Conducting a "Hall File Check:" How to Vet Your Future Employer to Avoid Scammers and Charlatans

by Melissa McDonough , Career Coach at National Security Career & Leadership Institute

Prior to working in the private sector, I spent the majority of my career in the Intelligence Community (IC) where I learned the value of conducting due diligence investigations on your employer.? In the IC, both government employees and contractors generally move around every two to three years.? While that may seem like a short time to some, this length of time can be absolutely miserable if you end up with a boring assignment or a bad boss. To avoid this, we conducted a “hall file check,” as we called it, to make sure that the manager or team had a good reputation, there were no major scandals in the office, and that the role would be a good fit.

I realized that this task was doubly important when I transitioned to the private sector.? In this industry, there is a plethora of individuals who attempt to start their own consulting firms with little to no relevant experience, touting an impressive government career with no way of anyone on the outside being able to corroborate their experience.? (Fun fact: the government will never verify your employment history if you do end up leaving the IC, so there is little stopping people from putting anything on their resume.)

As a career coach, I’ve seen a number of qualified intelligence practitioners almost get swindled by unsavory “intelligence” professionals who create their own websites and Wikipedia pages.? This article provides job seekers with a toolkit to vet and investigate private sector intelligence and investigations positions. ?

Tip 1: Look at the Website

The first step I take when evaluating any kind of new opportunity is to look at the company’s website.? (It goes without saying that any company or organization that does not have a website is an immediate red flag as this should be considered “table stakes” for any reputable business or organization.)?

Does the website look legitimate?? Does it look like someone slapped it together with a template?? Are there a lot of weird stock photos on the page?? Does the “contact us” page list a personal email address (i.e. at Gmail, Yahoo, etc.)?? Bottom line is that if you can reasonably recreate a similar site in a matter of 15 minutes, you should be on guard.

A List of Website Red Flags

?? ?The Website Looks Amateurish

I’ve seen many inexperienced security professionals try to slap together a website that embodies everything that they think looks cool (examples include: rockets, knights, military members, eagles, chess boards, or any other overly used, excessively masculine tropes that someone on the street might think of as impressive).? In honor of the Barbie movie, I designate these websites as “Mojo Dojo Casa” websites.

?? No Info on the Founders/Owners

The “about us” section of the website does not include any information on the owner or founder of the company.? I’ve seen several instances in which they may only be referred to with their last name (i.e. “Mr. Smith founded the company in 2008”).? While attempting to come across as “discrete” or “mysterious,” these companies may be just trying to obscure their founder’s information, especially if they have a scandalous past.

?? Mentions of Government Agencies

Some private security firms will brand themselves as a “private FBI” or “private CIA,” which should be considered an immediate red flag.? Double points if the individuals who run the company have never actually worked at any of those agencies.

Tip 2: Research the Founders or Executive Leadership Team

If you can find the name of the founder or CEO, it’s important to look past information provided on any sites like Wikipedia or LinkedIn, since anyone can make up this information.? A good practice is to Google the head of the company to identify any negative news.

Practical OSINT Techniques for Due Diligence Research

Here are some Boolean search techniques that can help you cut through the noise:

Finding Mentions of Criminal History

("First Name Last Name") and ("arrested" OR "charged" OR "indicted" OR "investigat*")?

Finding Mentions of HR or Legal Problems

(“Company Name” OR “First Name Last Name”) and (“whistleblower” OR “investigat*” OR “harassment” OR “misconduct” OR “class action” OR “lawsuit” OR “sued” OR “EEOC” OR “retaliation” OR “settlement” OR “probe”)

Excluding Wikipedia or LinkedIn Results

(add this to any search string)? -site:wikipedia.org? -site:linkedin.com

Tip 3: Trust Your Gut

The individuals I’ve known who got involved with a bad business or bad individual could see the red flags in hindsight.? Red flags can show up during the interview/hiring process, and can include the following.

1)??? Quick to an Offer: You may be offered a job after just one interview or prescreening call, with the recruiting or leadership team even trying to pressure you to take the position quickly.? It can be tempting to accept a job offer in this situation, but these situations do not usually end well.? Be hesitant to accept any offer that seems too good to be true.

2)??? Few Questions in the Interview: If the hiring manager spends more time trying to sell you on the company than asking questions about you, this should be considered a big red flag.? At best, they are trying to sell you on the opportunity and seal the deal quickly (see the previous red flag), or at worse, the hiring manager may have narcissistic tendencies and could be a nightmare to work for.

3)? Low Ball Salary: Any salary offer that’s about 50-60% lower than industry average should be considered an immediate red flag and likely a sign to walk away. For small businesses, this could indicate issues with cash flow.? Doubly worse is when the company states that the salary is only lower because they are offering you some kind of training program, if they offer stock options instead of salary, or if they promise to raise the salary after you've "paid off" the training you receive as part of the role. ?This is the private sector version of a multi-level marketing scam.

4)??? High Turnover: A LinkedIn search of the company shows a number of individuals who were previously hired at the company, but left shortly after starting.? Learn from others’ mistakes and avoid a team with a high turnover.??

5)??? Repeated Rescheduling the Interview: If a hiring manager has to reschedule an interview multiple times, that’s a good sign that they may be either highly disorganized or that they’re not considering the hiring process to be a priority.?? The same can be said with an employer ghosting someone after an interview – it might feel frustrating now, but this employer is telling you everything you need to know to avoid a bad move.

We're here to help if you have questions about whether a company or offer is legit. Reach out to [email protected] for an assessment or coaching advice.?