DigiWeb Media Group Sarasota Employment Scam
Attention Job seekers! If you receive an email claiming to be from Digiweb Media Group Inc in Sarasota Florida offering a work at home job position possibly as a client manager, do not reply! It is not a legitimate employment offer!
1st of all there is no corporation listed with that name with the State of Florida. However, there is a corporation in Tampa Florida by the name Digiworks Media Group Inc. Why is this important? Because the Vice President of Digiworks Media is Susan Church in Palm Harbor. The name Sue Church was just used to register a website in China on 12/1/2015 for one year called Digiwebmediagroup.com under the business name Digiweb Media Group Inc! IMHO,I highly doubt the Vice President of an Advertising Agency located in a posh office building in Tampa would be registering a website in China for a web development business that is located in an apartment complex in Sarasota 80+ miles away from her residence in Palm Harbor!
DigiWeb Media Group WAS in business at 4179 Winners Cir Apt 411, Sarasota, FL 34238 which is the same street address used to register the new website, only now they don’t list the Apt 411 and they show (941) 306-2133 as the business phone # on Digiwebmediagroup.com on their contact page.
The actual owner was Tim Gilbert who no longer owns the business and the original website for this company www.digiwebmedia.com is no longer online. Also it was NOT a corporation. The phone # for the actual business was (866) 578-6860. Given the business address was an apartment, more than likely Mr Gilbert worked out of his home (which is not uncommon for web designers) and although all the listings in google makes it appear as though it is still in business, it really isn’t, which makes the business a perfect target for scammers.
Another Web/Graphic Design Money Mule Scam?
Beware! #1 – The name Sue Church is associated with a legitimate company with a similar name, Digiworks, that is not associated with the address in Sarasota. It’s been common practice of these scammers to steal the identity of former owners or officers of other similarly named businesses to register their fake websites without these people’s knowledge or consent.
Also the fact DigiWeb Media Group Inc is using the Inc in the website registration states the business is a corporation and it is not registered with the state at all! There has been MANY fake web development websites created over the last 3-4 years by scammers solely to trick potential job seekers with attractive salaries and benefit packages into a work from home money mule scam!
#2 – The phone # and email address used in the registration of Digiwebmediagroup.com is +89.413624027 (+89 is a German country code), with the email GregoryARichardson@armyspy.com, armyspy.com is part of a free disposable email address service called Fake Mail Generator. A common practice scammers use and is a violation of iCann rules! The website is showing blog posts dating back to October 5, 2015 BEFORE the website even existed!
Below is a screenshot of the website:
Digiwebmediagroup.com is showing every indication of an impending fraud and the scammers is more than likely starting to contact job seekers with resumes posted on job sites with their fake job offer which is nothing more than a money mule scam! See our previous alert we posted in October – QPS Employment Group-Web5designs.com Scam Alert! Don’t become a victim! The “job” these scammers want you to do is unknowingly wire stolen money overseas that you will be held responsible for and could even be prosecuted! You won’t even realize it until it’s too late!
What To Do If You Are A Victim
If you have fell victim to a money mule employment scam, you need to contact your bank immediately and close your account IF you have provided your account information to the scammers. Next file a police report with your local authorities and then file a complaint with the FBI’s internet crime center at http://www.ic3.gov/
If you provided your personal information like ss # birthdate etc , you need to contact the 3 credit bureaus- TransUnion, Equifax and Experian, and place a fraud alert on your report. These criminals can steal your identity and may try and obtain credit in your name. Doing this will alert you for at least 90 days about any suspicious activity.
In the hands of a thief, just your name, address, Social Security number or date of birth, can be used over and over months- even years down the road to:
Open new lines of credit
Seek medical attention
Drain savings and retirement accounts
Provide an alias when arrested
Get a job or file false tax returns
Get Payday Loans in your name
Obtain service agreements for cellular service or utilities
Obtain Government Documents such as a drivers license or passport
And MORE!
That’s why I highly recommend you get some sort of ongoing identity theft protection such as the services offered through companies like LifeLock-Visit Their Website Here! LifeLock is a reputable company that monitors your accounts and alerts and protects you from identity theft.
Have you received a suspicious email from DigiWeb Media Group Inc offering you a “job” you never applied for? Feel free to copy and paste the email in the comments so we can help alert and prevent others from becoming victims.
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Disclosure** We get paid a commission when you purchase from LifeLock using one of our links.
Morning,
Good news: I reviewed your contract, looks like you managed to include all
required details, such as your contact information, the desired schedule
and the signature. I have also confirmed with my supervisor that you’ll be
able to start working with us shortly. Can’t wait to see you on board!
There are only 2 more forms to fill out and finalize the employment
process, they are in the attachment to this email.
– 2015 W4 Form
First of all, I’m sending you a W4, which is required for calculating your
income tax deductions. If you have issues with opening/viewing the file,
please use the following link to download it directly from the IRS
website: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw4.pdf As for 2016 W4, I’ll send
one to you in January.
