The Federal Trade Commission's consumer advice page on job scams, last updated Aug. 13, 2026, opens with a plain observation. Scammers advertise jobs the same way honest employers do, the agency says, through online ads, job sites and social media. What they want is your money and your personal information.

Remote work is where many of these scams hide, so it is worth knowing what the agency says to look for.

The fake check

In the version the FTC describes, a new employer sends you a check, tells you to deposit it, keep part of the money for your pay or equipment, and send the rest to someone else. The check is fake. It bounces, and the bank expects you to repay the full amount while the scammer keeps the money you sent. The FTC says no honest employer will ever ask you to do this.

Paying for the promise of a job

Some work-from-home ads lead to starter kits, training or certifications that turn out to be useless. The FTC's advice is blunt: honest employers will never ask you to pay to get a job, and anyone who does is a scammer.

Jobs that are really reshipping

The agency also describes positions with titles like virtual assistant or quality control manager that turn out to involve receiving packages at home, repackaging them and sending them on. The FTC says reshipping goods is never a real job and that the items are often bought with stolen credit cards.

Easy money, little work

If an offer says you can make a lot of money fast with little effort, the FTC calls it almost certainly a scam.

Checks to make before you apply

The FTC suggests searching for the company or recruiter's name along with the words scam, review or complaint, and talking the offer over with someone you trust. No complaints does not prove a company is honest, the agency notes, but complaints can tip you off to problems. Apply through the employer's own posting instead of replying to a message that arrives out of the blue. micro1, for example, says its official emails end in @micro1.ai, @micro1.io or @micro1.co. A message about an interview or a project that comes from anywhere else deserves a closer look.

If you already paid

The FTC says to contact the company you used to send the money right away, report the fraud and ask whether the transaction can be reversed. You can report job scams to the FTC at ReportFraud.ftc.gov or to your state attorney general.

I may be paid if you apply through the links on this page. I am not an employee or representative of the company that posts these roles.

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Sources: Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Advice, Job Scams, updated Aug. 13, 2026; micro1 experts page, checked Nov. 2, 2026.