Posted by Dateline: October 5, 2017
In this scam, individuals posing as editors and executives who work for The Atlantic magazine send fraudulent job offers to unwitting freelancers and individuals seeking employment.
This morning, Atlantic Media General Counsel Aretae Wyler shared the following memo with The Atlantic staff on a scam in which individuals posing as editors and senior leadership have been sending fraudulent job offers to unwitting freelancers and individuals seeking employment.
Anyone targeted by this scam may email Atlantic Media, which will advise victims of the scam and refer them to law enforcement: FraudAlert@AtlanticMedia.com.
________
Dear Colleagues,
Across the last few months, individuals posing as our editors and senior leaders have sent fraudulent job offers to unwitting freelancers or jobseekers looking to work with The Atlantic. The impostors have created numerous misleading email accounts, including gmail addresses in the names of editors, gmail addresses that include the Atlantic’s name (e.g., recruitment.atlanticmagazine@gmail.com), and addresses employing fake domains (e.g., @atlanticmediagroup.net). The aim of the scam is to obtain personal information such as social security numbers, addresses, and bank account information from the intended victims.
The perpetrators have gone so far as to conduct job interviews by phone and gchat; to require signature on employment agreements, direct deposit, and tax forms; and to mail fake checks to individuals (in the hope that these “advances” would be cashed, thereby providing the perpetrators with bank account information and/or credit card information). To date, we’ve been contacted by more than 50 would-be victims, and the names of at least six of our top editorial leaders have been used.
Unfortunately, scams like this one are very common in today’s landscape. We are actively working with law enforcement and are directing any intended victims to do the same. We are also making information available about the scam on our websites and in the magazine.
If you discover that you or any of our colleagues are being impersonated, please provide details to FraudAlert@AtlanticMedia.com, which will route the information to the IT department. Likewise, if you receive any inquiries from potential victims asking you to confirm the veracity of an email purporting to have come from The Atlantic, forward those inquiries to FraudAlert@AtlanticMedia.com. IT will connect with any would-be victims to advise them of the scam and to refer them to law enforcement.
Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about this issue.
Best,
Aretae
Dara Rochlin Book Doctor 