Canada is one of the most preferred destinations for job aspirants. It is mainly because the country boasts a thriving economy with plenty of job opportunities, is peaceful, and provides high living standards. Job scammers know this and always try to take advantage of such job seekers. Sadly, most ardent job aspirants cannot identify bogus Canadian job offers from the real ones and fall into the trap of such scammers. They sometimes give away their personal information and money to secure a job in Canada.

Since the advent of the pandemic, online job scams have increased exponentially. As per the statistics from Canada's Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC), in 2021, above 68,000 cases of fraud were reported. The losses were amassed to a massive amount of $231, double the losses incurred in 2020. 

Knowledge is your only best defence against such job offer scams. Besides the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (CAFC) website, the Better Business Bureau (BBB) scam tracker also keeps track of reported fraudulent cases. Read on to learn more about how to keep away from fake Canadian job offers and find the real ones.

Tips to keep away from job offer scams

You can rest assured that it is a job offer scam when you find one too good to be true.
Below are some of the signs that show you have come across a bogus job offer:

• It is a fake job offer when you get one without applying. Mostly phony job offers are unsolicited. They can come from different companies that you have not applied to for a job.
• Fake job offers may promise high salaries and only require minimal eligibility criteria, making you think anyone can be eligible for such jobs (experience not required, over age 18, etc.) You might conclude that your job hunt is over, and you have landed a perfect job with adequate economic security. 
• There are two possibilities: either the sender's email address can be suspicious or maybe not. Even though legit business owners use Gmail and other free emailing services, you can see that most authentic companies have their domain names in their email addresses. It will help if you remember that scammers can hijack companies' emails and act as pseudo-recruiters. If you doubt you got a job offer from a scammer, you can be safe by not replying. Instead, you can contact someone in that same company and check whether they tried to contact you. Besides that, you can make sure it is a job offer scam if you cannot find any contact details in the mail sent to you.
• There can be instances when the fake job recruiter might ask you to pay money to get the job. There is no need to make any payment if it is a genuine job offer.
• Scammers will often ask you to share your personal information, including your residence address and your Social Insurance Number (SIN). Legit employers will only ask for your SIN once they hire you.

Finally, remember that doing a simple search before agreeing to anything is the best thing you can do. Until you are convinced that you have spoken with a legit recruiter, avoid replying to any messages, clicking on any links or downloading anything. It is highly recommended to do an instant background check on the sender of the job offer and the company they represent. You can also check if any results are showing when you type the company's name along with "scam." Never hesitate to report to the BBB or CAFC if you doubt you received a fraudulent job offer.

Network and apply for legit job offers

You will get a legit job offer only from a company that is known to you. You might have applied for the job offer or got introduced via networking. Almost 85% of jobs are found through popular networking sites such as LinkedIn. You may also ask for potential leads from known people whom you have in Canada. You can also try searching for the employment services rendered by the province or your municipality if you are based in Canada. Canadian universities also have ample resources to help their international students find jobs. Always try to send your application directly to the company's official website when you apply online.

There are other resources to help newcomers find legit jobs in Canada. If you are abroad or in Canada, you can visit the website of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) to make use of their free settlement and employment services. Additionally, there is a Canadian job bank website through which Canadian employers can search and hire international and local talent. Some provincial websites participate in the immigration pathway program, such as Atlantic Immigration Program (AIP). You can visit these provincial websites to find designated employers who are in pursuit of foreign workers. You can also check out the municipal web pages of the communities participating in the Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot (RNIP) program for job opportunities. 

When you apply for a job, always ensure that you have a typical Canadian-style resume that only requires minimal personal information compared to what is needed in other countries, along with a cover letter. Make your application tailor-made for the job you are applying for. Always read the job description carefully, and explain your skills and how you can benefit the company. This will impress the hiring manager. Ideally, you can do a brief background on the company to find out if it is good for you to work there. 

Genuine employers can hire for many reasons apart from what is printed on the paper. It does not matter whether you are qualified enough or not. In any case, apply.

ImmiAid: Immigrant Aid Society, Canada

We are a Canadian Charity with the mission of integrating immigrants into Canada. We help you protect yourself from immigration fraud, job scams, ghost consultants, and unauthorized immigration consultants.

You can reach us at info@immiaid.ca | www.immiaid.ca