Is Indeed a Scam?

Our verdict

Indeed is not a scam. It is the world's largest job site, owned by Tokyo-based Recruit Holdings, and Canadian employers posted over 4.5 million jobs on it in 2024. It is where millions of Canadians find real work every day. But the CAFC flagged employment fraud as the 5th highest-loss category in Canada in 2025, with victims losing a median of $4,000 each. Fake job postings on Indeed are a documented fraud vector — and the scale of the problem has grown significantly since 2022 as AI tools made it easier to generate convincing fake company profiles at volume.

The fake job scam follows a predictable pattern. A posting appears on Indeed for a legitimate-sounding role — often remote, often at a plausible company name with a convincing LinkedIn presence. The victim applies, receives a quick response, goes through a 'video interview' over chat (never video), and gets an offer letter. The employer then asks for banking information to set up payroll, a void cheque, and sometimes asks the new hire to buy equipment using gift cards that will be 'reimbursed.' The job does not exist. The bank details are used for fraud. The gift cards are gone.

A 2024 case documented by the CAFC involved 110 Canadians who applied to the same non-existent Toronto marketing role over three weeks before the posting was flagged and removed. Each applicant received a personalized offer letter, fake onboarding documents, and a request for banking information for direct deposit setup. Forty-one victims provided banking information before learning the job was fraudulent. Equipment advance scams — where the 'employer' sends a cheque and asks you to forward the difference to a 'vendor' for your laptop — are particularly common in remote work postings.

CAFC data on employment fraud shows the median victim age is 24 — significantly younger than most fraud categories — reflecting that young Canadians using job boards for first jobs or entry-level remote work are the primary target. International students and new graduates are disproportionately represented in employment fraud reports. The median loss of $4,000 frequently represents the gift card or cheque fraud component — the actual financial damage, including banking fraud enabled by stolen void cheques, can be substantially higher.

Indeed's fraud detection has improved but remains imperfect. In 2023, Indeed removed 6.1 million fake job postings globally — about 16,700 per day. New postings go live immediately (before verification in many cases), giving scammers a window of hours to days before removal. Reporting a suspicious posting through Indeed's 'Report this job' button helps, but does not immediately remove the posting. Indeed's employer verification program covers some company accounts but is not universal.

How to spot a fake job posting on Indeed: the salary is unusually high for the role, the posting was live for less than 24 hours before you applied, the interview happens entirely by text or chat with no video, the offer letter arrives within 48 hours of applying, and the employer asks for banking information or gift cards before your start date. Legitimate employers never ask you to buy equipment and get reimbursed. Look up the company on the CAFC scam database and do a reverse image search on the recruiter's LinkedIn photo. If in doubt, call the company's published phone number to confirm the role exists before providing any personal information.

Editorial note: This article reflects the state of publicly available information at the time of writing. Business practices, ownership, and safety records change over time. TrustChekr is not affiliated with any company reviewed here and does not receive payment for editorial coverage. Verdicts are based on documented evidence and are subject to revision.