Looking for a new job? Think twice before giving out your information. Fake LinkedIn job offers are on the rise, and if you're not careful, you could be giving away too much information.
Dayna Steele has been using LinkedIn for years, networking and connecting job seekers with people looking to hire.
"It is your professional online resume. You want people to be able to get in touch with you," Steele said.
LinkedIn is a open communication site, but that open door may have let in scammers.
"It's a scammer just trying to get your information and using a fake profile to fool you," said Leah Napoliello with the Houston BBB.
Napoliello says it starts after you receive a LinkedIn message about a job offer.
"And the message will have a link, and they'll want people to click the link. And the link may take them to another website where they'll have to enter in personal information, financial information," Napoliello said.
Napoliello tells us the scammer may be able to access your computer to install malware, or worse, take money from your bank account.
Now if a recruiter reaches out to you with a job offer, it's best t make sure they're legit before moving forward with that business relationship.
"And you can be perfectly honest and say I'm extremely flattered, but there are scams going on around right now, and I would just like to be able to call you back and confirm this information," Steele said.
The Better Business Bureau says if you feel you've been a victim of this scam, change your passwords immediately and monitor the associated accounts. If you provided financial information to the scammer, notify your bank so your account can be monitored for fraudulent activity. And lastly, notify LinkedIn of the job scam, so they can shut it down.
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