Police in Richmond, B.C., say scammers have been targeting the city’s Chinese-speaking community with fake job advertisements. Posters in Simplified Chinese have been turning up on light posts around the city, advertising jobs including house-sitter, caregiver for the elderly and “tea leaves packager,” Richmond RCMP said in a news release Friday. “The posters provide a brief description of the job and a contact phone number,” police said in the release. “Investigators have reason to believe that these posters may be used to solicit personal information which may be used to identify potential scam targets.” Mounties said they had been contacted by someone who responded to one of the posters and reported “being convinced to make an investment” that later turned out to be fraudulent. “We want to remind everyone to exercise caution when responding to anonymous or unverified job postings,” said Cpl. Melissa Lui, in the release. “In addition, people need to be aware of the tactics that scammers use to get personal information with the intent to defraud them. In general, you should not share personal information with any unverified source.” Police advised people to “exercise diligence” when applying for jobs and never share personal information without first taking steps to verify the legitimacy of the employer. “Beware of upfront fees or counterfeit cheques,” police added. “Legitimate employers will not request money from you upfront or ask you to deposit cheques into your personal account and pay them back on a later date.” Anyone who suspects they have been a victim of fraud should report it immediately to their local police or to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre, Richmond RCMP said.
