Scam Alert!

“We are seeking a new Administrative Assistant for our online church, Authority of Christ International Churches. During our deliberation, we have seen your profile to be perfect for this job. We believe that you can be an asset to our church. I am pretty sure that you will enjoy your 1. stay with us since we always see to it that we balance work and life outside work. In our company, we have series of scheduled activities that each employee must participate as a form of team building.  REALLY?  Not happening… Be sure to earn up to $400 Weekly and you don’t need to pay any extra cash to get this job. You must have good A minimum of three (3) months demonstrated experience with computers, including the Internet, Email applications (Hotmail/ GMail. Yahoo!) or other related Internet service email apps If these qualifications match you, please reply to this add. If you have some questions or any clarifications on this matter please don’t hesitate to call me or email me.” Congratulations once again. Best Regards, Respectfully Yours, Joshua Rodgers Authority of Christ International Churches   Doesn’t Exist…. Cell: (347) 455-9818 Joshua Rodgers, Information Desk Authority of Christ International Churches T: +1 (347) 455-9818  Only an answering option, never a person. I researched the phone number and found several scam reports using this number and various names.  Skype: ACIChurches  I contacted this account several times – never a response. T: @3wsJob  Huh?  What’s this?


Knowing full well it was a scam, I replied – just to see what response I’d get…  This was his response: ~*~ “Hello Thanks for the response, Your application has been reviewed and granted. Below is explanation about what you’ll be doing. WHAT YOU’LL BE DOING You will be sending our Christian digest to our on line subscribers through email. The digest and the email address you’ll send the digest to will be e-mailed to you and you’ll be instructed on when to send the digest to the email addresses. You’ll open another email address which you’ll be using to send the digest . If you are interested in this position please respond to this email, so that I may send you the Employment Agreement. If you have any questions about this job don’t hesitate to send them to me . I’ll attach a sample copy of the digest which you’ll be sending, later in my next email after receiving your information, just for you to see that this is legitimate. Please send me this info in this format Full name : Home address .: City: State: Zip-code: Age: Gender: Phone number (home) : Phone number (mobile) : Get back to me ASAP. Thank you.”
  Wow  –  can you count how many red flags there are with this response?  Goodness, I don’t give that much information to anyone! Why does he need a home address or what my gender is?  How about the poor grammar? or the Spidey Sense that is coming over me saying RUN…   RUN AWAY!!! Just as a note to all the new virtual assistants out there: PLEASE, DO YOUR HOMEWORK! Research your potential clients completely. If you think something is off, listen to your instincts,  run it by your mentor – or even send it to me! I’d love to help make sure you’re not taken for a ride or scammed, or your identity stolen. Stay safe out there fellow Virtual Assistants! Kathy McCabe]]>