I've seen a drastic increase in job ads like this on social media the last few months. Here's why you should not trust them.

Earlier today, this ad popped up in my newsfeed:


Now, this is not the first time I've seen an ad like this. They always boast a job opening with a nationwide company like Amtrak, Frito Lay, Pepsi, or LEGO that comes with a too-good-to-be-true salary attached. You know what they say about the internet -- if something sounds too-good-to-be-true, it likely is. In every one of these cases, I have done some digging and found that adage to be correct. These ads have been 100% BS so far.

The first thing to remember is that you should not surrender your information to an unknown third-party like this unnecessarily. If you can verify that they're a legit job finding website, that's fine but why bother when you could just contact the company that is allegedly hiring? In every single one of these ads, I've noticed three things to be true:

1. The pay amount is always grossly inflated.
2. None of those jobs are even remotely close to my area, often not even in this state.
3. The positions that are available are not the ones they're advertising.

I always make sure to post in the comments on these ads that no one should share their information with these third-party sites. In every single instance, I was able to debunk the ad by heading to the employer in question's actual website, where they all had a jobs or careers page that listed all available positions and allowed you to apply for them directly. You can usually find a company's career page pretty easily, although sometimes they are listed at the bottom of the home page.

I guess what I'm trying to say is be careful about where you're sharing your information. I should also say that I have no idea whether or not these are legitimate job finding sites. However, when it's between handing your info to some sketchy sounding third-party who may have no real affiliation with the company or going to said company's website and seeing what's really available and applying directly -- the safest choice is pretty obvious.

The point is -- don't be lazy. Verifying things online usually only takes about 20 seconds. That's also a valuable strategy to keep in mind as election season approaches... especially for this election.