Abu Dhabi: Applying for employment online can be very convenient for job-seekers looking to relocate to the UAE to provide their families with a higher standard of living.
However, fraudsters posing as seemingly legitimate companies and recruitment agencies have become increasingly convincing at posing as real institutions, making their e-scams more difficult to detect.
Recently, an Indian resident in Doha, R.V., who was looking for a job opportunity in the UAE, wrote to Gulf News about a job offer he had received from an educational facility in Abu Dhabi called Millennium International School.
An e-mail which came through from a supposed travel agency called Greenland Travel had raised a few red flags in R.V.’s mind because it not only required him to send them a copy of his passport, two passport size photographs and to complete a visa form attached in the e-mail, but also asked R.V. to send them a ‘pre-requisite processing fee’ of $250 (Dh918) for a work permit, $150 (Dh551) for courier dispatch, $450 (Dh1,653) for a residence permit, $250 (Dh918) for entry clearance, and $350 (Dh1,286) for a release document.
The total request added up to $1,450 (Dh5,326) which was requested to be transferred via Western Union.
Beware teachers, this school doesn't exist
However, a quick internet search revealed that no such school exists in Abu Dhabi.
Attempts by Gulf News to reach the company for comment were unsuccessful as of press time on Thursday.
Two websites — www.greenlandstravels.com and www.milenniumschools.com — were still operational as of yesterday.
“Please be informed that the below mentioned offer is fake. Kindly inform the recipient of the job offer to ignore it,” the Indian Workers Resource Centre (IWRC) at the Indian Embassy told Gulf News.
In fact, the Indian Embassy in the UAE has been attempting to raise awareness on combating fraudulent job offers by asking people to check the validity of the employer through the recently launched e-Migrate system accessible on www.emigrate.gov.in.
The ‘recruitment agency’ had exerted extensive efforts to appear legitimate, including setting up a website, creating a logo with Arabic letters that did not read from right to left, adding pictures and even creating a fake location which used terms like ‘near’ an Abu Dhabi-based hotel and attaching a map.
Similarly, the ‘school’s’ website also had the same warning signs: a vague address, a poorly written Arabic logo and poor use of English. Clicking further into staff members’ details inevitably takes users to a dead end.
A reverse image search showed that the school’s ‘chairman’ is in fact a US-based doctor whose picture was stolen and placed on the fake website which claims to be ‘hiring’ on its main page.
Due to an apparently high number of fraudulent emails that are sent out to unsuspecting job seekers, the recruitment website, www.timesjobs.com, from which Millennium International School claimed to have got R.V.’s resume from, has a full page dedicated to notify visitors about fake vacancies.
A full list of the warnings can be accessed at http://ae.timesjobs.com//candidate/fraudAlert.html
The Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec) and the Ministry of Interior were not immediately available for comment although residents are urged to report suspected fraud to authorities.
Another job seeker, D.S., also contacted Gulf News about a so-called job offer as Dean of Student Affairs at the non-existent Millennium International School.
Dated August 23, 2015, the offer letter included the working hours and starting date.
“On this date, you are to report at 10am to the Human Resources Department, where you will be provided with a packet containing information on the Millennium international School. Benefits, facilities and services as well as to attend an orientation programme before job commencement,” the electronic document said.
The email sent to D.S., also requested that he contact ‘Greenland Travel’ to submit the necessary papers to receive his resident visa.
“This is in line with the Expatriate statuary [sic] Law of UAE in compliance with the UN Terrorism Act,” the email read.
The school’s e-mail signature also contains a vague location on ‘Al Reen Island Shams Area’, which sounds very similar to the Al Shams towers located on Al Reem Island in Abu Dhabi.
