People are being warned to be vigilant after scammers posed as employers and recruiters in an attempt to trick jobseekers into handing over money and personal information.
The alert follows the discovery of a website displaying job adverts appearing to be linked to North Yorkshire Council, including listings for a range of roles, many of which had already passed their closing dates.
Anyone clicking on the adverts was prompted to upload CVs and submit personal details, raising concerns that the site was designed to harvest information for fraud and identity theft.
North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for managing our environment, Cllr Richard Foster, said such scams are often used to collect data that can later be exploited or sold on.
He said: “Scams of this kind are often designed to gather data for identity theft and fraud, with details sometimes sold on for further criminal use.
“Our advice is simple – never upload personal information, such as your name, date of birth or contact details, to an unfamiliar or unverified website, and be especially cautious about sharing sensitive data such as bank or National Insurance details.”
He added that anyone who believes they may have shared information with a suspicious site should contact their bank immediately, change passwords, and consider using more secure sign-in methods such as passkeys.
Officials warned that fraudulent job adverts are often highly convincing, sometimes impersonating well-known organisations or advertising roles that do not exist. In some cases, scammers pose as recruitment agents or create entirely fictitious vacancies to obtain personal information.
To help tackle the issue, residents are being urged to use the JobsAware service, a national platform supported by government that provides advice and allows users to report suspicious recruitment activity.
North Yorkshire Council also stressed that it does not use recruitment agencies for permanent roles, with all vacancies advertised directly through its official website.
Sarah France-Gorton, the council’s head of resourcing solutions, said the authority wants people to be able to access opportunities safely.
“Recruitment scams can have serious financial and emotional impacts, so it’s important people know how to spot the warning signs and where to find legitimate vacancies,” she said.
She added that North Yorkshire continues to have a strong labour market with unemployment below the national average, and encouraged jobseekers not to be deterred but to remain cautious and report anything suspicious.
Members of the public are advised to report phishing websites to the National Cyber Security Centre and to use the national fraud reporting service if they believe they have been targeted or lost money.
Details of legitimate vacancies at North Yorkshire Council are available via its official job search page.
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