What is a Job Offer Scam?

Job Offer Scams are legitimate-looking emails, often impersonating UH or other higher education institutions, where they offer you a non-existent job or internship to entice you to engage with them. Their intent is to scam you out of money or steal your personal information.

How Does This Work?

Job scam emails typically will not want you to reply to their email. Instead, they will provide a phone number for you to respond, either by text message or to call them directly. Scammers will ask for detailed personal and/or financial information without asking for an interview. Sometimes, they will ask you to do some simple tasks and then compensate you with a fake check as payment. Recent campaigns have been targeting University of Hawaii students to purchase a computer and supplies, provide access to University email, or get users to send more scam emails on their behalf.

Job Offer Scam Email Samples

 

Tips to Avoid Being Scammed

• “If it’s too good to be true…” then it’s probably a scam. In the above scam, it’s offering $400 for 7 hours for an unknown type of work – that seems too good to be true.
• Check who sent the email; even a known sender (with an @hawaii.edu) could be compromised and unknowingly send these scam emails. Sometimes, the sender is also knowingly sending them.
• Be very suspicious if the offer requires a “recruitment fee” or asks for any financial information.
• If a real UH faculty name is used, verify their email address in the UH directory and call the phone number listed in the UH directory.
• Look closely at the full email address; many try to look similar: @havvaii.edu, @uhhawaii.edu, @manoauniversity.edu.
• Stop and think BEFORE responding! Ask yourself, “Why am I getting this job offer email?” Be vigilant!
• To learn more, check our Phishing page.

What To Do If You Get A Job Offer Scam

• Do NOT RESPOND (reply, call, text, or click on any link)!
• Forward email to phishing@hawaii.edu.
• After reporting, delete the email from the your inbox.

Other Types of Job Scam Offers

• Fake Job Listings:
• Scammers post job openings on legitimate job boards or through unsolicited emails, often with attractive pay for minimal qualifications.
• Upfront Payment Requests:
• Job seekers are asked to pay for training, materials, background checks, or other upfront costs. Legitimate employers rarely require this.
• Work-from-Home Scams:
• These scams promise high income for simple tasks like data entry or package reshipment, but they often involve illegal activities or never pay.
• Overpayment Scams:
• Scammers send a check for more than the agreed amount, asking the recipient to deposit it and return the excess. The check later bounces, leaving the victim liable.
• Personal Information Scams:
• Scammers ask for sensitive information, such as Social Security numbers or bank account details, under the guise of job application processing.

Other Job Scam Methods

• Emails can contain QR codes to re-direct you to malicious websites where you will be interacting with the scammers. This is called- ‘Quishing’ (QR Code Phishing).
• Scams can be sent to you as a text message. This is called- ‘Smishing’ (SMS Phishing).
• Job scammers will also call you on your cell phone or landline phone. This is called- ‘Vishing’ (Voice Phishing).

UH Employment Resources

Student employment opportunities: https://www.hawaii.edu/sece/
Graduate, faculty, staff jobs at UH: https://www.schooljobs.com/careers/hawaiiedu/
Learn more about Graduate positions at UH Manoa: https://manoa.hawaii.edu/graduate/recruitment-appointment/
For career development resources visit UH Manoa Career Center: https://manoa.hawaii.edu/careercenter/
UH Manoa Career Center on-campus recruitment opportunities: https://manoa.hawaii.edu/careercenter/students/on-campus-recruitment/