Jobseekers scammed out of personal ID info

SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- At least eight people have been duped into thinking they might have a job with JetBlue Airways. They showed up at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, only to find out the job didn't exist. Now, their personal information is in the hands of thieves.

The job listing promised a chance to work as a reservation agent at JetBlue Airways at John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana. This was a scam, because JetBlue doesn't operate out of John Wayne Airport.

By the time the unknowing victims sent their applications online, it was too late.

"The application asks for their Social Security number, a lot of personal info that someone would commonly use for identity theft," said Orange County Sheriff's Spokesman Jim Amormino.

Someone posted the job online last week through Craigslist.

Authorities say some applicants even got a call telling them to show up for a job interview, giving them an address: 18904 Airport Way, next to the airport. The problem is that address doesn't exist.

Some victims then came into the airport to ask about the JetBlue jobs.

"Some people have inquired at our administrative office or called one of our airport operators to inquire and and have learned that that is false," said Jenny Wedge, John Wayne Airport spokesperson.

The job posting was pulled from Craigslist over the weekend. Authorities say they don't know how many victims there are. This was the first job scam like this to turn up in Orange County.

"This is somewhat of a clever scam," said Amormino. "There was a fax number with 949 and a telephone number with a 949 number, which came back to a cell phone,"

JetBlue is aware of the scam. In a statement, the airline said: "JetBlue does not nor have we ever used Craigslist to accept job applications. The only way to apply for a job at JetBlue is directly via our website, jetblue.com."

Authorities say so far no victims have reported any unauthorized charges to bank accounts. But officials say they should contact their credit bureaus.

"Flag all their credit cards and warn them they may be a victim of identity theft," said Amormino.

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