Scammers use fake jobs to lure people into sharing their money or personal information.

The trick to protecting yourself from a job scam is to learn to recognize some of the common ploys that scammers use.

"Online task" scams

One of the newest job scams offers to pay people to complete online tasks. The jobs are easy – for example, rating videos or product images through an app. The app makes the work feel like a game, with participants racking up points for each task and getting chances to "level up" to earn bonuses.

People who lost money to these scams said they were paid small amounts early on, so they believed the job was real. Eventually, the employer told them they'd need to make a deposit – usually in bitcoin – to get their next assignment or receive their pay. Those who deposited funds lost their money.

Money-forwarding scams

These scams start with a job offer through social media or text. The job may involve doing personal services, checking orders, or keeping track of payments. As part of the work, you're supposed to set up a bank account for the company to use. Or, the company sends you a huge paycheck but tells you to forward part of the money to another party. Either way, it's a scam.

If you set up an bank account, the company will stick you with overdraft fees before disappearing. If you deposit the check and forward the funds, you'll soon discover the paycheck was counterfeit. That means you'll owe the bank the money you forwarded, plus any overdraft fees.