Many of my readers work in the federal government, so I feel compelled to help. This week, I’m reverse engineering my method to help everyone avoid job scams from the scammer's perspective. I hope to bring it with clarity and empathy while communicating the harsh reality of already seeing scammers target unemployed job seekers.
Before I begin, note I attached the audio podcast from last week to this week’s edition. I failed to include it in last week’s edition, so if you want to view the highlight notes, check last week’s newsletter here.
If you are a current federal employee and think something I said is incorrect, please feel free to comment on the article so everyone is informed. I hope this article will be as much a discussion as it is informative so everyone can benefit and grow in awareness and knowledge.
Just to remind you, I regularly publish content about job search and job scams on LinkedIn a few times a week. Follow or connect with me to get job scam development and how to navigate the job market.
The White House announced that 2.6 million remote federal workers will be offered a paid eight-month resignation package if they voluntarily resign. Otherwise, they will be part of a mass downsizing effort to shrink government spending.
If 300,000 federal employees face layoffs this year, many will likely enter the job market, making them prime targets for job scams.
Here are 10 narratives scammers can put before them and how job scams may affect them:
1. Government Experience as Bait for Scammers
Scammers could try offering "consulting" or "government contracting" jobs requiring upfront fees or sensitive information. They may ask for your federal resume, security clearance credentials, or anything proving your clearance. Making your information available to scammers enables them to create a fake profile to ruin your professional reputation.
2. Fake Security Clearance Opportunities
There is a risk of fraudulent job postings requiring applicants to "verify" or "renew" security clearances through fake services that steal their identity or money, which is an assumed threat to national security. I don't expect the laid-off employees to fall for bogus schemes where renewing their clearances is easier or faster. However, long-term unemployment can trigger some irrational thinking about whether they should feel desperate, anxious, and exhausted.
3. Exploiting Their Urgency to Find Work
Scammers use fear and financial pressure to trick laid-off federal workers (employed or not) into paying for fake job placements, resume services, or fraudulent "priority hiring lists." Imagine seeing a job ad or email directed to those with security clearances, offering flexibility and generous pay and avoiding a lengthy vetting hiring process. We all know the government doesn't work this way in these circumstances.
4. Phantom Government Rehiring Programs
Investigating fake job offers claiming they will help former federal workers get rehired into new government roles for a fee can sound convincing. The scammer will pretend to be a consultant hired to streamline the process. The hook would be to offer to expedite the process if the victim pays processing fees upfront.
5. Impersonating Federal Contractors
Scammers will set up fake federal contractor websites, using real company names to lure ex-government workers into paying for job leads or onboarding fees. They will also impersonate federal workers or third-party consultants to lure victims into low-barrier entry.
6. LinkedIn and USAJobs Impersonation Scams
Fraudulent job postings and fake recruiter profiles targeting former government employees on professional job platforms could redirect them to a phony job site or position it as unique. The scammers will copy content similar to a valid government site with a URL of usajobss.net and ask for your complete job history.
7. Targeting Specialized Skill Sets
Scammers create fake jobs tailored to federal workers' expertise (e.g., IT, intelligence, HR) to add legitimacy to their scams. They offer professional development or fake "how to get rehired by the federal government" courses. Conversely, the scammer will use praise by saying the victim has what's needed to teach others and offer a fake platform that the victim pays upfront to use to teach with promises of a high ROI.
8. Bogus Early Retirement Investment Scams
Fraudulent "financial advisors" will target laid-off federal workers with fake investment opportunities that promise quick returns on severance packages. They will claim to know you have enough to retire, and they can make the transition more manageable if you're willing to pay their advisory fee. Victims will also need to provide their personal and social security information.
9. The Rise of AI-Generated Job Scams
Scammers will use AI-generated job descriptions, recruiter chatbots, and deepfake interviews to defraud former federal employees. For instance, they can claim they weave AI into the hiring process to generate assessments, HR advice, and job applications, making the hiring process, including reference checks, seamless.
10. Psychological Impact of Job Scams on Laid-Off Government Workers
Job scammers will take advantage of former federal workers' emotional and financial toll on people, including those who expected long-term government stability and are now vulnerable in the job market. It is vital to remain vigilant and start your job search immediately. Growing weary of fake jobs, prolonged interview processes, and employer indecisions doesn't take long.
Please keep these scam safety tip basics in mind.
I want to summarize this article and provide baseline training so you will not be lured into giving your money and personal information:
* Don’t pay for security clearances. You know what the process looks like, and unless you hear change from a government official, don’t fall for it.
* Government recruiters don’t use Gmail. It’s either .gov or .mil.
* Identity monitoring services are valuable now. Your credit card company may offer them for free, so it’s worth taking advantage of them. However, don’t fall for fake companies providing this service. I trust the banks and significant Internet Security suites more than unproven, unknown independent companies.
* Thoroughly vet recruiters, hiring managers, and people you don’t know who refer you to opportunities.
* Your federal resume shouldn’t be your civilian resume. The civilian resume doesn’t require your 25-year history of jobs.
* Use SAM.gov to vet any consulting company approaching you for opportunities.
* Use whois.com to confirm the owner and date of a website.
Finally…
From a post I wrote on LinkedIn last week:
Where there is a layoff surge, job scams are keeping up. RationalFX (1/30/25) published a 2024 study on tech layoffs. They aggregated layoff announcements sourced from U.S. WARN notices, the job portal TrueUp, TechCrunch, and the Layoffs.fyi's layoff tracker for the entirety of 2024.Here are a few of the highlights:The USA leads the world in tech layoffs: 157,950. In 2024, approximately 280,991 employees globally.Dell reduced its headcount by 18,500, Intel by 15,100, and Amazon by 14,968.2025 brings a spillover of layoffs with at least 12,000 employees globally.Job scams will only increase, and you should be prepared if you're in the tech sector. You can put your ear to the ground to hear of rumors and speculation or torture yourself with worry. The best choice is to start a job search. Every industry is subject to job scam infestation, targeting anxious, depressed, and fearful workers. Your mindset is an asset in combating scams. First, you must navigate the job market with knowledge, strategy, and safety. Accept the unknown as an obstacle to overcome. By understanding your industry's behavior and expectations, you can future-proof your career with certainty. You can consider other industries as possibilities to increase your opportunities by examining how your skills match jobs. I hope federal workers affected by the new policy will take action before all the bureaucracy clouds of smoke clear. The government has no plans to save you.Again, a proactive, thoughtful, strategic job search will buffer attractive, unrealistic job scam offers.
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