Protect Yourself During Your Internship/Job Search!
The Tisch Office of Career Development makes every effort to screen employers and job postings on Tisch College Central but you should always exercise caution when applying to career opportunities regardless of where they’ve been sourced. While the majority of listings that you will find on Tisch College Central, NYU Handshake, LinkedIn, and other job sites are legit, some may be posted by criminals who are looking to steal your identity or trick you into giving them money.
Identity Theft
Be suspicious of anyone who requests your birth date, Social Security number, credit card number, bank account details, or a copy of your driver's license before you are hired. since these are all things that can be used for identity theft and account hacking. They are not relevant during the job application process, so you should not have to submit those details. If an employer insists that you need to give them that info, just let them know that you’re declining for security reasons but can share it after you’ve been hired as part of your employee onboarding.
Fake Check Scam
If you’re seeking assistant or production jobs, be alert for fraudulent listings centered on fake check scams. These can be found on job boards and in social media groups; some also occur via messaging on sites like LinkedIn or StaffMeUp. In these job scams, criminals posing as employees of legit production companies will ask you to deposit a check into your personal bank account and then instruct you to either send payments to fake vendors or “reimburse” them for various reasons.
Unsolicited Recruitment
You should also be wary of situations in which someone contacts you about a job that you didn’t apply for, claiming that they’re a recruiter who’s viewed your profile on a site like LinkedIn. Always research the person before replying. The best way to do this is:
Google the job that they’re contacting you about. Are you able to find the listing? If it’s a job with a well-known company, is it on that company’s own job board? If not, that’s a red flag.
Google the name of the recruiter with the name of their company (e.g. “Jane Doe” + A24). If the recruiter provides any other company details such as the phone number for their headquarters or a website, check those out as well. Be sure to sift through the search results carefully since scammers often tweak info so that their details appear legit when they’re not. If you can’t find anything in your search results that concretely verifies their identity, that’s a red flag.
Is the recruiter on LinkedIn? If so, who are they connected to? If their number of connections is small and/or the company they’re recruiting for is not listed on their profile, that’s a red flag.
Agent/Manager Scams
While it’s exciting to be approached by a talent agent or manager, be sure to do your due diligence before working with them! Things to consider:
- What experience do they have working with the industry? Can you find solid evidence of this beyond what’s on their website/social media and whatever they’ve told you?
- Who are their other clients? Reach out to a few to learn about their experiences with the agent/manager to verify your impressions.
- It’s important to know that talent agents and managers do NOT require you to pay them upfront to connect you to industry opportunities. Instead, they take a percentage of whatever you earn from jobs as a commission.
- It is also not standard practice for an agent or manager to charge a fee to cover expenses related to marketing materials (e.g. headshots or reels). While this may occasionally occur with commercial or modelling agencies, this is generally frowned upon within the industry so TOCD does not recommend working with companies that do this.
Lastly, make sure you get a contract and read it carefully before signing! While TOCD can take an initial look at contracts and advise you on what to look out for, we strongly recommend you also consult a lawyer.
Signs of a Hiring Scam
If you’re concerned that something might be a scam, here are things to watch out for:
- Does this opportunity promise compensation that is larger than usual industry rates, especially if it’s an entry-level position? Does this opportunity sound too good to be true?
- Do the employer’s emails seem unprofessional in tone? Are there typos and grammatical errors? When you ask them for specifics about the internship/job, does anything indicate they may not actually have industry experience?
- Were you hired without an interview? If you did have an interview, was it extremely short? If it was a video interview, did the person leave their camera off for the entire conversation?
- Can you independently verify that this is a legit business? One easy way to check is to google the employer’s email address. If you can’t find evidence of their exact email address online, does the naming structure match emails for their company’s other employees or the company domain name? (e.g. jdoe@a24films.com is probably legit because it matches the company website, whereas jdoe@a24-films.com probably is fake).
- After you’re hired, is your first task to deposit a check in your personal bank account, facilitate a wire transfer, or purchase gift cards?
NYU Wasserman has a list of additional red flags at this link.
What to Do If You've Been Scammed
For more info about fake check scams and what to do if you encounter one, see this FTC article.
If you suspect an employer might be a scammer, end all communication with them immediately and report it to the FTC at https://reportfraud.ftc.gov If you have experienced a fake check scam, immediately alert your bank; if you’ve had your identity stolen, immediately change all of your passwords and alert both your bank and credit card providers. Please also contact TOCD at tisch.career@nyu.edu or 212-998-1916 so we can review Tisch College Central in case our listings have been compromised and also alert the Tisch community.