As Chinese New Year Approaches Privacy Commissioner’s Office Urges Vigilance Against Fraudulent Advertisements Recruiting Construction Workers

As the Chinese lunar year draws to a close and the Year of the Horse approaches, fraudsters are becoming increasingly active amid the festive atmosphere, and they used various fraudulent tricks to swindle citizens out of personal data and/or money. Common scams include online romance fraud, online shopping scams, and recruitment scams. The Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) received 42 complaints over the past two weeks which involved suspected personal data frauds using fraudulent recruitment advertisements for job vacancies in the construction industry. The PCPD urges construction workers to exercise vigilance in protecting their personal data privacy when applying for jobs, and verify the authenticity of recruitment advertisements and the identities of recruiters before they provide their personal data.

All the victims involved in the 42 cases were construction workers who came across messages about the recruitment of construction casual workers posted on various social media platforms and instant messaging groups (including WhatsApp, Facebook and WeChat groups). After expressing interest in the job vacancies, they provided their personal data to the publisher of the recruitment messages (the "Publisher"), including photos of their "Three Essentials for Construction Sites" (「地盤三寶」in Chinese), namely Hong Kong Identity Card, Construction Workers Registration Card and "Safety Card" (Construction Industry Safety Training Certificate). In some cases, victims also provided their bank account numbers. The Publisher subsequently requested the workers to gather at designated MTR station exits at specified times respectively. However, the Publisher failed to show up and could no longer be contacted. The construction workers were therefore concerned about their personal data being maliciously used by criminals or for other illegal purposes, so they lodged complaints with the PCPD.

Upon receipt of the complaints, the PCPD has been following up the cases in accordance with established procedures. The PCPD reminds the public to observe the following when applying for jobs through social media platforms and instant messaging groups to safeguard their personal data privacy:

Anyone who suspects that his/her personal data has been leaked may make enquiries or lodge complaints with the PCPD ("Personal Data Fraud Prevention Hotline": 3423 6611 or email: [email protected]). If there is any suspicion of fraud on personal data which involves criminal offence(s), they should immediately report the case to the Police. Citizens may also visit "Scameter" (https://cyberdefender.hk/en-us/scameter/) to check suspicious phone numbers, email addresses and websites, etc.