Job Seekers Report Fake Profile Using Stolen Photos In 2025

People looking for jobs in Manchester and all across the UK are warned to watch out for fake recruiters to stay protected. The data collected by the BBC shows that reports of job scams nearly doubled from 2,094 in 2022 to 4,876 in 2024. Apart from that, the Federal Trade Commission reveals that reports of job scams tripled between 2020 and 2024, and losses rose from $90 million to $501 million. This is a strong indication that these frauds are expected to rise in 2025, which is a threat to the local job market and job seekers and needs immediate attention. 

Here Is How Fake Profile Job Scams Work, Victims Say

Running job scams through fake profiles has become a more designed and organized shameful activity these days. This typically begins with fraudsters impersonating real companies by creating phony accounts in their names. Not just that, the victim revealed that such accounts were linked to websites and contact details that looked legitimate. 

On top of that, scammers use stolen photos of credible organizations to further gain trust so that they can run the scam smoothly. In most cases, they target you by offering highly attractive positions, especially the remote ones, with too-good-to-be-true perks and benefits. 

After that, job seekers like you are led through a convincing but entirely fake hiring process that includes real-like interviews and offer letters. According to the FTC (Federal Trade Commission), here is what they mainly intend to do:

• Pushing you for money through different tactics, like asking to book a training course or simply paying to secure the job before another candidate reserves it. 

• Stealing your personal information by asking for your driver's license, social security, bank account details, and other sensitive data. 

Industries The Job Scam Victims Belong To The Most

Scammers usually target the industries with the highest job demand. An independent job scam study conducted by Heimdal found that finance was the most targeted sector, accounting for 35.45% of scams. IT comes next at 30.43%, followed by healthcare at 15.41%, Retail at 8.77%, Education at 6.23%, and Customer Service at 3.90%. 

Fraudsters focus on these professions because they know people want them badly. Let's talk about finance and IT; Workers face lots of competition and are more likely to respond to an offer quickly. On the other hand, healthcare and education usually have urgent hiring or high turnover, which cybercriminals use to scam candidates. 

Platforms Scammers Use To Impersonate Identities For Job Scams

LinkedIn is the most widely used platform to attract people looking for jobs into scams. The FTC reports that fraudsters hide behind the identities of legitimate companies on this platform to appear authentic, thereby increasing the trust of job seekers. Almost 75% of victims are scammed on this single source. 

The reason scammers prefer it is that it has one of the largest networks of professionals worldwide, covering a wide range of industries. However, it's not the only site fraudsters rely on. Instead, they also benefit from the social channels where the potential candidates are most likely to be found. These include Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and fake websites, according to Heimdal. 

Stay Protected From Fake Profile Job Scams In 2025

The threats associated with fake recruiting necessitate candidates to stay vigilant against fraudsters and be smart in their job search. There are several clever practices that can help job seekers spot fake recruiter profiles in a timely manner and ignore them before they create any problems. Let's dive into those techniques.

• Look at the profile picture closely and check if it appears on any other account. Doing this verification is easy, requiring you to just input that photo into a similar Image finder and let it show the matches. This tells you if the displayed image was stolen from other accounts. 

• Watch out for incomplete profiles, especially with inconsistent information. Along with that, don't forget to verify the existence of the company separately. Also, check if the website of that organization features career options or not. 

• Analyze the previous content posted and jobs on a suspected account and check engagement rates. If you don't see real candidates showing their interest in the comment section, this means the profile could be fake, and you should ignore it. 

• Remember, no legitimate company or recruiting agency asks for payments to hire you. So, if you even find a small clue that a job offer by a business or hiring firm is linked to money, you must avoid engaging in further conversations.

• Don't fall for work-from-home scams, as candidates looking for remote positions are the most common targets of fraudsters. Be cautious if the offer seems too good to be true, promises unusually high pay, or the profile pressures you to act quickly.