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Chapter 2 Protecting Your Online Identity
agency. The IC3 is a partnership between the
Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the
National White Collar Crime Center (NWC3).
Another federal organization that handles
claims of online scams is the Federal Trade
Commission. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC)
is a government agency that focuses on consumer
protection. The FTC addresses complaints regarding
identity theft, business practices, work-at-home
cons, job scams, and multi-level marketing schemes,
among others.
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) is a nationwide,
nonprofi t agency dedicated to providing free
business reliability reviews. The BBB gives
businesses a rating of A+ through F. If you have
suspicions about a company, you can check its
rating with the BBB. It is possible that other
people have also had negative experiences with
the same company in the past. As a result, its
rating can reveal whether you should get involved
with the company.
Websites
Each time you access a search engine or
visit a web page, your computer’s identity is
revealed. Your name might not be visible to
the public, but the computer’s IP address is
shown. The Internet Protocol address, known
as an IP address, is a number used to identify an
electronic device connected to the Internet. While
Do not send money to a potential employer
for any reason. You should not be asked for any
form of payment during the application process.
A fraudulent company might insist that you pay
for a background check or pay fees related to the
application process. The request may include
asking for a credit card number to cover these fees.
Legitimate companies do not charge applicants
to apply for a position. An applicant should
never pay for an interview or for employment
verifi cation steps. Beware of anyone who requests
a credit card during an application process.
Carefully evaluate job advertisements to
determine whether they are legitimate. A good
rule of thumb is “if it is too good to be true, it
probably is.” Job ads that make grandiose claims
are usually not legitimate. Avoid any job posting
that advertises making large amounts of money
for little work or over a short period of time.
Be on the lookout for multi-level marketing
companies. Multi-level marketing (MLM) is
a business strategy in which employees are
compensated for sales they personally generate
and for the sales of the other salespeople they
recruit. Another term for MLM is pyramid scheme.
This term is applied because every person in
the company has recruited those below him or
her. If you are recruited by a representative to
work in MLM, he or she will make money off
your efforts. MLM companies often look like
legitimate companies, but many fall into the
category of “too good to be true.” They often
promise easy money for little work, which is
rarely, if ever, true.
Reporting Employment Scams
If you encounter a suspicious business or
website when searching for jobs online, or are
unfortunately the victim of a scam operation,
report the incident. Reporting the incident helps
law enforcement track down scammers and thieves.
There are several agencies that are dedicated to
the protection of job-seekers from such scams.
The Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) is a
government organization that was established as
a means to receive complaints of Internet-based
crimes and report the incident of the crime to the
appropriate local, state, or federal law enforcement
Interpersonal skills are the skills that
enable you to interact with others.
Employers expect employees to work
well with others and demonstrate
professionalism. These skills are
sometimes also known as people skills.
As an employee, you will be expected to
develop and demonstrate good people
skills while on the job.