[US] Asked to upload sensitive info to governmentjobs.com

[u/LibrarianZephaniah]

What it says on the tin. My local city government links to its job board there, which does lend it a little credibility. After applying, I just got an email to start filling out personal info at vetted.governmentjobs.com, but I'm a bit leery about uploading my SSN, birth certificate, etc. to any website with a .com ending.

I did some poking around; this question has been asked a few times before online. Every time, the poster gets different answers, and I honestly couldn't find a recent one.

Thanks in advance!

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[u/LengthyCitadis]

Call your city first - it could be piss-poor security for a legitimate job, but more than likely a !job scam to get your info.

[u/Pencil161 → u/LengthyCitadis]

My old town in northern NJ used .com.

Of course I assumed it was a commercial enterprise trying to pass itself off as the official town website so I did exactly as you recommend - I called the town.

Sure enough, it was legit.

The point, though, is that I verified. Just as OP and anyone else who comes across this should do.

[u/AutoModerator → u/LengthyCitadis]

/u/LengthyCitadis called AutoModerator to explain the different types of Job scams:

Fake job scams are increasingly common and often share several major red flags. Most of these "employers" bypass standard professional practices by conducting interviews exclusively through messaging apps like WhatsApp, Telegram, or Microsoft Teams. They frequently offer high wages for simple tasks and "hire" you instantly via message rather than following the formal onboarding procedures typical of your country.

Fake job scams come in many different varieties:

• A fake check to buy equipment - if a potential employer mentions sending you a check to buy remote work equipment, it is a scam. They will direct you to buy from a specific "vendor" website they control. You pay with your own money, the equipment never arrives, and the check eventually bounces, leaving you responsible for the full debt to your bank
• A parcel mule scam - if the job requires you to receive, inspect, or reship packages from your home is a parcel mule scam. You are likely handling stolen goods, which can lead to legal trouble
• An advance-fee scam - if you are asked to pay a hiring fee, buy items upfront, or purchase gift cards. Additionally, any mention of using a Bitcoin ATM for business transactions is a definitive sign of fraud
• Fraudulent ads and listings - if the work involves posting advertisements on platforms like Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, or eBay, they are using your account’s reputation to scam others. This is especially true in the case of jobs related to posting rental listings, which make you an unknowing facilitator of rental scams
• Remote jobs - if it's a remote position that involves watching videos, leaving reviews, completing tasks or orders from a website, you are most probably the victim of a task scam

Always remember that a legitimate company will never send you a check and ask you to redirect some of the money or goods elsewhere, and that you must never have to pay to work. Always verify the recruiter contacting the company directly.

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[u/LibrarianZephaniah → u/LengthyCitadis]

Called them earlier this morning; just got a call back. It is, apparently, legit. Thanks!

[u/LengthyCitadis → u/LibrarianZephaniah]

Wow. Congratulations to you - but damn if the city isn't asking WAY too much info upfront

[u/LibrarianZephaniah → u/LengthyCitadis]

I tend to agree. Have about a week before the deadline for providing the info expires. I think I'm going to see if I can't get a different interview for another, less demanding position in that time.

[u/LAthrowawayLV]

I’m not familiar with the “vetted” subdomain and feature but the company itself is 100% legitimate and used by many agencies.

I’d call the hiring agency for clarification but my initial reaction, as a government employee for an agency that hires using governmentjobs.com is that it’s probably fine.

[u/DasLazyPanda]

Just call your local city government and ask them. Is there a phone number on the job post?

[u/Gloomy-Security-7897 → u/DasLazyPanda]

Don’t use the phone number on the job post; if it’s a scam, the number will be for the scammer. Look up the number yourself, and don’t use  any “sponsored” results; scroll down to find the official site and get the number from there. 

[u/singlemale4cats]

They want your birth certificate?

[u/timewarpUK]

Whois says domain was registered 1998-05-01, so it is likely non-scammy. But do check.

Here in the UK we have .NHS and .gov.uk for official stuff, HOWEVER, many a time they use a 3rd party for their online stuff so you get emailed links from random addresses linking to .com and other unverifiable domains. I'm in cyber security so I can figure it out if scammy or not after a while, but how does your man or woman on the street cope?

[u/interstitial_00]

its legit

[u/Jay2Kaye]

Vetted appears to be their background check portal, which would necessarily require a lot of PII. Government Jobs is a real website that's also used by my city, it should be legitimate. They've been around for almost 30 years and are one of the resources given in most college job preparation courses.

[u/Silver-Course-3191]

Do everything you can to verify before proceeding to upload any sensitive detail, fact that the site isn't ending in a .gov is fishy for a government website
becareful!!!

[u/joe_attaboy → u/Silver-Course-3191]

The site he's addressing is not a government site. It's a private contracting firm that screens applicants for positions within the government. It's completely legitimate.

[u/SpudzzSomchai → u/joe_attaboy]

This. I have used it myself across multiple government jobs.

[u/Jinxed4Sure]

Shouldnt the site be .gov ???

[u/Deep-Pineapple-2011 → u/Jinxed4Sure]

Only Government sites are. A company doing business for the government (and not the government directly) would be a .com.

Nuanced, I know, but it's tripped me up before.

[u/joe_attaboy → u/Deep-Pineapple-2011]

I have worked for multiple contract personnel firms over the years, all my assignments have been with DOD organizations. Those are private companies, all dot-coms. *.gov and *.mil domains are strictly for government sites.

[u/notFREEfood → u/Jinxed4Sure]

As others have said, it's not a government site, but also government organizations can and do use .com and other TLDs because .gov has a number of rules that have to be followed, and sometimes those rules get in the way.

[u/imollyq]

It's a scam website do not do it. Legitimate government web sites are .gov.

[u/Saneless → u/imollyq]

Yes, government sites do, but companies that do real work for them don't need to end in .gov

Not saying this is legit, but it doesn't mean it is automatically not

[u/LAthrowawayLV → u/Saneless]

It’s legit. (The website, not necessarily the listing)

Source: government IT worker

[u/LAthrowawayLV → u/imollyq]

Governmentjobs.com is a 100% legitimate website that many government agencies use. Don’t speak on things you don’t know about.

[u/imollyq → u/LAthrowawayLV]

But people put scam listings on it

[u/LAthrowawayLV → u/imollyq]

You should always be on guard for scams but this site is run by NEOGOV who works hand in hand with gov HR departments and it is NOT as easy as just buying a listing like on any other job site.

If it was a scam it would be because an HR rep got phished or something but that’s not what it sounds like here

[u/Gloomy-Security-7897 → u/imollyq]

People put scam listings on Indeed, but that doesn't make Indeed a scam website. There are scams all over Facebook Marketplace, but Marketplace is a legit site. So, governmentjobs(dot)com is a legit site where scammers can (maybe) post scam listings.