Professionals across the UK are being targeted by a highly sophisticated and convincing new scam operating brazenly on LinkedIn, turning the platform's job-seeking community into a hunting ground for fraudsters.
The elaborate con involves fake profiles, posing as reputable CV writers and career coaches, who use AI-generated content and stolen testimonials to appear legitimate. They specifically target active job seekers, offering 'premium', 'industry-tailored' CV services for fees ranging from £100 to over £500.
How the Elaborate Scam Operates
The fraud follows a calculated pattern:
- The Approach: A seemingly legitimate connection request or message arrives from a profile with a professional headshot, a well-written bio, and a substantial network.
- The Build-Up: The scammer engages in detailed conversation about the victim's career goals, building rapport and trust over several days.
- The Offer: They pitch a bespoke CV writing service, often claiming to have insider knowledge of specific sectors like tech, finance, or law.
- The Disappearance: Once payment is received via bank transfer or non-secure methods, the scammer vanishes. The promised CV is never delivered, and the profile is deleted or becomes unresponsive.
Why This Scam Is So Effective
This isn't a crude phishing email. The criminals invest significant time in creating a believable facade.
- AI-Powered Content: Profiles and messages are often crafted using AI tools to avoid the grammatical errors that typically betray scams.
- Stolen Social Proof: They loot genuine testimonials from legitimate career websites to populate their fake profiles.
- Psychological Targeting: They exploit the vulnerability and urgency of those desperately seeking new employment.
How to Protect Yourself from CV Fraud
Experts advise a healthy dose of scepticism. Always verify the legitimacy of a service provider. Check for a physical business address, a landline phone number, and verifiable reviews on independent sites like Trustpilot. Be extremely wary of anyone who insists on payment via bank transfer instead of a secure card payment system.
If an offer seems too good to be true, it almost certainly is. A genuine, high-quality CV service will never need to aggressively hunt for clients via unsolicited messages on professional networks.
If you suspect you have been targeted, report the profile to LinkedIn immediately and contact your bank if you have sent any money. Awareness is the most powerful tool to combat this growing threat to UK professionals.
