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By Sammi Cohen

The advances in technology have also helped criminals to stay ahead of their criminal activities. Cybercrime is on the rise and many people fall victim without their knowledge because this type of crime involves the use of the Internet to communicate false or fraudulent representations to consumers.

It is easy for hackers to acquire your personal information for fraudulent purposes. And it happens in the blink of an eye. Read on to find out how you can identify and prevent falling victim to unemployment scams on the internet.

A woman in East Rochester made the headlines when she became a victim of an employment scam. Shannon Connell lost a total of $4,000 after she received a text message that appeared to be from the State Department of Labor. Having fallen victim previously, she felt it was in her best interests to act on the text message. She provided her personal information unknowingly to skilled hackers.

When her unemployment insurance payments were no longer being paid to her, she knew that something was amiss, and she reported it. Her suspicions proved to be correct, and she found out what the criminal(s) wanted to do with her taxes. Unfortunately, she had lost money in the process.

Unfortunately, when disaster strikes, it doesn’t bring out the best in people. The recent global employment crisis has left many people in a desperate situation. Many have been victims of cyber fraud. It is reported that 55% of Americans stop working sooner than planned, with health reasons being the number one cause.

Other top reasons include an unexpected job loss and the need to care for a loved one. While you cannot avoid fraud completely, there are ways to mitigate the risks from affecting you or your loved ones.

How To Identify Unemployment Scams

Cyber Criminals target victims through various tried and tested techniques that are aimed towards obtaining personal information through several ways. However, these criminals have become more innovative with their approach. The FBI has warned citizens to look out for the following common and potentially devastating scams.

• Email/Phone Solicitations.
• Services that claim to benefit you.
• Unauthorized transactions.
• Bogus websites/social media accounts.

How To Avoid Unemployment Scams

Studies show that there are approximately 582 million entrepreneurs worldwide. With a further estimation of more than 20% of small businesses failing within the first year of inception. As a result, there is an increase in unemployment insurance claims. Cyber criminals use this volatile gap in the economy to target unknowing victims. Here is how you can try to prevent falling victim to unemployment scams.

Vet Every Job Opportunity

Is the job offer too good to be true? Then it probably is. If you become suspicious about a job opportunity, trust your instincts and do thorough research on the company’s background. If there is lack of concise information about a company, there is a high probability that it is fake.

Enhance Your Privacy Protection

You should always ensure that your passwords, authentication codes, and bank accounts are protected. If you suspect that someone may be trying to access your personal information, change your passwords. If you have misplaced your bank cards, it is safer to freeze them than to hope that they will turn up eventually.

Do Everything Yourself

You should not allow anyone to bank or open credit cards on your behalf. If you suspect that someone has done that, you should report it to the relevant authorities as soon as you are aware.

It is important to stay alert for any suspicious activity on your personal information. Some people are more susceptible to falling victim to unemployment fraud than others, especially those that are not technologically savvy.

It is also important to inform your loved ones who may fall prey to the tactics of cyber criminals. Use the above tips on how to identify potential unemployment l scams and enforce preventative measures to protect your personal information at all times.

Tags: cyber security, East Rochester, unemployment scam

This entry was posted on Monday, March 29th, 2021 at 12:56 pm and is filed under Rochester News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.