– Banking Form
Also, since we are hiring you to operate as our company’s representative,
you will need a bank account. The reason is quite simple: you will be an
authorized representative of Websites Unlimited communicating directly
with our clients, which would entail receiving the fees for their orders
and paying the technical specialists working on such projects. You can use
an existing checking account for working with us or open a new one. It
could even be a business one: “Your name DBA DigiWeb Media”. Let me know
if you need assistance with setting up a business account please.
IMPORTANT: You start working with clients only AFTER they have signed a
contract for web development services with our company. All clients must
sign the paperwork, which specifically declares that even if the clients
change their mind about ordering services with us, the advance payment
will not be returned. Also, in order to protect both you, and the company
we insist that all client payments are sent directly to your bank, where
the origin of the funds can be verified and the funds are cleared by the
financial institution before being released.
I have also included a file with more information about the company as
well as some brief FAQ on the position.
Please fill both forms out and email back to me. As soon as I receive and
verify both documents, I will set you the access to our corporate web
server, where you will find the training materials. I will also find out
which supervisor you will be assigned to and make the formal introduction.
—
Best regards,
Rose Mulligan, HR Executive
DigiWeb Media Group
Call us: (941) 306-2133
Thank you for providing this information! It’s exactly as I suspected. First they tell you your banking info is for your paycheck to be deposited, then the real reason comes out in the following email detailing the use of your bank account to handle their “Client” transactions! NO legitimate business would EVER require an employee to use their personal bank account nor ask an employee to obtain a business bank account in their name to handle company business!
Rose Mulligan, HR
To
careers@digiwebmediagroup.com
Today at 8:53 AM
Good morning,
Thank you again for your interest in the Client Manager position with
DigiWeb Media! I’m sending you our standard Employment Agreement in the
attachment to this message: it includes crucial details about the position
duties, pay, schedule, benefits, etc. You can learn more about our company
and the solutions we offer at our official website:
http://digiwebmediagroup.com.
I also outlined a list of general questions about this position and the
answers to them below:
1. What do Client Managers do?
You don’t have to be a web programmer/designer or have any IT experience
at all, because your job duties won’t involve any coding, web design or
any other activities that require technical qualifications or education.
As a Client Manager you will be a key player in every stage of the
process, from managing customers and processing their orders to monitoring
product/services delivery in assigned developer teams from United States
and Europe.
2. What hours will I be working?
There are 2 work shift options: you can work either part-time (20 hours
per week), or full-time (40 hours per week). The hours in the Employment
Agreement are given for YOUR time zone; they include an optional lunch
break for 1 hour: if you don’t need one, you can simply start later or
finish your day earlier. Unfortunately, working weekends or evenings isn’t
an option. It is possible to start working part-time and switch to
full-time later (or vice versa); however, you will need to notify us at
least in 2 weeks prior to the desired schedule changes.
3. What are the salary and bonuses for the position?
The starting salary is $3850 per month for full-time and $2000 per month
for part-time; this is a guaranteed monthly pay, not commission-based. All
numbers are given before taxes: you will receive a W4 form to fill out,
which will be used to calculate your state income tax deductions. The pay
is direct deposited into your account every 10 business days since your
actual start date. Just to make it clear: a start date would be your first
day on the job, not the effective date on the Employment Agreement.
A bonus in the amount of 20% of your monthly pay will also be added to
your paycheck per each client you’ve been working with during the month,
if there have been no complaints both from the client on your support
quality, and from your supervisor on your performance. However, if you
have been rude to a client, failed to meet the given deadline for an
assignment, or showed up late for work without a prior notice to your
supervisor, your bonus will most likely be cancelled.
4. Does the company provide me with a laptop?
No, we don’t provide our employees with equipment, because any device with
the Internet access will be suitable for this job. If you have a laptop or
a Mac, a tablet of a smartphone, you will be able to access our corporate
server.
5. Is there special training for this job?
We offer a free online training course for 1-2 days, which are considered
as your first days of work and are paid by the company. The training
materials will be available upon your signing all paperwork and officially
becoming a new employee of DigiWeb Media.
6. How do I get started?
When you’re ready, please print out the Employment Agreement, fill in your
contact details and put the start date of your choice, then sign the
document, scan it and send back to me by email. If you don’t have a
scanner, you can simply make a legible photo of a signed contract and
email it to me.
I will review the paperwork, ask additional questions if necessary, and
then send you the rest of forms to fill out, such as the W4, payroll, etc.
We’re looking for people who can start working with us ASAP, preferably
next week. If you have questions, please feel free to call me or email
them to me as well.
—
Best regards,
Rose Mulligan, HR Executive
DigiWeb Media Group
Call us: (941) 306-2133
Ohh and the CEO her name this time is Susan Church.
Good thing I looked and did my research.
Thank you so much for sharing this information with our readers! Just as I suspected! This is a huge help in warning and preventing potential victims!