How to Spot and Avoid Fake Job Postings in 2025

Steering Clear of Job Scams with Essential Tips to Recognize and Avoid Fake Job Offers

The job market in 2025 is highly dynamic and competitive, with thousands of opportunities listed daily on job boards, social media, and company sites. But not all listings are as they appear. Fraudulent job postings are an advanced scam scheme that targets eager job seekers. Spotting these scams can save you time, aggravation, and potentially some money. Here’s how to identify the warning signs and protect yourself.

Hallmarks of Fake Job Postings

The first step to avoiding fake job postings is to know the hallmarks of these postings. Here are some red flags to look out for:

• Too good to be true
• Pays an unrealistically high salary
• Hours are way too flexible
• Requires minimal qualifications for the role

Vague Job Descriptions

Corrupt organizations. Yes, you read that right. Corrupt organizations are now posting jobs to steal identities and scam people out of money. Watch out for vague, overly broad listings or filled with generic buzzwords.

Requests for Personal Information

Fake job listings often request sensitive personal information, like your Social Security number, banking details, or payment for training materials.

Unprofessional Communication

Typos, grammatical errors, or awkwardly worded sentences in a job posting or professional correspondence can be a red flag for a scam. Another red flag is if the recruiter uses personal and not company email addresses (Gmail, Yahoo, etc.).

No Online Presence

If the company that listed the posting doesn’t have a website or has very little online visibility, it’s time to dig deeper or ignore the job posting entirely. Research companies on Indeed, LinkedIn, and Glass Door.

Do your homework before applying for any job, and never give them money or your personal details beyond what's on a resume or a list of recommendations.

Visit the Company Website

Verify that the company has well-maintained web pages, an updated company mission, and contact information. To verify that a job posting is real, check for the listing directly on the company’s careers page.

Search for Reviews and Ratings

Search for the company on Glassdoor, Indeed, or LinkedIn. Employee reviews can offer insight into the organization’s reputation and work environment.

Check out the Recruiter

Verify that the recruiter has a check on their Linkedin profile, and is listed on the company website. Scammers frequently adopt fake names or impersonate actual employees!

Look for Specific Job Posting Details

Note the posting date, application deadline, and contact details. Details that are either outdated or missing can indicate a potentially fake job posting.

Search for Scammer Warnings

Do an online search for the company name with words like “scam” or “fraud.” You will be surprised how often others have reported questionable postings.

Verify the Recruiter's Identity

Genuine recruiters reach out to applicants using official company email addresses. Call the company’s main line to verify the recruiter’s identity if you have any doubts.

Ask for Detailed Job Information

Scammers tend to shy away from details. Request a detailed job description, company policies, and the name of the person you would be reporting to, and search for that person online to see if they actually work for the company.

Trust Your Instincts

Pay attention to your instincts if the interview process doesn’t feel right to you. Watch for way-too-eager recruiters, over-the-top fast timelines, and answers to your questions that don't make sense.

Check the Physical Address of the Company

Use Google Maps to verify the physical address of the company. Be careful if the location does not match what the company claims or sounds residential.

Real-World Instances of Fake Job Postings 

Example 1: The Overpayment Scheme

A job seeker was offered a remote job with a generous hourly wage, and the company advanced them a paycheck for much more than they would have been paid after working 2 weeks. When they deposited the check, they were asked to wire the "overpayment" back to the employer. The check bounces and they lost the money they wired back to the scam employer! There was never a real job!

Example 2: The Impersonation Scheme

A recruiter posed as someone who worked for a big tech company, interviewing applicants using Zoom, but the entire interview happened in chat instead of video or audio. The candidate does excellent in the interview, and they offer the candidate the job with a generous salary. However, they request that the candidate pay for training materials in advance. The candidate sends the money to the scammer employer, and they never receive the training materials. Again, this was never a real job. It was an elaborate scheme to fraud people who needed real jobs to pay their bills and these scammers prey on their vulnerabilities.

Scam Alerts

Look for recent reports of scams on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) or Better Business Bureau (BBB) websites.

Community Forums

Search Reddit’s r/jobs to see if the job that sounds too good to be true has been discussed there.

Don't let your need for a job cause a bigger problem by providing personal information or money to scam artists. Unfortunately, many are professional scam artists, and it can be challenging to know real job postings from scam job postings. When in doubt, move on and forget that job posting.