Fake LinkedIn profiles are becoming an increasing concern. The FBI has flagged this issue, explaining that fraud on LinkedIn is a ‘significant threat’ to the platform and consumers. LinkedIn is an important professional networking platform for many individuals and organisations. However, it can be problematic when scammers abuse it for their own nefarious ends. Knowing how to spot, and therefore avoid, fake LinkedIn profiles will help you to be safe and continue building your career and professional network on this platform.
Profile Picture
Profile pictures on LinkedIn can help working people put their best foot forward. Scammers on the platform understand this, and will often use very attractive images, oftentimes too perfect to be true.
To turn a critical eye to scammers’ profile pictures, look out for inconsistencies and obvious mismatches between the gender, age or ethnicity of the profile’s stated details.
Increasingly scammers are using AI-generated LinkedIn photos, which, once again, may appear a little too perfect. They lack a certain ‘realness’ and that is a good clue. Keep an eye out for flawless and highly symmetrical features or backgrounds that seem too ordered and consistent.
Sometimes scammers will be very clever and attempt to use a picture that in some way matches the ethnicity and/or age of the false details they have concocted. This is when your analysis should go beyond the surface presentation.
In other cases, scam LinkedIn profiles don’t have a profile picture at all, and rather contain a logo or generic images instead of a personal picture.
- Check that the profile picture matches the profile’s claimed identity.
- Notice any discrepancies between the gender or age of the individual in the picture and the profile details.
- Be wary when connecting with profiles that use logos instead of personal photos.
- Sometimes a scam LinkedIn profile picture is done well. In these cases, look deeper and consider the points below.
Multiple Company Connections
Be suspicious if you experience a sudden rush of connection requests from individuals supposedly from a single company, or who have identical headlines. This may indicate a crop of fake LinkedIn accounts acting in an organised manner. Campaign-like pushes to connect with you can be a real red flag, especially if the profiles lack genuine attempts at engagement.
Furthermore, scam accounts on LinkedIn will sometimes operate with similar headlines also indicating a lack of personalisation or authenticity.
- Be wary if you receive numerous connection requests from individuals at the same company.
- Notice whether multiple profiles contain similar headlines, as this may indicate a lack of personalisation.
- Verify the authenticity of connection requests by considering how the profile has engaged with you, and by observing its activity and engagement generally.
Suspicious Work History
Suspicious work histories on LinkedIn can present in a number of ways. One key way is in discrepancies between the education listed on the profile and the professional roles they claim to have had. Profiles pretending to be recruiters are also reasonably common. Once again, comparing work experience and employer information can reveal much about a profile. Fake profiles often have educational backgrounds or job roles that are quite blatantly fabricated. This seems especially the case (ironically!) when the individuals behind them are posing as recruiters. Look out for:
- Inconsistent Job Titles
A profile may present as having held high-ranking positions or titles that don’t stack up when considering their experience level or qualification. Although there is a tendency for many people to exaggerate online, lies can really stand out on Linkedin. When individuals claim to be a CEO or managing director but without relevant experience, caution is strongly recommended.
- Frequent Job Changes
While professional mobility and job-hopping is not uncommon these days, especially in certain industries, excessively high frequency of job changes within a short period might raise valid concerns about the authenticity of the profile.
- Unverifiable Employment Details
Profiles that are light-on in terms of verifiable information should be cause for concern. Scam LinkedIn profiles will often provide vague or unverifiable information about past employers, missing company names, fake/non-existent companies and incorrect dates of employment. Any of these could indicate a fabricated work history.
- Inconsistent Career Trajectory
All manner of things on an individual’s life journey could result in a career pause. However a LinkedIn work history may raise suspicion if it seems implausible or lacks logical progression. For instance, a rapid climb up a corporate ladder with few intermediate positions or relevant experience might reveal bogus or exaggerated credentials.
- Lack of Endorsements or Recommendations
LinkedIn profiles that are genuine will often feature endorsements or recommendations from colleagues, supervisors or clients. A lack of these, especially in key areas related to the expertise that the individual is claiming could suggest a lack of credibility.
- Achievements or Responsibilities That Can’t Be Verified
Profiles that claim significant achievements or responsibilities without verifying these in any way may be overstating or simply concocting their work history.
Excessive Connections
If you see a profile with a lot of followers, take a closer look. Real profiles usually chat with others and join discussions. But if someone has many connections but no interactions, they might be trying to trick you into thinking they’re real. Genuine engagement means leaving comments, sharing interesting content and starting conversations.
