A practical guide for job seekers

You find a promising job in a search result, a social-media group, or a message from a recruiter. The title fits your qualifications, the pay sounds attractive, and the advert urges you to apply today. Before you send a résumé or any personal document, spend a few minutes finding the original posting and checking its details. That small pause can save you from an expired listing, a role you do not qualify for, or a person pretending to represent the employer.

This guide shows how to trace an advert to its source, compare the requirements, handle requests for fees and documents, and keep a clear record of your applications. You can use the same process for a retail job, a hospital role, an apprenticeship, or a government recruitment notice. The exact rules come from the posting for the role you choose.

Start with the employer not the advert

An advert on a job board or social platform is a starting point. Find the organisation named in it. Search for its official website yourself, then look for a Careers, Jobs, Vacancies or Recruitment section. If the role is with a government department, find that department’s recruitment page and the original notification.

Search for the exact job title. If the advert gives a reference or notification number, search for that too. Compare the location and department. A company may have several openings with similar titles, and a vacancy for one city or shift may not suit you even if the headline does.

Sometimes an employer directs applicants to a separate hiring platform. In that case, the employer’s site or original notification should identify the platform or link to it. Follow that route. Avoid entering identity details into a lookalike form reached only through a forwarded message.

Example: A post says “Store Assistant, Jaipur, apply by Friday.” You find the employer’s careers page, but it lists “Warehouse Associate, Jaipur” and “Store Assistant, Pune.” These are different opportunities. Do not assume the forwarded advert is correct. Look for a matching reference number or ask the employer through the contact details on its own website.

If you cannot find the role, that alone does not prove the advert is fake. The application period may have ended, the employer may use a hiring partner, or the page may be temporarily unavailable. What matters is whether you can confirm the opportunity through a channel you found independently. If you cannot, pause before sharing documents or money.

Compare six details before applying

Once you have found what appears to be the original notice, compare it with the advert that brought you there. Write down the answers rather than relying on memory.

Detail	What to check	Why it matters
Employer and role	Legal or trading name, exact title, department and reference number	Similar names can refer to different employers or jobs.
Location and arrangement	City, workplace, shifts, remote or on-site expectations	“Work from home” in a repost may actually be hybrid or location-limited.
Application period	Posting date, deadline and time zone if stated	Old adverts can continue to circulate after applications close.
Eligibility	Education, experience, age, licence, registration and language requirements that apply	A broad headline rarely captures every condition.
Compensation	Whether pay is stated, estimated, conditional or omitted	A salary on a third-party advert may differ from the employer’s offer.
Application route	Official form, email, walk-in venue or authorised platform	It tells you where your information is going.

If the two versions disagree, treat the employer’s current notice as your main reference. Do not quietly fill gaps with guesses. For instance, a general article may say that some cashier jobs accept Class 12, but the specific opening could require prior point-of-sale experience. The specific posting decides whether you should apply.

Save the original URL and, when available, the notification number. If the employer later changes or removes the page, you will still know which role you applied for. A screenshot can help you remember the terms you saw, but return to the live official page before you submit because dates and instructions can change.

Read the actual duties not only the job title

Titles can be broad. “Executive” might mean a desk role, a field-sales job, or shift-based customer support. “Associate” might involve billing, stock handling, calls or delivery coordination. Look for the daily responsibilities and ask yourself whether they match your skills and the work you want.

Pay attention to employment type. A permanent employee, a fixed-term contractor, a trainee, an apprentice and a delivery partner may do related work but receive different pay arrangements, benefits and protections. If the advert does not say which arrangement applies, ask before accepting an interview or offer. Also check who employs you: the named brand, a staffing agency, a franchisee or another company.

Example: A listing uses a familiar retailer’s name, but the application form says a local staffing firm will be the employer. That may be a contract role. It is still important to know who will issue the offer letter, pay wages and handle workplace questions. Confirm this with the recruiter in writing.

Check salary carefully

Many career pages discuss “typical salary,” but an estimate is not an offer. Separate three things: the figure in a general article, the range in the job advert, and the amount in the written offer. They may differ because of location, shift, experience, commission, overtime, deductions or employment type.

If a posting promises a wide range, ask how the actual pay is calculated. Is the top end dependent on sales targets or attendance? Is the figure monthly or annual, gross or take-home? Are accommodation, meals or travel included, optional or deducted? These are practical questions to ask before you make a decision.

If the original notice does not publish a salary, write “salary not stated” in your application notes. Do not treat a number copied across several job blogs as confirmation. During an interview, ask when the employer will provide the pay breakdown and whether any part is variable. Read that breakdown in the written offer before you accept.

Understand fees without relying on slogans

Fee advice needs precision. Some official recruitment processes state an application or examination fee, along with category exemptions and a payment route. Other employers do not charge applicants. Check the original notice for the role you are applying to.

The useful distinction is who is asking for money, what the charge is for, and where it is paid. A fee named in an official notification and collected through its designated application route is different from a person requesting payment to “confirm selection,” release an offer letter, or reserve a guaranteed job. Never assume a payment is official because the message contains a logo or says “HR.”

Before paying a stated application fee, confirm the amount and exemption rules on the official notice. Reach the payment page through the employer’s or authority’s application route. Keep the receipt. If someone asks you to send money to a personal account or to pay outside the published process, stop and verify with the organisation independently.

