. Many candidates applying for such roles are enticed by fake job offers that promise work-from-home opportunities or overseas positions, she adds.

Chatterjee says ghost jobs are largely prevalent at entry-level jobs because the candidates are more desperate, and this allows scamsters to cast a wider net to get more people into their trap. In addition, they also lure candidates for overseas roles like factory workers, healthcare workers and drivers.

Fake job red flags you must look out for Oftentimes, a job opportunity that comes your way smartly conceals several red flags.

Authentic job postings never demand money in any form - upfront payments, security deposits, training fees or assessment fees.

Plus, if you do not have substantial experience but are being offered a hefty pay scale, it could definitely be a scam, say the experts.

Other potential warning signs are poor grammar and writing skills, emails coming from addresses that do not match the company's official domain; job offers with personal email IDs; and lack of proper company and job role information. Also, if an offer to immediately join work magically lands in your mail without any interview or Though not always a red flag, experts believe that interviews carried through messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram or Google Hangouts can also lead you into a job scam.

Strategies to avoid falling prey to ghost jobs and scams Job seekers, especially freshers, can protect themselves from getting duped by carefully proceeding towards a job opportunity that has come before them. Experts suggest starting with doing thorough research about the company to assess its legitimacy. This can be done by checking out its official website, interacting with the people in your circle who might have worked here, and reading its reviews on platforms like Glassdoor.

Next, they advise not sharing your personal details like your bank account number or passport at all, especially if you can sense a bit of urgency in their tone. Such urgency tactics are employed to push naive applicants to quickly share the requested details and lose all their money. Hence, it's important to remain keen-eyed and not share anything until you have completely vetted the company and the offer.

Most importantly, they recommend using trusted and widely acknowledged job search platforms to absolutely steer away from ghost jobs and scams, and safely land a job of your dreams.

 

Read more at:

 

https://m.economictimes.com/industry/services/education/take-your-ambition-further-with-the-kent-future-student-scholarship/articleshow/110759927.cms