How to check whether an online job is real and current

Check an online job against the employer’s careers page or a named authorised recruiter. The organisation, domain, role, location and application route should agree. If you cannot find an official copy, the advert may have closed, moved or never been genuine. Stop if anyone asks for money, banking access, unfamiliar software or sensitive identity documents without a clear reason.

Start from the claimed employer

Do not use the contact details inside a suspicious message to verify that same message. Find the organisation independently:

1. Type the known official domain yourself or find it through a separate search.
2. Open the careers page from the main site.
3. Search for the role title, reference number and location.
4. Compare the application link and recruiter identity.
5. If needed, contact the company through details published on its official site.

The Swiss National Cyber Security Centre advises jobseekers in doubt to check whether the company has vacancies and, if necessary, call a number from the company’s own website. Read its June 2026 case review and recommendations.

Check five kinds of evidence

Check	Stronger evidence	Warning sign
Employer	Matching official domain and verifiable legal entity	Lookalike name or domain
Vacancy	Current official or authorised recruiter listing	Only a copied post or direct message
Dates	Publication, deadline or recent official observation	No date, expired deadline or conflicting copies
Location	Specific workplace and remote eligibility	“Remote” with no country or employer base
Process	Application route linked from official source	Messaging-only process, rushed offer or unrelated form

A register can confirm a company’s legal identity, but not a vacancy. Switzerland’s Central Business Name Index, Zefix, provides access to commercial-register information, and the UID Register provides a public identifier search. Read the federal explanation of the commercial register and open the UID Register.

Read the domain from right to left

In careers.example-company.com, the registered domain is example-company.com. In example-company.jobs-offer.com, the registered domain is jobs-offer.com; “example-company” is only a subdomain.

Look for:

• substituted letters or added hyphens;
• a sender domain that differs from the official site;
• shortened links that hide the destination;
• a new download site used only for the interview;
• browser or antivirus warnings.

The NCSC has documented fake interview logins and technical tests used to install malicious software. It advises stopping when a browser or antivirus warning appears and not running commands or programs from an unknown source. See the documented cases.

Treat freshness as a separate question

A copied advert can be stale even when the employer is real. Check:

• whether the official page still accepts applications;
• whether the deadline has passed;
• whether the role identifier matches;
• whether the location or workload changed between copies;
• when you last observed the official page.

Do not treat the date a search engine, board or assistant found the page as its publication date. “Seen today” means only that you saw it today.

Know the high-risk requests

Stop and verify independently if a recruiter asks you to:

• pay a registration, permit, insurance, equipment or release fee;
• deposit money to unlock tasks or earnings;
• receive or transfer money through your account or crypto wallet;
• install software from an unfamiliar download site;
• disable security warnings;
• reveal banking credentials, passwords or wallet access;
• send identity documents before the organisation and reason are clear;
• accept a job almost immediately without a credible assessment.

The NCSC has reported fake jobs involving advance payments, task platforms and misuse of bank accounts or cryptocurrency wallets. Its guidance also covers phishing, identity-document requests, parcel forwarding and malicious technical tests. Read the federal guidance on fraudulent jobs and its June 2026 case review.

Worked verification: copied remote role

The employer and role are fictional.

Amir sees “Remote Data Reviewer — Bergtal Systems AG” in a messaging group. The post promises CHF 450 per day, gives no Swiss work location and asks candidates to contact hiring@bergtal-systems-careers.com.

He checks:

Step	Result
Find official site independently	bergtal.example
Search official careers page	No Data Reviewer role
Compare domains	Sender domain does not match
Check company identity	A similar legal name exists; this does not verify the message
Contact official company	Published switchboard says the role and domain are not theirs
Decision	Do not reply; retain evidence and report the attempt

The real company name made the approach look plausible. It did not make the vacancy genuine.

Use a verification record

ROLE:
CLAIMED EMPLOYER:
WHERE I FOUND IT:
DATE CHECKED:

OFFICIAL DOMAIN:
OFFICIAL OR AUTHORISED VACANCY URL:
ROLE REFERENCE:
LOCATION / REMOTE ELIGIBILITY:
APPLICATION ROUTE:

IDENTITY MATCH: yes / no / uncertain
VACANCY CURRENT: yes / no / uncertain
DETAILS AGREE: yes / no / uncertain
PAYMENT OR SOFTWARE REQUEST: yes / no
UNNECESSARY SENSITIVE-DATA REQUEST: yes / no

DECISION AND REASON:

If you have already paid, transferred money, installed suspicious software or disclosed account credentials, contact the relevant bank or provider promptly and report the incident to the police. The NCSC also accepts reports through its official channels.

Common mistakes

• Verifying a message through the phone number inside it.
• Assuming a legal company entry proves the vacancy.
• Trusting a copied advert because it appeared on a familiar platform.
• Treating “remote” as a complete location.
• Ignoring mismatched domains or role details.
• Installing an interview tool after a security warning.
• Paying a fee because the supposed offer is urgent.

Verify a job before applying

• ✓I found the employer's official site independently
• ✓The role exists on an official or clearly authorised source
• ✓The title, reference, location and application route agree
• ✓I recorded when the official page was checked
• ✓The sender and application domains make sense
• ✓No one asked for money, account access or suspicious software
• ✓Sensitive documents are requested only for a clear, verified reason
• ✓Any remaining uncertainty is written down before I proceed

If the role checks out, research the employer before applying and tailor your CV to the current advert.