Staying Safe Online While Job Hunting

Freelance writer Jocaster Morrison discusses the importance of how you can stay safe when job hunting online… 

“Data breaches are becoming far too commonplace in society with UK internet users having experienced enormous privacy violation in recent years.  While only major breaches such as the one during which 100 million Quora accounts were compromised may make the headlines, countless privacy invasions take place on the internet on a daily basis. Although the internet has transformed the way individuals search for jobs, the risk of falling victim to data breaches and scammers have increased over recent years. If you want to benefit from the convenience of online job searching without falling victim to an array of fraudsters, there are a few basic safety guidelines you need to adhere to at all times.

Be careful when sharing your personal info

Even though it may be necessary to disclose some basic personal information when searching for a job, there are some details you should omit at all times. No legitimate employer or recruitment agency will ever ask you for any bank account details or insurance numbers when you apply for a job. Scammers are known to post bogus job adverts on genuine websites in a bid to attain sensitive information from the applicants. Also be extremely wary of any emails you receive from what may appear to be a well-known organisation, requesting details to process a job application they have received from you. As exciting as it may be to receive a lucrative job offer it is important to remember that, unless you have applied for a job, chances of you being recruited by anyone let alone an esteemed establishment are virtually non-existent.

Maximize your privacy settings and use a VPN

Even if you have flagged a website as legitimate, it is important to make use of proper security settings to ensure that your online security is not compromised in any way.  Most trustworthy sites will either give you the option to choose what details to display or, by default, hide your personal details from public view. If you want to up your internet security even more, especially when making use of public networks, make use of a trusted Virtual Private Network (VPN) that will keep your sensitive information private and protected. By making use of a VPN you will significantly decrease the risk of your online activity and personal information being tracked by less-than-honest individuals.

Other safety precautions to take

Apart from not sharing your personal info online, maximizing your security settings and making use of a VPN where possible, you can take a few other steps to ensure you stay safe online while looking for a job.  Be very careful of whom you interact with on social media platforms including Facebook and LinkedIn as there are many fraudsters posing as recruiters.  A good idea is always to create a separate email address to use solely for job hunting purposes.  Not only will this prevent your regular inbox being filled to the brim with job alerts but it will also keep all your personal details associated with your email address safe.

Online security while searching for a job is of the utmost importance. By taking the necessary precautions you can avoid having your personal information accessed and used for any untoward things.” 

ISO 9001 Accreditation,

At Zenopa, we carry an ISO 9001 accreditataion, and have yearly audit checks so you can be assured that any data is protected accross all the sectors we specialise in recruiting for.

If you would like to find out more about the job opportunities we have available in Service Engineering, Pharmaceutical, Over the Counter (Consumer), Scientific, Medical Devices, Laboratory, Physics, Chemistry, Dental, Animal Health and Healthcare Communications sectors, you can register your details, search the latest jobs,  send us a message, or call +44 (0) 1494 818 000.