The tool uses transparent, deterministic browser-side rules. It does not use a proprietary fraud database, background-check service, or hidden AI model to declare a job legitimate or fraudulent.
What the tool evaluates
| Area | What is reviewed | How to interpret it |
|---|---|---|
| Safety signals | Payment requests, cryptocurrency, check-funded purchases, gift cards, task-style work, unexpected WhatsApp/Telegram outreach, sensitive-data requests, and similar indicators. | These rules are informed by FTC and FBI/IC3 consumer guidance. Strong signals raise the urgency of independent verification. |
| Remote-job clarity | Eligible work location, employee/contractor status, pay structure, expected hours/time zone, and equipment policy. | These are clarity checks, not fraud indicators. A legitimate role can still be poorly explained. |
| Application readiness | Safety signals, whether the role was located on the official employer careers page, and how clear the core job terms are. | The result suggests a next step: normal caution, verify first, or pause and verify. It does not tell you whether a company is legitimate. |
Source mapping
Rules about unexpected messaging, paying to get paid, fake checks, task/“optimization” work, cryptocurrency payments, and early requests for sensitive information are based on paraphrased guidance from the Federal Trade Commission and the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. Full APA references are on the Sources page. (Federal Trade Commission, 2024, 2025, 2026; Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internet Crime Complaint Center, 2024.)
What the tool does not do
- It does not contact the employer or recruiter.
- It does not query government, credit, employment, criminal, domain-registration, or identity databases.
- It does not verify an email address, website ownership, recruiter identity, or job listing in real time.
- It does not provide legal, cybersecurity, financial, tax, career-placement, or employment advice.
- It does not produce a consumer report or background screening report.
Email-domain comparison
If you voluntarily enter both a recruiter email and an independently located company website, the app performs a simple text comparison between the two domains. A mismatch can occur for legitimate reasons—for example, an outside recruiting agency—so a mismatch is only a reason to verify, not proof of impersonation.
Privacy and analytics boundary
The review itself runs in the browser. The app has no account system, database, file upload, or server-side job-text analysis. If Vercel Web Analytics is enabled for the deployment, ordinary page-visit analytics may be collected by Vercel. This project does not intentionally send the pasted job text, recruiter email, company URL, checklist answers, or review result as custom analytics events. See Privacy.
Review maintenance
Job-scam tactics change. The methodology should be periodically reviewed against current primary sources. The tool was initially prepared and source-checked in October 2026.