Fake Profiles for Scamming & Phishing

As we build our Thrivacy wallet, we have been studying identity and how people develop trust between individuals and businesses. For example, our university students get very nervous (especially women) when they are carded at restaurants and bars.

This is twofold - on one hand, the individual asks, "Will the bouncer, waiter, or bartender accept my ID as a trusted source that shows I am of age to order an adult beverage?" especially with the prevalence of Fake IDs around campuses; and

On the other hand of the trust equation, the individual is asking, "Can I trust the bouncer, waiter, or bartender to not use my personal information shown on my ID such as my real name, my home address, and my actual birthday for other purposes like stealing my identity or worse, stalking me?"

The release of Personal Identity Information (PII) is a real problem both online and off. We have developed the technology today to be able to protect our PII while still building trust with others we don't know well yet. You can learn all about that at our website, Thrivacy.io

For today's article, we wanted to focus on the trustworthiness of LinkedIn Profiles. I recently came across this detailed experiential article by Bruce Johnston about his research into fake profiles on LinkedIn. He was perplexed about the problem of so many fake people asking to connect with him that he purposely put himself out there to attract new connections and compare how many were so alike they had to be faked. The article talks about how he shared his results with LinkedIn and what they did about his specific reports.

Research conducted in 2019 shows how they believed that upwards of 21 million profiles were found to be fake. Why would anyone want to fake a profile on LinkedIn? Well, the same reason they want to fake a Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or Pinterest account, to steal your identity or defraud you out of your hard-earned money.

You all realize how they could defraud you of your money, but what most LI users don't realize, especially job seekers, is that identity thieves create fake profiles, then fake companies, and post fake jobs so you will apply for their job. When you apply for their job, you are sending them all your personal identity information (PII). You may not send your social security number yet or specifics about who you are, so they then conduct fake interviews taking you through the whole process of reeling you into their realm.

Then, they offer you the job and ask you to submit all your important personal details saying that they now have to check the validity of your credentials, right to work, criminal background, credit report, social media reputation, and social security number. Once you do all this, they disappear!

The next thing you know, your tax refund from the IRS has already been claimed, the deed to your home has been transferred to someone else without your knowledge and they have taken a mortgage against it, and you now have a brand new car in their driveway. Oh, and your bank accounts have been drained.

This stuff really happens!

So, how do we counter such things? Well, by securing our identity and taking control of our PII in a format where no employer ever has to ask for your PII again. The public data you share is already verified and made immutable (can't be changed even by you) and can be proven by the scan of a QR code. Your critical PII is kept secret, because of what is called Zero Knowledge Proof where you can prove you have a social security number, a great credit report, a good driving record, etc. all without the employer actually getting access to that information.

How do we do this? By adopting a Self Sovereign Identity digital wallet and going through the process of verifying all your PII before you start searching for a job. All your experience is turned into a permanent record you hold in your personal wallet and can be proven anytime you wish by having the employer scan a series of QR codes leveraging blockchain technology to prove the information is true and has not been changed or edited since it was verified by the issuer (college, former employer, DMV, professional association, state law offices, etc.).

Now, a scammer can't steal your identity by spoofing you into a job search that is fake and specifically designed to create a false reality so you will share your personal data and PII.

Let me know if you have ever come across such a scheme in your job search or other interactions while using LinkedIn, Indeed, or any other job site.

Be careful out there,

DrJ