A close friend of mine, Maria, recently experienced an upsetting and costly scam via a LinkedIn job posting. She had been actively seeking new freelance opportunities in digital marketing when she received a direct message from someone claiming to be a hiring manager for a company called CryptoVision Partners. The person looked professional, had a complete profile with many connections, and even had endorsements from well-known people in the crypto industry.

The job they offered seemed too good to be true—remote, flexible hours, and a high hourly rate. The catch? The company required candidates to make an “initial investment” of $500 in Ethereum to start. According to the job description, this investment was needed to “activate” the company’s trading platform, which would allow Maria to earn even higher commissions through affiliate marketing and crypto trades.

Maria was initially skeptical, but the person convinced her with stories of other “successful” freelancers who had already received payouts from the company. She did some quick research and found other LinkedIn profiles listing CryptoVision Partners, further cementing her belief that this was a legitimate opportunity.

Feeling reassured, Maria transferred $500 in ETH to the provided wallet address, expecting to get started. However, after making the payment, communication with the recruiter slowed, and then completely stopped. When Maria tried to contact support, the company’s website disappeared, and their LinkedIn account was removed.

She later found several scam reports online warning about fake crypto job listings, including the one she had fallen for. It turned out that the “company” had been using fraudulent job offers as a way to lure people into sending money to a fake wallet address.

This incident taught Maria—and everyone she shared her story with—never to trust job offers on social media without thoroughly researching the company. No legitimate employer will ask for a payment to “unlock” a job opportunity, and always verify details with independent sources before making any payments.