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Questionable full-time job offer with prominent publisher
Thread poster: Clare Wilcox
Clare Wilcox
Clare Wilcox  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 06:26
French to English
+ ...
Sep 28, 2019

I received an email, supposedly from an HR recruiter for a major publishing house. They stated they had seen my profile on a regional professional association's website and wanted to encourage me to send my resume to them if I was interested in a full-time translator/interpreter position, flexible hours, online. This all seems like fantastic luck, but the email had a series of typos and punctuation errors, all very odd for a publisher. That, and the email address that I should respond to is a gm... See more
I received an email, supposedly from an HR recruiter for a major publishing house. They stated they had seen my profile on a regional professional association's website and wanted to encourage me to send my resume to them if I was interested in a full-time translator/interpreter position, flexible hours, online. This all seems like fantastic luck, but the email had a series of typos and punctuation errors, all very odd for a publisher. That, and the email address that I should respond to is a gmail address.

I have responded and they have written back (on a Saturday...) asking (again with typos) when I can do an interview via Google Hangouts. Here is the response:

"Thank you for your application regarding the position.

I am pleased to inform you that we would like to arrange an interview to discuss the opportunity further,It is an online interview;Via Google

Hangout.Do indicate availability time to schedule you for the interview.

We look forward to having you abroad."

To me, this all seems too informal and odd. Or am I being old fashioned, and Google Hangouts is a current interview channel?

Would appreciate any insight, and I'd be happy to share the contents, not names, of the original email.

Best,

Clare
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Edward Potter
Camille Haakanson
 
Thomas T. Frost
Thomas T. Frost  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 08:56
Danish to English
+ ...
Scam Sep 28, 2019

It sounds like all the other scams that have been reported recently, for example

...
See more
It sounds like all the other scams that have been reported recently, for example

https://www.proz.com/forum/scams/332845-new_scam_penguin_random_house.html
https://www.proz.com/forum/scams/335413-scam_penguin_random_house_bayer_pharma.html
https://www.proz.com/forum/scams/337165-new_scam_ariana_pharma.html

If something like that is sent from a Gmail, Outlook, Facebook, LinkedIn, company.com or similar address, i.e. not from the correct domain of a genuine company, it's best not to reply, as one risks ending up on a 'suckers list' of potential targets for more scams.

New scams are being reported almost daily.
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Clare Wilcox
Yolanda Broad
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
writeaway
Philippe Etienne
Alison Jenner
Kuochoe Nikoi-Kotei
 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 08:56
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
@Clare Sep 28, 2019

I've deleted my post as I was saying the same...


[Edited at 2019-09-28 19:12 GMT]


Clare Wilcox
Yolanda Broad
Liviu-Lee Roth
 
Clare Wilcox
Clare Wilcox  Identity Verified
Canada
Local time: 06:26
French to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Definitely a scam! Sep 28, 2019

Thank you for your replies! I can 100% confirm, reading these similar cases, that it was a scam! I looked up the name of the HR director, and she appears to exist, so I am going to try to let her know that someone is using her name and image. The scammer purported to be from Macmillan Publishers, in case any other translators are wondering.

Thanks for all your help!


Yolanda Broad
Vadim Kadyrov
Matthias Hirsh
Rachel Waddington
 
Nikki Scott-Despaigne
Nikki Scott-Despaigne  Identity Verified
Local time: 09:56
French to English
Trust your gut instincts in such cases Sep 29, 2019

Trust your instinct in such cases. If it is a genuine offer, they will find a genuine way to contact you. It is better to let a chance go by and protect yourself from a lot of hassle. If it feels dodgy, if it looks slightly off, it probably is.

Adam Warren
Clare Wilcox
Mr.Q
 
Edward Potter
Edward Potter  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 09:56
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Be careful Sep 30, 2019

The scammers have been out in full force lately.

Last week I got one from a major translation agency offering the moon on as stick. It sounded rather good, but alas, there was no phone number or physical address. But it sounded like a great job offer.


Clare Wilcox
 
Thomas T. Frost
Thomas T. Frost  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 08:56
Danish to English
+ ...
Doesn't sound like a major translation agency Sep 30, 2019

Edward Potter wrote:

Last week I got one from a major translation agency


I very much doubt that it came from a major translation agency. I guess you mean it pretended to come from a major translation agency.

