The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns that gaming job scams are on the rise

The past year has seen an alarming increase in game-related scams. The Federal Trade Commission says reports of job fraud have quadrupled each year since 2022. so far, reaching 20,000 reports at a total cost of $41 million in the first six months of the year.

Job or task scams often involve the scammer asking someone to perform a relatively simple task online, such as liking videos or rating product images in set sets, using terms such as “product boost” or “app optimization.” according to the FTC. People are promised higher payouts for completing a certain amount of kits, which may pay out small amounts at first, but end up costing more than they pay in the long run.

Scammers will contact people through text messages or communication apps like Whatsapp, offering them a task. The most common type of this scam usually involves some type of cryptocurrency. The scammer can then ask their target to deposit some money or “top up” their account via an app to start working on new and larger sets of tasks. They may even try to convince their victims by hearing testimonials from fake recipients about how much money they made for completing relatively simple tasks.

The victim will “top up” their accounts with their own money to avoid losing what the app shows they have won, in the hope that they will get their deposited money and the fee they are owed. Instead, the money they were paid was not real and any money they deposited to “top up” their account is lost forever.

The Federal Trade Commission recommends ignoring offers from unknown text or WhatsApp messages and never paying someone for the promise of getting paid at a later time or date. The commission also recommends avoiding any job offers that involve rating or liking things online, a practice the FTC says is “illegal and no honest company will do.”