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Many Americans are struggling these days amid job layoffs and a rise in living expenses across the board. These hardships are leading people into added stress, credit card debt, and uncertainty about what their futures will look like.

Because of the economy's currently precarious nature, now is a time when many folks are looking for extra work. This is attracting more people to the gig economy where they may drive for rideshare apps like Uber or Lyft and deliver food for DoorDash, UberEats, or GrubHub.

Though as people look to find new work, they need to be aware of employment scams that are becoming increasingly prevalent. Some of these scams are most notable on LinkedIn, a platform that focuses on helping folks network and find jobs.

A closer look at employment scams on LinkedIn

In a nutshell, employment scams on LinkedIn are offering jobs that simply do not exist. More often than not, these scams also rely upon the use of artificial intelligence to create profiles and content that appear legitimate.

The scammers themselves are likewise posturing as LinkedIn employers, often directly reaching out to the people they're targeting via direct messages.

For what it's worth, LinkedIn is aware of this and taking action to purge its platform of these sorts of scams. However, this is still important for the general public, especially job seekers, to be aware of.

Amid the massive layoffs that are taking place in the tech industry, many scammers see now as a golden opportunity to strike.

How to spot employment scams

Despite the rise of employment scams, there are certain universal red flags for job seekers and the general public to be aware of.

In many circumstances, scammers are after the money of their targets. Therefore, if a job listing asks for banking information, wire/money transfers, etc., from applicants, it is probably not above board.

Other warnings of employment scams to be aware of are as follows:

• Lack of official email domains
• Typos or grammatical mistakes in emails/listings
• Position demands bringing in new workers
• Unclear job descriptions
• Communications restricted to chat apps
• Absence of online credibility
• Salary is only based on commission
• Seems too good to be true