It's not to nitpick, it's to highlight that we need to be very careful to distinguish between is and pretends to be. It's not always the same.


Liviu-Lee Roth
Edward Potter
Daryo
 
Edward Potter
Edward Potter  Identity Verified
Spain
Local time: 09:56
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
Correct Oct 8, 2019

Thomas T. Frost wrote:

Edward Potter wrote:

Last week I got one from a major translation agency


I very much doubt that it came from a major translation agency. I guess you mean it pretended to come from a major translation agency.

It's not to nitpick, it's to highlight that we need to be very careful to distinguish between is and pretends to be. It's not always the same.


I stand corrected. I got the message from someone POSING as someone from a major translation agency.

I meant it to be an ironic comment but didn't add the requisite quotes or similar.



Tom in London
 
Matthias Hirsh
Matthias Hirsh  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:56
Japanese to English
Got the same scam last week Dec 29, 2019

Clare Wilcox wrote:

Thank you for your replies! I can 100% confirm, reading these similar cases, that it was a scam! I looked up the name of the HR director, and she appears to exist, so I am going to try to let her know that someone is using her name and image. The scammer purported to be from Macmillan Publishers, in case any other translators are wondering.

Thanks for all your help!


I got the same Macmillan scam last week. Was your scammer "Kristen Pecci?" I've contacted Macmillan and am waiting to hear back.


 
Joanna Rhoads
Joanna Rhoads  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:56
Spanish to English
Received the same scam this week Jan 8, 2020

I just received the same scam email for a Remote Translator position with "Macmillan Publishers". They also used the name "Kristen Pecci". I'm thankful to have found this thread because, honestly, I was skeptical but after reading these comments, I can be assured it's a scam.

Thanks, everybody for the insight!


 
Teresa Johnson
Teresa Johnson
United States
Local time: 04:56
Member (2007)
Spanish to English
+ ...
I just received a similar scam email today, supposedly from the same person Jan 30, 2020

I was also tipped off by the grammatical errors in the email! Has anyone actually been able to contact the real person to let them know that someone is posing as her? From a cursory Google search, it seems that MacMillan Publishers is actually defunct.

Thanks to everyone for your sharp eye and contribution to the forum!


 
Patricia Redlin (X)
Patricia Redlin (X)
United States
Local time: 03:56
German to English
+ ...
Same scammers...using a different "HR Director" name Jul 16, 2020

I found a posting on guru.com for translation work. I sent a quote and was contacted by "Peter" who wanted me to email the HR Director, Philip Sargent, at MacMillan. Long story short - this scam is still going on but now with a different HR person's name.

Liviu-Lee Roth
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:56
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Google Hangouts is riddled with privacy and security concerns Jul 17, 2020

They want to get you on Google Hangouts so that they can get hold of all your data, contacts, bank details etc.

https://www.avg.com/en/signal/secure-message-apps



[Edited at 2020-07-17 07:29 GMT]


 
Ingrid Monterrrosa
Ingrid Monterrrosa
Mexico
Local time: 02:56
English to Spanish
+ ...
Got the same offer Jul 17, 2020

Patricia Redlin wrote:

I found a posting on guru.com for translation work. I sent a quote and was contacted by "Peter" who wanted me to email the HR Director, Philip Sargent, at MacMillan. Long story short - this scam is still going on but now with a different HR person's name.


I also got contacted on Guru by the same persons, one of them interviewed me by Skype (just by chat, no conference call) and it does sound too good to be true. They made a few questions and tomorrow they will confirm to me if they will hire me. But do you know how do they concrete the scam? What is their next step?


 
IrinaN
IrinaN
United States
Local time: 03:56
English to Russian
+ ...
Waiting for their next step?!?!? Jul 17, 2020

Ingrid Monterrrosa wrote:

They made a few questions and tomorrow they will confirm to me if they will hire me. But do you know how do they concrete the scam? What is their next step?


Ingrid, are you serious? You've read the forum and still hope that they are real and may hire you? Oh my... You should make that next step and block them from your Skype, email and phone ASAP.

Another next step would be to understand that email offers for full-time positions from the top world companies or publishing houses do not exist on this planet.


Liviu-Lee Roth
Patricia Redlin (X)
 
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Questionable full-time job offer with prominent publisher







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