Contact 6: Check scam targeting job seekers

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- A check comes in the mail after an individual applies for a job on Craigslist -- but FOX6's Contact 6 says the check is fraudulent, and this is a scam.

Robie Thacker didn't know what to think when a $3,500 check arrived at her house with no letter included.

A few days earlier, in the process of applying for a job on Craigslist, Thacker, a struggling college student included her address and email address.

Two days later, Thacker received a text message confirming she had gotten the job. Then, came the envelope with the check, and Thacker headed to the bank..

Bank officials believed the check was fraudulent.

"They`ll typically tell you to deposit the funds into your account and then wire some of the money back," U.S. Postal Inspector Michael Romano said.

If Thacker had done that, she would have been responsible for the entire amount.

"No one you don`t know out of the blue, no one, will send you money. It just does not happen," Romano said.

Postal inspectors say there are several variations to this scam. Sometimes a check will arrive with a letter, claiming you have been chosen as a mystery shopper and directing you to shop at certain stores.

Sometimes, victims receive a fake money order. If you can see Franklin's head without holding the money order up to the light, it's a fake.