Scam Type
Employment Scam
Date Reported
2023-04-13 00:00:00
Victim Postal Code
48094
Total Dollars Lost
0
Scam Description
The scammer initially contacted me by text message, claiming to be Michelle Young from Talanx Group. She informed me that she reviewed my resume on LinkedIn, and Talanx wanted to interview me for a position. She then told me to connect to the interviewer via Skype. When I connected to the interviewer she introduced herself as Helen Gibson, the online interview-manager for Talanx and that she would interview me via instant message. I went through a lengthy interview process (the entire process took about 3 and a half hours) that seemed legit at first. I was told my interview answers would be sent to the board of directors for review and after about a half hour she told me I got the job. She went through the next steps and let me know that they would be sending me a check in the mail for job materials. She asked for my name and address so she can send it, which I gave her. After that she asked if I would prefer to purchase the materials up front and be reimbursed so I could start training sooner. I agreed but instead of telling me specifically what I needed to purchase, after some back and forth conversation, ended up asking me for $500 to make a security payment to the vendor and to send it via Apple Pay, Venmo, or Zelle. That sounded fishy so I asked for the check instead. She said she would send me the check and when I receive the check to deposit it at an ATM so it clears faster. That is when I knew 100% that it was a scam because she does not want a bank teller to see the check and see that it is fake. Luckily the only information the scammer got was my name and address.
