Privacy Protections for Online Job Seekers
If you are looking for a job, you certainly want lots of potential employers to know about your skills. Posting your resume on line is a growing way to get your name out there. But you also face some risks that your name and personal information will get to places you never intended.
Your resume has almost all the information an identity thief would love to know about you. Your name and contact information, dates and places of past employment, salary history, and even where you are looking for a new job, have great value to thieves.
Post only to sites that allow you to mask your contact information. You want employers who are interested in your resume to know how to contact you. But you don't want anyone who happens to go online to learn your life history and how to get in touch with you. Consider using a disposable email address, a post office box, and office (rather than home) telephone number so you have more control over who contacts you. Do your references a big favor; don't include their contact information either.
Never post your Social Security number or date of birth. You can give it to your employer after you have had the interview or gotten the new job.
Don't be fooled by someone who says they will offer you a job, but needs more information first. If someone calls or emails asking for your Social Security number, mother's maiden name, birth date, or any financial information, don't respond. You can answer when you get to the interview. The call is probably from a thief seeking that next bit of information to make it easier to steal your identity.
You also want to select a site that you trust to protect your privacy. Read the site's privacy policy before posting your resume. Find out what the site will do with your information and how long it will store your resume. It's one thing to get good exposure among potential employers; it's another to get a sudden barrage of spam emails. Before you post anything, print and keep copy of the site's policy with your records. Keep track of when and where you post your resume.
Before you post anything, find out how you can delete your resume. It belongs to you and you want to be able to get it back. You don't want an old resume floating around in cyberspace after you have gotten your new job.
Online postings can get captured by other companies who want to sell you resume-writing services, or even help you sell your house. Beyond the bother of marketing email you need to sift through, beware of vague job offers or requests to resubmit your resume. At best you are wasting your time or losing control over who is seeing your resume; at worst it's an identity thief on the attack.
AARP Resources
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Identity Theft Exposed
Learn how to protect your identity from being stolen. -
Finding a Job
AARP has tons of information for job seekers - from links to our National Employer Team who is eager for mature workers to interview and resume tips. - Work-at-Home Scams Who wouldn't want to be their own boss and make lots of easy money. But don't believe the unrealistic pitches and learn how to spot the schemes.
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Check Your Credit Report
Periodically check your credit report to spot for possible identity theft.
Other Resources
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Federal Trade Commission
If you believe a site is not adhering to its privacy policy and misusing information about you, complain to the Federal Trade Commission. - Forward Spam to the Federal Trade Commission: Getting overwhelmed with unwanted emails? Forward your deceptive spam to spam@uce.gov.
- Privacy Rights Clearinghouse Many resources on privacy and identity theft.
