Trust & Safety at Lehigh Valley Hired

Lehigh Valley Hired connects local talent with opportunities across Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton, and surrounding communities. Helping you search with confidence starts with knowing how to recognize recruitment fraud and protect your personal information.

Whether you’re exploring your first job or your next career move, take time to verify who you’re dealing with before sharing sensitive information or accepting an offer.

Recognizing Job Scams

Scammers can impersonate real businesses and recruiters. Watch for these warning signs:

  • Requests for upfront payments. Be cautious if someone asks you to pay for equipment, training, or access to a job, especially through gift cards, cryptocurrency, or payment apps.
  • Checks followed by instructions to send money. A supposed employer may send a check for supplies and direct you to pay a designated vendor. The check can be fraudulent even if the funds initially appear in your account.
  • An offer without a meaningful interview. Immediate hiring through text or messaging apps, with little discussion of your qualifications, deserves extra scrutiny.
  • Unrealistic pay or promises. High earnings for minimal work or experience can be a lure. Ask for clear responsibilities, compensation details, and hiring steps.
  • Suspicious messages. Look for misspelled company domains, unexpected attachments, and pressure to act immediately. A familiar company name or logo does not prove the sender is legitimate.

Protecting Your Information

Verify the employer independently. Find the company’s official website yourself and contact it using published details to confirm the recruiter and vacancy. Don’t rely solely on links or phone numbers provided in a message.

Research the opportunity. Search the company or recruiter’s name alongside words such as “scam” or “complaint.” For a local position, confirm where the work will take place.

Limit sensitive disclosures. Don’t send Social Security numbers, banking details, or identity documents to an unverified recruiter. Confirm the employer, the reason for the request, and the security of the submission process first.

Give yourself time. Pause if something feels wrong. A professional-looking offer letter alone does not establish that a job is real.

Supporting a Safer Local Job Search

A stronger employment community depends on informed job seekers and responsible employers. These resources are here to help you evaluate opportunities and recognize suspicious activity.

Continue to verify employers throughout the hiring process, including when an opportunity appears on a familiar job board.

Reporting Suspicious Activity

If a listing or someone contacting you about a Lehigh Valley Hired opportunity appears suspicious, please contact us.

Include the job title, employer name, listing link, and a brief explanation. Save relevant messages and screenshots, but avoid including sensitive personal or financial information.

You can also report a suspected job scam to the Federal Trade Commission. For additional guidance, visit the FTC’s job scam resource.