Determining what is an excessive number of connections on LinkedIn depends on various factors, including industry norms, engagement levels and quality of connection. While some professionals in networking-intensive fields may have thousands of connections, a sudden increase without corresponding engagement may raise suspicions of artificially inflated numbers. Profiles showing spam-like behaviour, such as random connection requests or a lack of personalised engagement, may also suggest artificially inflated connections.
- Inspect profiles with an unusually high number of followers.
- Check how often and how well people interact and discuss things on the profile.
- Be cautious of profiles that lack meaningful engagement despite having a large number of connections.
Unbelievable Job Offers
Be wary of too-good-to-be-true job offers, a common trick in recruitment scams. Fake recruiters often use tempting job offers or job scams to gather personal information or scam users. Too good to be true offers should be carefully examined to avoid falling victim to scams. Verify the legitimacy of job offers by researching the company and recruiter.
- Be sceptical of job offers that promise unrealistic benefits or opportunities.
- Avoid sharing personal information or making financial commitments without thorough verification.
Content with an Agenda
Sometimes people join LinkedIn under the pretence of professional networking but really, it’s to use the platform to push another agenda. They will concoct an identity which adds authority or nuance to their stance. An example is an activist fabricating their belonging to a particular ethnic group to add weight to the political position they are pushing through their posts and engagement.
Examining the profile’s content can help you get to the bottom of whether the individual (or bot!) behind it is using the platform dishonestly. If the content is all about the same political issue and this has no apparent connection to the professional history that the profile owner has listed, this should be cause for concern.
Scam Businesses Conducting Sales
Like any social media platform, scam businesses lurk, trying to draw people in so they can sell them bogus products or services. In the case of LinkedIn, they will scour the platform looking for trusting people seeking services that lie within their purported area of expertise. They will then spruik their fake services through leaving comments or messaging individuals directly.
Fake Names
Fake profiles often use famous names or uncommon aliases to seem real. However, genuine high-profile invitations typically have the LinkedIn Influencer symbol. Verify high-profile invitations by checking for the LinkedIn Influencer symbol. Conduct thorough checks on profiles with common names to ensure they’re real accounts.
- Be cautious of profiles using famous names or unusual aliases.
- Verify the authenticity of high-profile invitations by checking for the LinkedIn Influencer symbol.
- Conduct thorough checks on profiles with standard names to ensure authenticity.
Common Fake Names
- Celebrity Names
Such as “Bill Gates,” “Richard Branson,” or “Warren Buffet.”
- Fictional Characters
Like “Harry Potter,” “Sherlock Holmes,” or “James Bond”.
- Generic or Unrealistic Names
Such as “John Doe,” “Jane Smith,” or “Mike Johnson”. especially when combined with famous surnames.
- Fantasy or Humorous Names
Such as “Superman Smith,” “Batman Jones”, or “Princess Leia.”
Examples of Fake LinkedIn Profiles
Fake Celebrity LinkedIn Profile
Fake Personal LinkedIn Profile
Messages From Fake LinkedIn Accounts
Messages from fake LinkedIn accounts can vary widely in their content and intent. They can include phishing scams attempting to obtain sensitive information like login credentials or financial details, job scams offering fake employment opportunities to collect personal data or money, and connection requests containing spam links leading to malicious websites. Fake accounts sometimes also spread malware through messages with attachments or links. They may promote fake business ventures, investment opportunities or survey scams to trick you. LinkedIn users also report that unsolicited marketing messages and advertisements from fake accounts flood their inboxes.
Summary
Key indicators include profile pictures that don’t look right, and often combined with mismatched ethnicity, gender or age. Further indicators of fake profiles on LinkedIn are sudden rushes of connection requests from individuals at the same company or with similar headlines; suspicious work histories, particularly in cases of concocted education or job roles; very high numbers of connections and/or followers without meaningful engagement; too-good-to-be-true job offers; single issue political agendas; business offers that seem too good to be true; and the use of famous names or uncommon aliases.
Contact us
Cybertrace is committed to promoting online security and providing tailored LinkedIn safety advice. If you’re being harassed, defamed or impersonated on LinkedIn, or if you need to find someone who has scammed you, contact us and we may be able to assist.
Questions For The Audience
Do you have doubts about someone’s LinkedIn profile? If so, what’s causing your suspicion?
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This post was revised on 12 November 2024 for improved readability and accuracy.
