The Job Offer scam has varieties but generally follows the same script:

1. Email, social media messages, and WhatsApp messages were sent to you saying they've seen your credentials (resume) and feel you would be a good fit for a position they need to fill.
   1. You are immediately curious since you may not recall sending them a resume.
   2. You also might notice they don't list a specific job description, or it's very generalized.
2. Suppose you are on a site such as LinkedIn! The message may say the sender doesn't want to converse there but can chat somewhere else (usually Telegraph or WhatsApp). Both are playgrounds for scammers.
3. If you resist, they may quit or increase the pressure by making the offer slightly better until you can no longer resist and give them your account on WhatsApp.
4. Usually, within 24 hours, you will get a message from one person saying they are in HR and would like to schedule a virtual interview with a specific person.  They might even ask you to provide a list of dates/times you are available or send you a Calendly or similar booking system hyperlink.
5. If you are still hooked at this point, you will either give them the info they asked for or click a link they sent you to "book" the appointment.
6. Someone will interview you at the date/time agreed upon.  
   1. No official calendar invite will be provided.
   2. The two or three contacts' emails to date will NOT be from the company supposedly wanting to interview you; instead, they are more likely to be from Hotmail, Gmail, Outlook, or some other email system.
7. The actual offer will likely change and not be what you were looking for, but they will want you regardless and offer you a letter to sign for the job.
8. Here is where it gets trickier and varies:
   1. They provide you with a full list of items that you will need to purchase from their agent before starting your training.
   2. It will mostly be comprised of standard hardware and software.
   3. They will want your bank details so they can directly deposit the check.
   4. Or, if you insist, they will overnight send you a check to be deposited.
   5. You are to call them either way once the deposit is complete.
   6. You will get the name of the supplier to be used.
   7. You will receive funds, usually in the thousands of dollars to make the purchases.
9. You contact the supplier and place the order, giving your banking details to complete the transaction.
10. You may or may not, depending on which variety of the scam you are in, but one of two thing will now happen, or worse, both:
    1. You will be told to keep any extra funds as a "bonus" for completing your first task.
    2. You will need to send them a wire transfer of the extra funds.
11. And here is where you get in trouble.
    1. The supplier never sends the supplies.
    2. You are unable to reach the supplier or the hiring team.
    3. Within a month, your bank will notify you that you are now in the negative as the check bounced.
    4. Now, you are out of the money spent on the supplies and the check you wrote for the surplus funds,and if they are very unscrupulous, they have drained your bank account of every penny.

OK, so the job offer was perfect.  You felt safe.  But did you do your due diligence to protect yourself?  Not.  But don't fret. You are not alone. These scams catch hundreds and thousands of victims every year.  So let's break this one down into things you should have looked for:

• Email Address. No reputable company will email from an address other than theirs. Just check them out, and if that is why you find them, block them immediately.
• Microsoft wants to hire me and pay me $150,000 to work from home! I don't know what I'll be doing, but so what? Well, we'll use the smell test. If it smells too good to be true, it usually isn't.
• Some scammers are very good at their jobs, creating fake websites to support the person they represent. Again, don't be fooled. The names could be just slightly off.  If it says MicrosoftHR.com, I can promise you it's a scam.