Why you should never pay to get paid

Some schemes might sound unbelievable, but they’re easier to fall for than you think. Here’s how to avoid getting played by gamified job scams.

04 Jul 2025
 • 
,
4 min. read

Many of us have been experiencing a cost-of-living crisis for years, and the news headlines remain filled with doom-laden predictions of what the future might hold. Against this backdrop, it’s understandable why many of us are looking for a side hustle or for even a new, better-paid job. But the scammers know this, and are ready to take advantage.

In 2024 alone, employment scams reported to the FBI made fraudsters over $264 million. Many of these are so-called “task scams,” where victims are actually tricked into paying a “deposit” in order to get paid. It might sound unbelievable. But it’s easier to fall for than you think.

Here’s what you need to know to make sure your dream job doesn’t turn into a nightmare.

How big is the problem?

Employment or recruitment scams in general are the result of various factors:

• the normalization of more “anonymous” types of remote work
• pure reliance on digital recruitment platforms and tech
• convincing AI-generated scam sites and schemes, lowering the barrier to entry for criminals
• the pseudonymous nature of cryptocurrency
• a large volume of breached data, which can be used to personalize scams
• a lack of awareness on the part of the victims, coupled with poor economic conditions

One thing is certain, the scale of the problem is certainly under-reported. Even the 20,000 cases reported to the FBI last year are likely just to be the tip of the iceberg.

What are task scams and how do they work?

Task scams are a specific type of employment fraud that use gamification techniques to string victims along. They’re on the rise. The FTC recorded 20,000 cases in the first half of 2024 alone, versus 5,000 in the whole of 2023. They may differ in small details, but all work something like this:

1. You are approached via an unsolicited text message (WhatsApp, Telegram etc), SMS or social media message.
2. The scammer promises easy money performing straightforward online tasks in return for a handsome renumeration. According to the FTC, they may mention “product boosting” or “app optimization tasks,” but in general remain hazy about the details.
3. If you sign up, you’ll be asked to perform mundane tasks such as “liking” online content or clicking various combinations of buttons on a fake site/app. The site/app itself may even be a spoofed version of a legitimate website like Temu.
4. You will be able to view your ‘earnings’ as you go.
5. Although these earnings will initially increase, there will be a point at which the app or your scammer requires you to “charge up” or “level up” your account, or “unlock your earnings” by paying into the fund, usually via cryptocurrency.
6. This is what the whole scam is really about. Once you pay, your money disappears and you’ll have no way to recoup those fake earnings.
7. Reports suggest that, to persuade you to hand crypto over to the scammers, they may invite you to a group chat to hear from peers who have successfully made money this way. In fact, these people are also fraudsters.

The bigger picture: other employment scams

Task scams are not the only trick employment fraudsters can play on you. Look out for the following ways scammers try to get hold of your personal information and/or money:

• Fake job ads (sometimes on legitimate recruitment sites) which are designed to lure you into applying. They want your personal info and may also ask for a fee for made-up reasons like admin, training, police checks etc
• Unsolicited messages reaching you in the same way as the task scam above, but with attractive job opportunities from someone posing as a recruitment agent. They will also try to harvest personal info and money
• If you post your CV on a recruitment site, the scammers could also find and reply to you that way. Once again, they want your money and personal information

Keeping the scammers at bay

Fortunately, it’s not hard to keep these fraudsters at arm’s length, if you bear in mind a few things.

Remember the warning signs from the examples above, and:

• Never reply to unsolicited job offers. Legitimate recruiters will reach out via proper channels
• If you are approached after posting a CV to a job site, research the company/agent and search for any online mentions they may have in connection with scams
• Remember that if a job offer is too good to be true, it probably is
• If there’s no formal interview process, that should also raise some red flags
• Never pay any money upfront for a prospective job. Legitimate recruiters will never ask you to do so
• Never share sensitive personal or financial information with ‘recruiters’ that reach out to you on unofficial channels. They may want it to sell to fraudsters, or use themselves for identity fraud

Falling for a task scam might seem far-fetched, but the truth is that these con tricks usually play out over a period of days, and the gamification element can really suck you in. It’s not uncommon for some victims to end up losing a fortune. Make sure you’re not one of them.