Careers

Recruitment Fraud

Please be advised of a scam currently circulating on various social media platforms, especially Telegram, that features someone impersonating a BASF hiring agent. The person makes an unsolicited job offer for a position in exchange for money to purchase work assets. BASF will never ask for anything in exchange for a job offer. All legitimate job postings at BASF can be found and applied to through our global Jobs Portal.

Recruitment fraud involves the offer of fictitious job opportunities or BASF contact.

This type of fraud typically uses online services such as fake websites or unsolicited emails and even text messages by persons or institutions claiming to work for BASF. The aim of the fraud is to solicit personal information or money.

Warning signs

There are a number of signs that could suggest a fraudulent communication. BASF will never adopt any of the following practices:

Requesting money (e.g. for ‘visa fees’, taxes, travel expenses, IT equipment, etc.)
Requesting irrelevant personal information such as passport and bank account details
Sending emails from free web-based email accounts such as Google Mail, Yahoo, Live.com or Outlook.com
Using mobile (cell) phone numbers, rather than office numbers
Making obvious spelling or grammatical errors
Insisting on urgency
Issuing offers of employment in international locations
Using poorly formatted documentation

Advance fee fraud

Advance fee fraud typically involves the offer of a sum of money, gifts or prizes in exchange for some kind of co-operation from the victim. The aim of the fraud is to convince victims to transfer money to the perpetrator, typically via a money transfer service.

Many variations on the story are associated with the fraud. Names and logos of large companies such as BASF are often used to try to convey authenticity.

Examples:

A person claiming to work for BASF sends you a job offer or an interview invitation without you having sent an application. They ask you for sensitive personal information e.g. bank details, or to transfer a sum of money e.g. for ‘visa fees’, relocation, administrative charges or as a sign of ‘good faith’. The name and photograph of a real BASF representative may even be used, perhaps in combination with the BASF logo. Alternatively the imposter may claim to be a headhunter.
In a similar scenario an imposter invites you to simply ‘get to know’ a hiring manager, without offering a concrete job offer, while also soliciting money or sensitive information from you.

What to do if you suspect recruitment fraud

Do not respond to communications that you suspect may be fraudulent. If you suspect recruitment fraud and BASF is mentioned, you can confirm that the offer is not legitimate by checking BASF’s official Job Search portal. All legitimate open jobs are posted on this site. You should also report the incident to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.