Recently Infosys, on its Facebook page, posted a notice asking job-seekers not to fall prey to scamsters posting about non-existent job openings in the IT major.
The notice said: “We have observed that there has been an increase in #recruitment #fraud involving scammers who post fraudulent job openings or who contact job-seekers with fake #joboffers. Infosys does not charge/accept any amount or security deposit from job- seekers during the recruitment process.”
In a tight job market, conmen have moved on from asking desperate youth to pay up for promised jobs only to vanish with the money. The fraudsters now claim to act on behalf of well-known IT and manufacturing firms only to dupe job- seekers.
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Chennai-based private eye HK Detective said several people had approached it to check out a job portal which listed several openings. “It was a fake portal. But when I advised the candidates to file a complaint, they refused,” a person from the agency said.
Though the number of recruitment frauds nationwide is increasing, the victims seldom come forward to file formal complaints. 24-year-old Rajesh*, who works in a small IT firm in Salem, said: “I was duped by an agency three years ago. I was so desperate for a job then and agreed to pay ₹15,000 as ‘training deposit’. After I handed over the cash, there was no trace of the agency. It was so embarrassing to tell people I got cheated.”
Even campus recruitments are not proof against these unscrupulous elements. The placement officer of a reputed college said that three months ago, he received requests from a particular email ID to refer students seeking jobs; for a payment of ₹10,000, the students would get assured jobs, the emailer promised. HR managers of top firms have suggested that a common helpline be set up to address these issues.
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(* Names changed on request )