Feature in NBC News!
It was nearly a month ago when I heard from her. She works for NBC News and heard about my work as The Profiler. Today the article went live…
Read the news story here: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/job-scam-ziprecruiter-linkedin-work-postings-fake-listing-rcna238162
“In the first half of the year, online job scams rose 19% compared to a year earlier and have cost Americans nearly $300 million, with the typical victim losing around $2,000, according to data from the Federal Trade Commission.”
Why does this issue grow at such a prolific rate? Because the scale of it isn’t fully understood and the ramifications aren’t done enough justice. Privately, I waver between idealism and practicality. On the one hand I want to believe things will improve and I believe people when they say the job market will change for the better. You know, the September Surge talk. However, I’m in the trenches, I get hundreds of messages from real people and several from scammers trying to get a feather in their cap if one of their scams were to work on me. If you know my work you know I poke fun at the scammers and make light of their dim intellect. I do that to counter the great anger I have about what’s going on in this job market and to all legitimate businesses.
Thank you Shannon Pettypiece for your diligence in reaching out to the people who shared their stories and for covering my work. May this article deal another major blow to scams worldwide.
I’m honored to say I made it to being covered on NBC News but more honored by the people I’ve helped be safe from scams.
More work to do.
Story developing…
#TheProfiler 🕵🏾‍♂️
The Case Against The LinkedIn Profile Hijackers—Kevin Stephens...
Kevin Stephens is a veteran. He describes himself as:
“Having military operational deployments, I am able to combine both “frontline” and strategic capabilities. I plan the country security approach for all personnel, business assets, on-premise data, and reputation by mitigating theft or compromise. I blend both a “helicopter” big picture view with a “frontline” awareness. I understand intuitively how they link – and can, if not managed, diverge.”
Like all who serve, he’s clear and intentional in his communication. Now, it’s a bunch of “Kindly send me a connection request...” comments. This profile’s been on LinkedIn since July 2009, and the last real comments were from over a year ago. I explain three reasons why an account is a prime target for hijacking in episode 5 of my podcast. Title, “Attractive Vulnerability…”
It’s not safe, but that doesn’t mean nothing can be done.
It’s clear it’s up to us not only to protect ourselves, but to alert others.
Link to hijacked profile: https://lnkd.in/gXU5sDRD (Profile’s been removed. Link is for the record)
Report #: 250708-036371
To those who are employed, I ask you to do one thing: turn the green banner on just for a day or two and see what job seekers deal with daily. Then, imagine it were you, or your children if they’re old enough to be in the workforce, or your mother and father. Make it personal.
What would you feel if they were scammed or marginalized because of their age?
Stay vigilant…
#TheProfiler 🕵🏾‍♂️