Warning on Online Illegal Recruitment Schemes promising “deployment after the lockdown” or “work interview after quarantine”
The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has received reports that unscrupulous individuals misrepresent themselves as officers and staff of licensed recruitment agencies in order to entice jobseekers to apply. The illegal activities include the use of fake emails and websites, and/or fake job advertisements on social media sites such as Facebook.
The public is warned of promises of online scammers for job interview and deployment after the “lockdown” or after “lifting of the quarantine“, “PM if interested“, “click link for more details“. The advertisements ask for reservation fees and/or personal information from unsuspecting applicants. POEA warns the public to ignore these online advertisements and not to give or deposit money, specially through remittance centers such as Western Union, Cebuana Lhuillier, or Palawan Express, or money transfers thru G-Cash, 7/11, or PayPal. Further, please be warned about providing sensitive personal information, such as full names, birthdates, addresses, etc. as these may be used in criminal activities.
Online job advertisements must only be made by licensed recruitment agencies and should follow posting guidelines such as a clear indication of the name of the licensed agency, they agency registration number, job positions, qualifications, salaries, among others. Absent these information, the POEA urges the public to ignore the advertisements. Payments, when allowed, must only be made to licensed recruitment agencies, and corresponding official receipts must be issued.
Overseas job seekers are advised to use the POEA verification system at the POEA website (www.poea.gov.ph) or email the POEA Information Center at [email protected] to verify vacancies and job orders. Apply only to jobs that have approved job orders. The POEA also asks the public to immediately report any suspicious or illegal activities pertaining to online recruitment scams to the Anti-Illegal Recruitment Branch Operations and Surveillance Division at email [email protected] or contact (09190674206).