Work-from-home and side gig scams: red flags and what to do

Pattern 1: the fake check

The FTC describes the fake check scam this way: someone you do not know sends you a check, often for more than you are owed, and asks you to send some of the money back or on to someone else. The explanation varies: buying equipment from a "vendor," covering supplies for a caregiving job, paying fees or correcting an overpayment. When the bank later discovers the check is fake, the scammer already has the money you sent, and the bank expects you to repay the amount you withdrew.

A deposited check can show as available before it has truly cleared. Available funds do not mean the check is good. If any job involves receiving a check and sending money elsewhere, stop.

Pattern 2: task scams

The FTC has highlighted "task scams," in which people are recruited for online work such as rating products or "optimizing" apps. Early tasks may show small earnings in an online account. Then the worker is told to deposit their own money, often in cryptocurrency, to unlock more tasks or withdraw earnings. The earnings were never real, and the deposits are lost. Any job that requires you to pay to keep working or to withdraw your pay is a scam.

Pattern 3: unsolicited offers by text or chat

Many scams start with a message: "We saw your resume" or "Remote position available, earn daily." Warning signs include:

• you never applied to the company,
• the "recruiter" moves you quickly to a messaging app,
• there is no interview, or only a text-based one,
• the pay is unusually high for simple work,
• they want personal details, a copy of your ID or bank information immediately.

The FTC notes, in its guidance on caregiver job scams, that being hired without a real interview is a warning sign, and that even an interview does not guarantee a job is genuine.

Pattern 4: pay-to-start schemes

Some offers require you to buy a starter kit, training, certification or software before you can earn. Others promise that you will earn mainly by recruiting other people. Be very cautious with any opportunity where your main cost comes before any real customer pays you, and where earnings claims are vague or rely on testimonials you cannot verify.

Pattern 5: reshipping and money moving

Jobs that ask you to receive packages at home and reship them, or to receive money into your account and transfer it on, can involve stolen goods or laundered money. Even if you are deceived, you can face serious problems with your bank and possibly with law enforcement. Decline any "job" whose core task is moving goods or money for people you have not verified.

How to check an offer

Before you share anything or accept:

1. Search the company name, the recruiter's email address, phone number and even a sentence from the message together with words like "scam," "complaint" or "fraud." The FTC recommends this step.
2. Contact the company independently using contact details from its official website, not from the message, and ask whether the job exists.
3. Ask for details in writing: duties, pay, hours and the employer's legal name. Refusal is a red flag.
4. Never pay for a job, equipment you must buy from their chosen vendor or access to "tasks."
5. Do not send money by gift card, wire transfer or cryptocurrency to anyone connected to a job. The FTC is clear that an employer asking for this is a scam.
6. Protect your information. Give your Social Security number and bank details only after you have verified the employer and you are completing real onboarding.

If you already engaged

Act quickly:

• Stop sending money and stop communicating with the scammer.
• Contact your bank or payment provider right away and explain what happened. Ask whether a transfer can be stopped or reversed.
• Report it at ReportFraud.ftc.gov and to your state attorney general. Tell the website or platform where you found the offer. If a check came by U.S. mail, the FTC suggests filing a complaint with the U.S. Postal Inspection Service.
• If you shared personal information such as your Social Security number, go to IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan.
• Keep records of messages, the job post and payment receipts.

Being targeted is not a personal failing. These schemes are designed by people who do it full time.

Safer ways to find extra income

The safest side income usually starts with people and places you can verify: local customers you meet, established platforms with clear payment protection, and work you can describe in a written agreement. Our notes on choosing a side hustle, finding a first customer and getting clients on a freelance marketplace explain how to test real demand without paying anyone for the privilege. The shorter avoid scams note keeps the key warning signs on one page.