[This article is being viewed in your Web Browser. 
To return to your newsletter, please go back to your e-mail application.  Thank you.]

Employment Scams Abound

Scammers have graduated from the mundane offers for "envelope stuffing" and "home mailer" schemes to sophisticated and realistic appearing advertisements for movie extras and flight attendants.  The obvious appeal of these sorts of positions coupled with the information relayed over the phone depicting glamorous high paying jobs with a minimum of experience make consumers jump at a chance to work in these industries.

The catch is that there is no job, only empty promises.  This is a new twist on an old scam with one constant: the scam operators make their money by taking someone else’s money.  The victim answers an ad in the Help Wanted section of their local classifieds.  After answering a series of cursory questions about their background and being told that they have been selected for the “job” or for an interview out of state, they are informed about the necessity of obtaining an airline ticket.  The applicant is told an elaborate lie detailing problems that the employer claims to have encountered with paying for many wasted or unused airline tickets.  Instructions are given to send money through Western Union for the plane ticket with the promise that it will be fully refunded upon arrival.

In at least one instance, a man traveled to Canada for a purported movie job. In this situation, after wiring the money the company actually used a stolen credit card number to pay for an E ticket.  In other cases, after the money is wired it becomes impossible to reach the alleged employer.  It is important to note that once sent through Western Union, funds cannot be traced. This method of payment is frequently used to commit fraud.