Employment scams have dramatically increased, leveraging artificial intelligence to deceive job seekers and steal personal information. Reports of job scams surged by 118% in 2023, according to the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC). Scammers pose as recruiters and post fake job listings on reputable platforms, making it difficult to distinguish between legitimate and fraudulent opportunities. Victims often lose around $2,000, with the total losses reaching $367 million in 2022, a 76% increase from the previous year. The rise of remote work and advancements in AI have contributed to the growth of these scams, as they make fraudulent job offers more convincing. Job seekers, especially recent graduates and immigrants, may fall prey to these scams as they become more accustomed to digital-only hiring processes. To protect themselves, job seekers should be cautious of requests for personal information or payments during the hiring process and verify the legitimacy of job offers before sharing sensitive data.
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