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Job hunting can be grueling.
Endlessly scrolling job boards. Sending another resume seemingly into the void. So when a text message from a recruiter arrives directly to your phone promising flexibility, great benefits, and a big paycheck, you might think it’s a gift from the universe.
More likely, it’s a scammer targeting you for money, personal information, or free labor.
Job scammers made off with about $220 million in the first half of 2024, alone, according to the latest data available from the Federal Trade Commission. In a blog post, the agency also noted that most people don’t report fraud, so this is likely a sliver of reality.
Also: I’m a tech professional, and an AI job scam almost fooled me – here’s how I caught on
“I think we’re seeing a high number of job scams right now because…
IT & DATA SECURITY (MITIGATING THE “INSIDER THREAT”)
As seen in the TD Bank case, an employee with too much “access” can sell your customer data to syndicates.
- Principle of Least Privilege (PoLP): Employees should only have access to the specific folders and databases required for their current task.
- Access Revocation: Have a “Termination Checklist” that ensures all digital access (Email, VPN, Banking) is revoked within 60 minutes of an employee resigning or being dismissed.
- System Logs & Audit Trails: Enable “Read/Write Logging” on your server. If a customer’s data is leaked, you need to know exactly which login accessed that record and at what time.
- Encryption at Rest: Ensure that sensitive files (like your customer ID numbers or payroll spreadsheets) are encrypted so that if a staff member copies them to a USB, they cannot be read.