ATLANTA – Cybersecurity experts are bemoaning the rise of fake jobs offered by scammers.
Experts say scammers use artificial intelligence to make these fake job listings sound real.
“About 245,500 people were hacked last year,” said GuidePoint Security cybersecurity expert Paul Keener. He also said he is seeing an alarming increase in the number of people giving fake jobs, according to recently released reports.
“From 2022 to 2023, there was a 25% increase in these types of fraud, job fraud… it said.
Keener says scammers are able to use artificial intelligence to make these fake jobs look real.
“With generative AI, it makes it very, very easy to create an effective email. All you have to do is to quickly enter. ‘I need a job that says it’s going to be this kind of experience, kind of This person makes it sound friendly.
Another reason for the increase, he says, is the ongoing recession, particularly in the technology sector.
Keener says the newly placed are especially vulnerable.
“Those in that situation probably don’t have enough money, they don’t have a lot of savings to take the time to find the right role, and they need something now,” Keener said.
According to state reports, about 6,250 people died in Georgia this year.
Keener says these fake employers often say you have to make an upfront investment in their equipment to start working.
Losses from these scams are often in the thousands of dollars.
“I think the FTC report is a loss of $367 million in ’22 compared to $491 million in 2023…
If they don’t want your money, Keener says they’re after your personal information.
Which you usually need to provide to apply for a job.
Your address, your bank account, your driver’s license number, your nationality, all these things give them the ability to sell your data,” he said.
Keener says that even if a job opportunity sounds good, if it offers more money than you’d expect for your position, it’s probably a scam.
He says that even if someone sends you a message on LinkedIn about a job, you should thoroughly investigate the company they claim to represent.
If you fall for one of these scams, Keener says to report it to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center.
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