Job Seekers in the UAE are being targeted by sophisticated scammers. Recently, we’ve noticed a new scam spreading via WhatsApp, targeting unsuspecting individuals.
Here’s what to watch out for:
- Scammers may contact you on WhatsApp, pretending to be from SVA Recruitment or pretending to be one of our real staff, offering job opportunities or extra income in by liking videos on platforms like YouTube or TikTok.
- They’ll request screenshots as proof of your work and then ask for your bank details.
- After sending a small amount of money (e.g., 10 AED), they’ll ask for proof of receipt and invite you to a Telegram or WhatsApp group.
- In this group, they’ll promise deposits and share content from fake personas.
If you think you may have been affected by this scam, please report to the relevant authorities and get in touch with us. We’re dedicated to resolving any issues promptly and transparently.
How to verify if a message is really from us:
1. Silicon Valley Associates Recruitment’s team intentionally uses only ONE local WhatsApp Number for any business conducted in the UAE and the three other countries we operate in at the time of writing this (May 2022). These numbers are:
- Hong Kong: +852 6700 6472
- Singapore: +65 9806 8116
- Dubai, United Arab Emirates: +971 58 586 4016
- Shanghai, China: +86 1951 871 5905
If it is not from a WhatsApp number mentioned above, it’s not from us!
2. Additionally, Silicon Valley Associates Recruitment uses only ONE WeChat account (ID: SVARecruitment), and DOES NOT use any Telegram account.
If the WeChat account is not ID ‘SVARecruitment’, or any Telegram account, it is not from us!
3. Furthermore, all Silicon Valley Associates Recruitment business is always conducted using ONLY our company email domain: @svarecruitment.com.
If the email domain is not ‘@svarecruitment.com’, it is not from us!
4. Lastly, Silicon Valley Associates Recruitment never asks, demands or requests for any payment from job seekers as part of ANY recruitment process.
We advise you to please do NOT respond, avoid any communication with such individuals and or whoever else they introduce to you on the same day, and do NOT click on any links or attachments within messages.
Staying Vigilant
We finally wanted to share several general tips that will help you protect yourself against potential scammers who may also claim to be any other recruitment firms:
- Professional recruiters will never ask for any form of payment as part of the recruitment process.
- Professional recruiters will never use emails from personal domains such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, or any other free online mail services to communicate with jobseekers
Always verify the authenticity of requests for confidential information - Take extra precautions, especially when receiving unsolicited messages from unverified individuals
To verify the authenticity of a message, email or phone call that you receive from an individual claiming to be an employee of a certain company, go online to their corporate website and send a WhatsApp message or call their advertised number (do NOT rely on social media which can be falsified) - Professional recruiters should not ask for confidential personal information during the very initial stage of the recruitment process.
Other steps you can take:
If you do receive what you suspect are scam calls or messages from fraudulent individuals claiming to represent any recruitment firm, you can file a report with the Dubai Police, and share the details of that individual’s account, phone number etc.
Yours Sincerely,
Vahid Haghzare
Managing Director