Woman reveals she was scammed by a LINKEDIN job listing, detailing how she was conned into sending over private information – as she warns others how to avoid the same online tricks

• Callie Heim, 22, from Baltimore, took to TikTok to reveal how she was scammed by a fake LinkedIn post, which saw con artists posing as a real company
• She explained in a series of viral videos that she applied to the job through easy apply because it seemed like the perfect posting but was ‘too good to be true’
• The scammers were posing as driving tech company Waymo and used messaging platform Wire to conduct a fake interview and offer Callie a job 
• Callie’s boyfriend was the one who alerted her of the scam after the company tried to convince her to purchase a laptop, promising they’d reimburse her 
• The video series went viral and users were quick to rush to the 22-year-old’s side as they offered their support and advice as she continues her job search

A recent college graduate has detailed her experience of getting scammed by a LinkedIn job posting that promised her the social media management job she had always dreamed of – only for her to discover it was actually a con to steal her money. 

Callie Heim, 22, from Baltimore, Maryland, graduated from Towson University last May and was excited to begin her job search, but was quickly disheartened when her ‘perfect’ job turned out to be a nightmare. 

In a series of TikTok videos, which have garnered over 200,000 views collectively, Callie detailed how she was swindled through the fake job listing while offering advice to others so that they can avoid the same fate. 

Callie Heim, 22, from Baltimore, Maryland, took to TikTok to reveal she was scammed by a fraud LinkedIn job posing as a real company

She explained in a series of viral videos that she applied to the job through easy apply because it seemed like the perfect job but was ‘too good to be true’

The scammers were posing as driving tech company Waymo and used messaging platform Wire to conduct a fake interview and offer Callie a job

truly a humbling experience #scam #linkedin #linkedinscam #wire #fakejobposting #beware

The 22-year-old began by applying to an array of different jobs through LinkedIn’s easy apply option and was ecstatic when she finally received an interview from what she believed to be driving technology company Waymo. 

In the beginning of video, Callie admitted: ‘It was humbling and really embarrassing. 

‘I’ve been wanting to make a video about it for a while…I’ve decided I want to do that now to spread awareness and so this doesn’t happen to somebody else.’

She then explains that while applying to jobs, she came across what she thought was the perfect job. 

She noted it had great benefits, flexible hours and wonderful pay.

Callie applied through easy apply and received an interview request a few days later. 

To conduct the interview, the recent college graduate explained that the company asked her to download the messaging app Wire. 

While reflecting back to the experience in her video, she admitted that it was the first of many red flags. 

Callie didn’t pay much attention to the odd request at the time because the company claimed they were a ‘futuristic’ company, so they were straying away from the cookie-cutter ways of conducting interviews. 

During the interview, Callie noted the company promised her a phone, printer and laptop for work and even asked her specific questions about social media management. 

‘I’m excited. They pretty much gave me the job after a day of talking to them further which, again, is a red flag, but at the time I didn’t realize,’ she said in her video. 

In her first follow-up video, she explained that her boyfriend helped her realize it was a scam since she was blinded by her excitement. 

She explained: ‘It’s not LinkedIn’s fault. 

‘Somebody was impersonating an HR person from a company that already had a job posting on LinkedIn so they literally made their account look exactly like that one so it looked very legit.’ 

She added that the job ‘seemed too good to be true,’ but was naïve. 

After formally being offered the job, the company requested Callie send over her bank information such as her routing number and account number as well as her personal identification forms. 

Once she sent over her private information, the company requested she purchase a laptop, promising to reimburse her after the fact. 

‘Immediately the alarm bells started going off. However, I was so excited about this job that I was like ”hmmm, let me see it through”.’

Although Callie had yet to purchase the laptop, the company sent her the check promising to reimburse her for her purchase, a check which she said was clearly ‘photoshopped.’ 

After receiving the check, Callie alerted her boyfriend Tommy Gould, 24, who works in cybersecurity. 

Tommy took a closer look at the job listing and after a bit of research, he found out that Callie wasn’t the first to have been fooled by the fraud job listing, adding that it was a well-known scam. 

The Wire site even gives a warning of the scam, the warning reads: ‘The most frequent scam we are aware of that involves Wire is a job applications scam. 

‘Fraudsters impersonate large organizations and offer jobs or interviews over messaging platforms such as Wire. 

‘Most often the victim is someone who would become a remote working employee. 

However, once the company asked the 22-year-old to purchase a laptop and promised to reimburse her by sending her a check, she alerted her boyfriend who found out it was a scam

The Wire site even gives a warning of the scam, the warning reads: ‘The most frequent scam we are aware of that involves Wire is a job applications scam’

Callie ended the viral series by noting that not only did the experience dishearten her, but it was also embarrassing as she had already told her friends and family about her new job

‘They get offered the job and are then asked to buy a laptop and mobile through a portal that is setup by the fraudster under the promise that they will be reimbursed when joining the company. 

‘The reality is that there is no job, the interviewee never receives the laptop or mobile, and the fraudster has collected the money and closed their Wire account.’

Callie ended the viral series by noting that not only did the experience dishearten her, but it was also embarrassing as she had already told her friends, family and LinkedIn connections about her new job. 

‘It was definitely humbling because I had already posted on LinkedIn and was like ”oh, this is my new job.” All my old coworkers and everyone was like ”oh congrats!” she said. ‘Yeah. It was very embarrassing.’

She added: ‘They definitely didn’t financially scam me but they did emotionally scam me.

‘The way I was so excited for that job…The best thing that could’ve happened to me is I get a job fresh out of college.’

She then explained that she had closed her bank account after realizing the job was a fraud and luckily hadn’t sent over her social security number,.  

Users were quick to rush to the 22-year-old’s side as they offered their support and advice as she continues her job search. 

Users were quick to rush to the 22-year-old’s side as they offered their support and advice as she continues her job search

One user said: ‘Job process is stressful enough – and now we have to worry about scammers?! I’m so sorry’ 

Another added: ‘You need to freeze your credit. In case they try to open up accounts under your name.’ 

‘They can’t access your money just from having your account info, but make sure you freeze your credit or sign up for Norton or other ID protection,’ said another user. 

One user wrote:  ‘I had a crazy job situation happen to me about 4 years ago – a much better one came along and I’ve been there since. Don’t worry it’s coming love.’ 

‘No I’m so sorry. Thank you for sharing this it helps more than you know,’ added one user. 

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