"Official Road Warrior" International Traveling Project Mgr. / Super.
My memories are jewels, my future a chest, Lord let me fill it before I go. RJM 1968
"I wonder what my life would have been like if I had been in the Placebo Group?"
Please BEWARE ! There has been a major upturn in scam employment agencies. This ad is posted on Craigs List and in the Miami Area. Three scammer red flags.....1. NEEDED IMMEDIATELY ! (urgency to get you to respond without doing any homework) 2. $150K a year AND UP. (over industry scale, especially in this financial climate) 3. 6 to 9 month contract. (I have worked in the Caribbean, the work force there is on "Island Time", can't be much of a job if it will only take 6 to 9 months.)
My ex roommate in Tema, Ghana was recently approached by a VP with British Petroleum.....NOT!!!!! This is a savvy road warrior and he almost bit the bullet. These guys are going to great lengths to facilitate these frauds. This Bozo met my friend in Toronto, Canada, looked the part, asked all the right questions, had the business cards, the stationary...etc. Flew into Canada and probably interviewed half a dozen men and then got back on a plane for the UK. Of course my friend was well qualified...all he needed to do was send in a couple of thousand to facilitate the processing of his work visa.
NEW CAUTIONS: The newest job ad that caught my eye.
SENIOR CONSTRUCTION PROJECT EXECUTIVE (CARIBBEAN)
I believe I also responded to an identical ad 6 to 7 months ago and the company was a resume' site and wanted $300/$400 to build my account, process my membership, etc. A Google of the company produced a large number of posts claiming they paid the fee and never heard from them again.
"A word to the wise is sufficient."
MAJOR THINGS TO LOOK OUT FOR !!!
Legitimate companies have email addresses that belong to their company web sites.... @ABC.com NOT free email accounts like gmail and yahoo.
If you are asked to send a money order or use Western Union to send money.......don't forget to kiss it goodbye.
Always check to see where the email came from...check the spelling very closely....one incorrect letter in the spelling can cost you thousands.
If you are asked to respond to a different email address than the one you were contacted through.....they use this approach to isolate the sucker mail.
If you are asked to call a number that begins with 442 or the like....these are pay phone prefixes in the UK. Go to the British Petroleum.com website and click on the link for "employment fraud", a lot of good information there regarding the phone numbers used there, in scams.
NEVER pay money up front! Companies pay head hunters to "screen" potential employees. If it is not a company paid fee, than you probably don't want to work for them, or they don't exist.
Companies that hire expats for work are generally required to purchase round trip tickets. Ask them to purchase your "non-refundable" round trip ticket and when you receive the airline confirmation......well.........then maybe it is a real offer. (under no circumstances should the money requested exceed the cost of the ticket...lol)
The current scams I know about are those for British Petroleum and this new one for Accra, Ghana. If you see one please email me and I will post it. If you are not sure, drop me a line and I will check out my pipeline and connections and see what I can find out for you.
My partner is neck deep in one of the new ones used on Craig's List, play on the Nigerian 419, his identity was hacked and someone is buying all kinds of things on CL and issuing bogus checks on one of his (closed accounts). OH! I sent to much, please send the difference back to me.....DOH!
securetag@aol.com
Thanks and may all of my fellow road warriors keep the wind at your back.
Respectfully: RJ "Bob" Mahaffey "The Official Road Warrior"