Spot a fake job before it costs you.

By Steady Path Careers. Last checked October 17, 2026. Warning signs below come from the Federal Trade Commission and the FBI.

Warning signs from the FTC and FBI

1. They ask you to pay for training, a certification, equipment or anything else before you start.
2. They send you a check and ask you to send some of it back, or to buy gift cards. The check bounces later and you're out the money.
3. They want payment by gift card, cryptocurrency, payment app or wire transfer.
4. They guarantee you the job, or promise big money fast for a few hours of easy work.
5. They pretend to be a well-known company or a government agency. Most federal jobs are listed on USAJOBS.gov.
6. A "recruiter" reached out to you unasked, needs no references, and the work is simple online "tasks" or "optimization."
7. They ask for personal or financial information early, before you have a real offer.

Simple checks for stale or "ghost" listings

Some postings aren't scams but aren't real openings either: old listings left up, or ads for jobs that were already filled. There's no official checklist for these yet, so these are the checks Steady Path Careers uses:

• Find the same job on the employer's own careers page. If it's not there, be careful.
• Look at the posting date. Listings reposted again and again for months are a warning sign.
• Check that the location and pay match on the employer's site and the job board. Job boards often get them wrong.
• In NJ and NY, a missing pay range from a larger employer is a red flag in itself. See the pay transparency guide.

Where to report a job scam

• Federal Trade Commission: ReportFraud.ftc.gov or 1-877-382-4357.
• FBI Internet Crime Complaint Center, if it happened online or involved cryptocurrency: ic3.gov.
• If you sent money, contact your bank or the payment company right away.