Recruitment scam checklist

The short answer: Fake recruiters borrow real company names and employee profiles. The decisive check is whether the opportunity exists through a channel controlled by the employer.

A real company name does not authenticate a recruiter

The useful move is to separate what the claimant controls from evidence you can obtain independently. Names, logos, caller ID, screenshots and a polished page can all be copied. A saved telephone number, a typed official address, a known colleague or a protected transaction route changes the channel instead of merely inspecting the same claim again.

Risk also depends on consequence. Reading a public page is different from granting remote access, sending an identity document or approving an irreversible payment. As the cost of error rises, require stronger verification and prefer a step you can undo.

Before replying or approving a request, the email authenticity checklist can organise sender, context and consequence checks.

Warning signals to assess together

These clues become useful when they form a pattern. Treat each one as a prompt to verify, not as a verdict by itself.

• The interview happens only by text

  Pair this observation with a separate check: Find the job on the employer's own site.

• Equipment, training or checks require upfront payment

  Pair this observation with a separate check: Contact HR through a published number.

• The email domain or role is absent from official channels

  Pair this observation with a separate check: Share only the minimum identity data needed at that stage.

Do not use one clue as a verdict: A real employee name and logo can be copied. Verify control of the channel and the actual vacancy.

Verify the recruiter and role independently

Keep the verification route separate from any contact detail or instruction supplied in the questionable message.

• Find the job on the employer's own site

  This step tests the related concern: The interview happens only by text.

• Contact HR through a published number

  This step tests the related concern: Equipment, training or checks require upfront payment.

• Share only the minimum identity data needed at that stage

  This step tests the related concern: The email domain or role is absent from official channels.

Decide what to do after verification

If the independent channel confirms the identity and request, ask whether the proposed method still gives you a record and recourse. Legitimate people and organisations should tolerate a proportionate verification step. Resistance, secrecy or a demand to bypass normal controls is new evidence, not an inconvenience to ignore.

If the evidence remains mixed, reduce exposure: do not send original documents when a redacted copy is enough, do not pay a deposit before verifying authority, and do not approve access broader than the task requires. “Not yet” is a valid decision when the missing fact matters.

The same independent-channel principle is applied in the new-client verification guide to a different professional request.

What this verification cannot establish

This guide cannot authenticate a specific person, account, website or transaction. Interfaces and attack methods change, and legitimate situations sometimes contain unusual details. For an active loss, account compromise or safety threat, contact the relevant institution or official reporting service through a verified route.