Fake Remote Job Offers: The Fake Cheque and "Buy Your Equipment" Scam

Short answer: if a remote "employer" interviews you only by text chat, hires you within days, then sends a cheque or payment and asks you to buy laptops or software from their "approved vendor", it is a fake job. The payment will bounce or be reversed and the money you sent the vendor is gone. Real employers do not ask you to pay for equipment and send money onwards. Verify the recruiter through the company's own website before you share any documents.

How the fake cheque equipment scam works

1. The job. You see an advert on a job board, LinkedIn, Facebook or a WhatsApp group, or a "recruiter" messages you first. The roles sound real: data entry, customer support, virtual assistant, payroll clerk, remote analyst. Pay is good but not crazy.
2. The interview. Instead of a video call, you are asked to "interview" by text on Telegram, Signal, WhatsApp, Google Chat or a Microsoft Teams chat. You answer typed questions. There is no face, no voice and no phone call with a real manager.
3. The offer. Within hours or days you get an offer letter with a real company's logo, a start date and a salary in dollars or pounds. They ask for your ID, address and bank details "for payroll".
4. The payment. They send a cheque, a mobile deposit, a bank transfer or a PayPal payment, and tell you to use it to buy your work laptop, phone or software, but only from their "approved vendor". The vendor wants payment by bank transfer, MoMo, gift cards, Zelle, Cash App or crypto.
5. The bounce. You pay the vendor from your own money while the cheque "clears". Days or weeks later the bank finds the cheque is fake, or the transfer is reversed. You owe the bank, the vendor has vanished and the job never existed.

The FTC describes exactly this: a $4,000 cheque, $3,000 to be sent back for equipment that never comes, and a victim left $3,000 in debt when the bank finds the cheque is fake. Its rule is that no honest employer will send you a cheque and ask you to buy supplies and return what is left. Money showing as "available" in your account does not mean the cheque is good.

Versions you will see in Ghana and Nigeria

Cheques are less common in West Africa, so scammers adapt the trick:

• "Buy the laptop from our partner and we will refund you with your first salary." You pay by MoMo or bank transfer and never hear from them again.
• Fake payment screenshots and alerts. They send a screenshot of a transfer to you, then ask you to forward part of it. Your real balance never changed. Read how to spot a fake MoMo or bank alert.
• Using your account as a "payment processor". They send money into your account and ask you to pass it on. This can make you a money mule, moving stolen funds, which can get your account frozen and put you in trouble with the police.
• International jobs with "processing fees". Visa, permit or medical fees for a job abroad. See our guide to fake job offers in Ghana.

Why the offers look like real companies

Scammers copy real firms because you will trust the name. They lift logos, addresses and job descriptions from genuine careers pages. They use email addresses that look close to the real domain, such as the company name with "-careers", "-hr" or "-jobs" added, or a free Gmail or Outlook address. Some build full copy websites.

Many genuine companies now publish recruitment fraud notices. Indeed, for example, says it does not interview candidates only by text chat or email, and that its recruiting emails come from @indeed.com addresses, while scammers use lookalikes such as @indeed-careers.com. Other firms say they never interview over Telegram or WhatsApp. If a company has such a notice, it is usually on its careers page.

The FBI's June 2024 warning on fake work-from-home jobs said scammers often pose as staffing or recruiting firms and contact people unprompted. Its advice: never send money to an alleged employer, and do not send financial or personal information to people making unsolicited job offers.

How to verify a recruiter

1. Find the company yourself. Search for the company's official website. Do not use links from the message. Look for the job on its careers page.
2. Contact the company directly. Use the phone number or email on the official website and ask: "Is this person one of your recruiters, and is this role real?" The FTC advises contacting the company through details you know are real.
3. Check the email domain. The address should end in the company's real domain. A Gmail, Yahoo or Outlook address, or a lookalike domain, is a strong warning.
4. Check the recruiter on LinkedIn. Open their profile, tap More, then About this profile. LinkedIn shows when the account was created and whether it has verified a workplace or identity. A recruiter account a few weeks old with few connections is a warning. Some job posts and recruiters carry a LinkedIn verification badge, but LinkedIn says a missing badge does not on its own mean a post is fake.
5. Insist on a voice or video call. A real employer will speak to you. Refusing to call, or a call where the camera is "broken", is a warning.
6. Ask for the contract before you share ID. You should not need to send Ghana Card, passport or bank details until you have a written offer you have verified with the company.

How to verify the company

• In Ghana: check the business with the Office of the Registrar of Companies (orc.gov.gh). For agencies recruiting for jobs abroad, check with the Labour Department, because private employment agencies must be licensed under Ghana's Labour Act.
• In Nigeria: use the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) public search on the CAC website.
• In the UK: search Companies House. In the US: search the secretary of state's business registry for the state the company says it is in.
• Look up the website's age. Use a WHOIS tool such as ICANN Lookup (lookup.icann.org). A "global company" whose site was registered last month is a red flag.
• Search the name with "scam". Also search the recruiter's phone number and email address.

What to do if you already paid or deposited a cheque

1. Stop. Do not send any more money, even if they say the vendor "needs one more payment".
2. Call your bank or MoMo provider now. Tell them it is fraud. Ask them to stop or reverse any transfer and to flag the receiving account. If you deposited a cheque, tell the bank before you spend any of it.
3. Protect your identity. If you sent your ID or bank details, tell your bank, change your passwords and watch for loans or accounts opened in your name.
4. Report it. In Ghana, call or text the Cyber Security Authority on 292 and report to the Ghana Police Service. In Nigeria, report to the police and the EFCC. In the US, report to ReportFraud.ftc.gov and ic3.gov. In the UK, use reportfraud.police.uk. Report the fake job post to the job board or LinkedIn as well.

Got a recruiter's number or email? Check a number, handle or website on TrustCheck first, and report it if they tried to scam you. For a step-by-step checklist, read is this online job real?