Even compared to most job scams, this one seems particularly bad, in that they keep you from finding a job, and you never know why.
Climber.com lets you sign up for something for free.
If you have ever done so (even if it was in 2007), then they give recruiters the ability to send you messages through their site, but you currently do not have the ability to receive the messages, unless you are a paying member. (You have to pay more than $30 per month to be able to receive the messages.)
The recruiters do not seem to know this. One of them (who I had contacted by other means) told me that their "understanding is that they [Climber.com] only charge[s] if you want to assure your resume is highlighted and listed as priority in front of the general resumes".
Of course, once the recruiter contacts you through Climber.com, if you do not respond, then they are likely to assume that you are not interested in the job. If you were not listed on Climber.com, then they would (probably) find you another way (another job board, your own website, networking, etc.) and contact you through regular e-mail or by telephone. However, if they find you on Climber.com first, then they are tricked into contacting you that way, and are likely to assume that there is no reason to contact you any other way.
The only two ways around this seem to be:
A. Make sure that you are not on Climber.com, before any recruiters find you there, at which point it will be too late, or
B. Pay the amount of money demanded by Climber.com to be able to read the messages.
0 comments