SINGAPORE: Like many jobseekers, he thought nothing of it when
his employer made copies of his identity card. After all, the
21-year-old, who only wanted to be known as Jack, had his identity card
photocopied when he applied for previous part-time jobs.
But the past weekend turned out to be a nightmare for Jack. His home
was targeted by loan sharks: A shoe rack was set on fire on Saturday
and paint was splashed on his door early Monday morning.
Jack believes he had unwittingly given his personal details as part of
an illegal loan transaction. Told that his part-time job involved the
securing of property loans, Jack’s “work” included picking up calls,
giving his personal details and handing over money transferred into his
personal bank account to his employer.
Jack, who has lodged a police report, is not alone. TODAY understands
that at least eight people may have fallen victim to this alleged
employment scam. A police spokesperson said investigations are ongoing.
Other jobseekers who have disclosed their personal details have found
themselves on the receiving end of unsolicited sales pitches of
insurance and other products.
Last month, Mr Jason Lim received three calls from insurance agencies
after his online resume was viewed by six financial advisory firms or
insurance-related companies.
“I felt that my private information had been misused and it could have
been worse,” said the 28-year-old. “Imagine an illegal group using the
information to make a hoax kidnapping threat. They basically have all
my personal information.”
Ms Jennifer De Souza, who responded to a classified ad asking
jobseekers to reply with an SMS of their names and dates of birth,
found herself receiving six calls within a week from companies peddling
insurance and other products.
“Does MOM (Ministry of Manpower) check whether these companies have an
opening or do they just collect information for a database of these
applicants?” she wondered.
Pointing to the Employment Agency Licensing Conditions, an MOM
spokesperson said licensed agencies cannot give, divulge or reveal to
any persons, directly or indirectly, any information regarding any
client without the client’s written consent. Otherwise, the agency’s
licence may be revoked.
The MOM has not received any complaints against the more than 2,000
licensed employment agencies here on the misuse of client information
this year, added the spokesperson.
But jobseekers enter into a grey area when they turn to online job
portals and classified ads. Portals that allow employers and jobseekers
to search and post job postings and resumes need not be licensed. Only
those that match and place jobseekers have to be.
At present, there is no generic personal data protection law, even
though there are strict provisions that apply to specific sectors.
These include the Banking Act and codes for medical professionals to
protect sensitive information about a person’s finances and health.
Online job portals TODAY contacted said they do not sell databases of
jobseekers and have put in place measures to prevent unscrupulous
businesses from mining personal data other than for employment
purposes.
Mr Lim Der Shing, chief executive for job portal JobsCentral, believes
the situation is worse offline. “Actually, offline, an unscrupulous
business could also run a newspaper ad claiming to have lots of job
positions and use the resultant databases generated for other purposes
such as sales,” he said.
With the economy in the doldrums, jobseekers such as Ms De Souza and
Jack hope that the authorities will crack down on unscrupulous
employers.
“Please do not make us a fool, requesting a resume and not getting back
to us,” said Ms de Souza, who has been unemployed since last August.
Jack, who is awaiting National Service enlistment, is enduring
sleepless nights. He stays up to monitor a surveillance camera he has
installed, worried that his family members may be harmed.
On Monday, the family even bought a cable cutter in case the loan
sharks chain their gates. “I only wanted to earn some income and help
my family. I never thought it could end up like this,” said Jack.
- TODAY/vm