Decide what documents to share and when

An application may request a résumé and details relevant to the role. Later stages may require proof of qualification, identity, licence or professional registration. The document list should make sense for the job and stage of hiring.

Read the upload page before you submit. Is it linked from the official vacancy? Does it tell you who receives the information? Does it ask only for what is needed now? You do not have to send every document in your folder to a stranger just because they say it will speed up your selection.

Never share passwords or one-time codes used to sign in to your accounts. Treat requests for bank-login details as a reason to stop. Banking information for payroll is a different matter and is generally discussed after an offer or during joining, through an employer channel you have verified.

Keep your original certificates with you unless a formal, clearly explained process requires them for inspection. If a recruiter asks to hold originals as a “security deposit,” ask the employer directly what its policy is before handing anything over.

Check the person who contacted you

A recruiter may reach you by phone, email, text or a professional network. The channel alone cannot establish whether the contact is genuine. A company email address can be imitated, and a real recruiter may sometimes use a hiring platform. Verify the role and the recruiter’s connection to it through the employer’s published website or contact line.

Look for inconsistencies: a changed job title, a new deadline not shown officially, an unexplained request for money, pressure to act immediately, or a form hosted on an unrelated domain. One inconsistency is a reason to investigate, not necessarily a final verdict. Ask for the posting reference and the name of the employing organisation. A recruiter should be able to explain the process clearly.

If a message claims you have been selected before any application or assessment, pause. Check the employer’s published process. Do not let urgency replace verification.

Apply with a record you can use later

Once the role checks out, tailor your résumé to the actual duties. A cashier application should show customer service, accuracy and comfort with billing; a warehouse application should show stock handling, reliability and any relevant shift experience. Use examples from school projects, training, volunteering or prior work where they honestly demonstrate the skill.

After submitting, keep a simple application log. A spreadsheet, notebook or phone note is enough:

Field	Example of what to record
Employer and role	Exact name and title from the original posting
Reference	Job or notification number, if provided
Source	Official page URL
Date and deadline	When you applied and when applications close
Contact	Verified recruiter name or employer contact route
Confirmation	Application number or receipt
Next step	Interview date, test date or follow-up reminder

This log prevents mix-ups when you apply to several similar jobs. It also helps when a caller says, “We are contacting you about your application.” You can ask for the job reference and compare it with your own record.

Three common situations worked through

The advert is old, but the employer has a new opening. Do not reuse an old application link or copy the old requirements. Read the new notice from the beginning and make a fresh application. If you wrote an article about the old opening, mark it closed and link to the current recruitment page only after checking it.

A job board lists a higher salary than the employer. Keep both figures separate. Ask whether the board includes incentives, overtime or benefits, and request the employer’s written breakdown. Make your decision using the actual offer, rather than the highest number on a search result.

A recruiter says an official fee must be paid immediately. Find the fee in the original notification, including any exemption. Follow the payment route from the official application page. If the recruiter wants payment somewhere else, do not send it while the discrepancy remains unresolved.

Questions to ask before accepting an offer

An interview is also your chance to understand the job. Pick the questions that matter for the role:

• Who will be my legal employer, and what type of contract will I receive?
• What are the work location, shifts, weekly rest days and expected start date?
• What is the fixed pay, what is variable, and what deductions or benefits apply?
• Will training be paid, and is any period described as a trial or apprenticeship?
• Who supervises the role, and what will a normal day involve?
• When will I receive the written offer and joining instructions?

You may not get every answer in the first call. That is fine. Before you accept, ask for the important terms in writing. If a recruiter changes the terms after the interview, compare the new offer with what was advertised and decide whether it still suits you.

A fiveminute preapplication checklist

Before you press Submit, confirm that you can answer these questions:

1. Can I identify the employer and find the original posting or an independently confirmed hiring route?
2. Does the exact role match my location, qualifications and preferred work arrangement?
3. Is the application still open according to the employer’s current information?
4. Do I understand whether the pay is official, estimated or not stated?
5. Am I submitting through the published route and sharing only the documents requested at this stage?
6. If there is a fee, is it stated in the original notice and paid through its designated route?
7. Have I saved the URL, reference number and application confirmation?

If one answer is unclear, check it before moving forward. A careful application to a role you can verify is more valuable than a rushed submission to a headline you cannot trace.

Frequently asked questions

Is a job fake if it does not appear on the employers website

Not automatically. Some employers use outside hiring platforms or local recruitment partners, and some pages disappear after a deadline. Confirm the arrangement through a contact route you find independently on the employer’s official website before sharing sensitive documents or paying anything.

Should I trust a recruiter with a company email address

An address is one clue, not complete proof. Compare the role, reference number and application route with the employer’s published information. If something does not match, contact the employer using details from its own website.

What if a government application has a fee

Read the official notification. It should state the amount, exemptions and payment method for that recruitment. Do not pay an individual who promises selection or asks you to use a different route.

Can I apply if the article says I qualify but the job notice says otherwise

Follow the specific job notice. General guides describe common routes; the employer or recruiting authority sets the requirements for each opening.

Editorial note: This guide gives general application advice and does not confirm a current vacancy, employer policy, salary or recruitment fee. For a specific role, read the original employer or authority notice. A live vacancy article should include its source, last-checked date, deadline and status.