When a recruiter contacts you, it's essential to do your homework, verify their sources, and trust your instincts. If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. While it can be frustrating to be this skeptical, being cautious can protect you and your finances. Today's guest is John Sidoti. John is the Senior Director of Information Technology at Social Current. He has over 30 years of experience as an IT generalist with wide and varied experience across all aspects of the IT spectrum.

Show Notes:

• [0:50] - John shares his background and discusses his extensive and varied career in IT.
• [3:32] - Even as a director, John keeps hands-on projects going to keep working in the field.
• [4:45] - John describes an experience of himself falling victim to a scam on LinkedIn.
• [7:56] - At some point in the process, John realized that something seemed off.
• [9:40] - After speaking with this scam company, he continued to receive copied and pasted messages from other "recruiters".
• [12:21] - Although the copy and website look and sound very legitimate, there are some things we can look for that raise red flags.
• [14:13] - Many scammers create fake profiles that look very professional and well done. But take the extra step and research the company and individual.
• [15:57] - In the grand scheme of things, the people who have been victimized by these types of scams are vulnerable and desperate for employment.
• [18:22] - Anyone can purchase a domain name and pull together a website using a free or cheap template that all look very legitimate.
• [20:05] - Once you know the markers, you can see them coming.
• [21:07] - Look at the domain names and how long they have been registered.
• [22:30] - Don't assume it is just an email world. If a company does not have a legitimate phone number, it is a red flag.
• [24:02] - Another red flag is when a recruiter has been working with just one single company in their career.
• [26:45] - Recruiters should not be asking for personal information. The company will do that, not a recruiter.
• [29:43] - It's okay to be a little cynical about this in order to protect yourself.
• [31:34] - There are other places that need to be looked at closer as well, specifically Facebook Marketplace.
• [34:16] - When you look closely at sponsored posts that seem too good to be true, you'll notice that they are all from bots.

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