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Blog

Recruitment Scams – Advice

RBUK Legal recently attended a talk by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC). They raised an important point around recruitment scams that are on the rise at the moment. Following this, we wanted to share a statement and some information about being aware of these scams.

RBUK Legal is aware of the rise in hiring/recruitment scams. Scammers have become highly sophisticated and subtle in how they target job seekers which makes it difficult for jobseekers to spot the differences between genuine and fake job adverts. RBUK Legal recommends that you be vigilant in giving out any personal details in response to a job advert. Looking out for any obvious and subtle signs that a job advert may not be genuine.

We are aware of scams being conducted across job boards at present.

RBUK Legal is a member of the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (“the REC”) and is bound by the principles of the REC Code of Professional Practice and its disciplinary and complaints   procedure. This requires us to respect the law and to observe the highest principles of professional conduct. Because of these obligations, RBUK Legal:

  1. Will never unlawfully charge fees for work finding services. This is because it is unlawful for Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses to do so under the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 (The Conduct Regulations).
  2. Will never request personal details, such as your full name, address, date of birth bank account details prior to the point of registering you with RBUK Legal.
  3. Will never seek to obtain your personal details via WhatsApp and/or text message we will always speak with you directly, before registering your details on our system.
  4. Will always be transparent about our recruitment process and how we handle the data you give us. This information can be found in our privacy policy.

When looking for a job, RBUK Legal recommends the following dos and don’ts when applying for jobs:

DoDon’t
Double check that the advert you have found is current and listed on the website of the recruitment business it purports to be from. If in doubt, contact the relevant recruitment business directly to verify this.Don’t give your personal details out, we would never ask applicants to provide us with their bank details via WhatsApp, or text message or phone call.
Double check if the link provided for the job advert is from a legitimate website.Don’t pay for work finding services, a legally compliant recruitment business would ever charge you to register with it for work finding services. This is a breach of the legislation that all recruitment businesses are required to comply with.  
Be alert to poor spelling and grammar. Check for poor spelling and grammar. Check that the name of the recruitment business and any details provided are correct by cross checking this on Companies House. Don’t communicate with agents that do not have a professional email address or are not listed as working for a recruitment business on its website or verified LinkedIn page
Verify the trade body memberships they purport to have. The REC member directory can be found here.Don’t respond to WhatsApp/text messages, emails and/or phone calls from contacts not listed on our website with personal details.  
Contact your bank immediately if you suspect you have given your details to a scammer.
Report details of the scam to Action Fraud [0300 123 2040], Jobs Aware, and should this involve the use of our name also report this to us directly.

Thank you to REC for their work and resources surrounding recruitment scams.

RBUK Legal

Head Office - Manchester: Imperial Court Exchange Quay Manchester M5 3EB

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