Jobseekers Beware: Work-from-Home Job Scams On Rise In Kashmir
Srinagar: In the dimly lit room of her modest home, Sana (name changed) sat hunched over her laptop, desperately seeking a source of income. The glow of the screen illuminated the fatigue in her eyes, a reflection of months spent fruitlessly job hunting. Amid the sea of rejection emails, an enticing Facebook post promising a lucrative work-fromhome opportunity caught her attention. Excitement and hope filled her as she read about a seemingly straightforward data entry job. The promise of payment based on hours worked felt like a lifeline. The email instructed her to provide personal details—bank information, Aadhar, and PAN for registration.
Apprehension gnawed at Sana's gut, but the allure of financial stability prevailed. Hesitantly, she keyed in her details and moments later, a link arrived in her inbox, urging her to complete the registration process. A quick tap, and she was prompted to enter an OTP sent to her phone.
As Sana entered the code, a sinking feeling enveloped her. An invisible transaction had occurred in the digital realm, one that would soon unravel her sense of security. She checked her bank account, and the shock hit her like a punch to the gut—nearly ₹30,000 vanished without a trace. A sense of betrayal overwhelmed Sana as she frantically scanned the transaction history. The cruel reality dawned on her— the promising job was nothing but a sophisticated scam. The perpetrators, faceless and cunning, had preyed on her desperation, leaving her not only jobless but also financially devastated.
Sana isn't alone in falling victim to remote work scams, many others share similar experiences.
In June this year, Kashmir Observer reported on how work-from-home